The Rolls-Royce brand has long been associated with bespoke luxury and automotive excellence. Rolls-Royce is much more than a brand…it is a benchmark of luxury and success. Ever since 1907, Rolls-Royce has been consistently producing ‘the best car in the world’. It takes a great deal of excellence to live up to such a legacy. Rolls-Royce achieves this by maintaining a great balance between tradition, innovation and luxury. The global demand for luxury SUV’s is increasing at a breakneck pace, especially in the emerging markets. Car manufacturers globally are hopping on the bandwagon of the ultra-luxury SUV with Bentley leading the charge. A few days ago, Rolls-Royce unveiled the Cullinan, their first SUV. You can now officially take the highest levels of luxury everywhere!
The Cullinan is built on the same platform as the Rolls-Royce Phantom – The Architecture of Luxury. This platform gives the Cullinan an incredible balance of luxury and ability to conquer all terrains. The exterior of the Cullinan is unmistakably Rolls-Royce. The distinct Pantheon inspired Rolls-Royce grille ensures the Cullinan is noticed in your side view mirror from a distance. The rectangular housing for the front headlamps is another piece of classic Rolls design. The Cullinan is a large car, its massive road presence will be a sight that won’t go unnoticed. Also, the Cullinan is bigger than the Bentley Bentayga it’s closest rival. The character lines and big shoulders make the Cullinan ooze class! The tail light design is trademark Rolls as well. Oh…and before we forget the Spirit of Ecstasy proudly takes her place at the top of the grille. As soon as you step in you are welcomed by the suicide doors for the rear passengers. This is a feature that has been a distinct part of Rolls-Royce tradition for generations. Stepping inside, you notice a lot of elements taken from the Rolls-Royce Phantom. This is not a bad thing at all! What better than having the same cabin as the best car in the world?! There are new elements as well – the Cullinan has a touchscreen infotainment, a first for Rolls-Royce. There is a knob which sits at the base of the control panel, aiding the driver to select the various drive modes. There is a Spirit of Ecstasy on top of this knob…just in case you are lost in the lap of luxury. The Cullinan comes in 2 seat configurations – in its standard form you get a regular bench rear seat layout, capable of seating 3 adults. Rolls-Royce understands that many of its customers will want the highest levels of luxury and personalization. Hence, Rolls has also offered to put 2 huge seats (RR likes to call them thrones) – ensuring the passengers in the backseat enjoy a luxurious experience. This layout allows for only 2 passengers in the rear seats. When you are paying for a Rolls-Royce, you do pay for luxury but along with it comes privacy as well. The Cullinan respects your privacy – there are 2 glass dividers where separate the cabin into 3 different sections, hence effectively isolating the passengers from the world outside. Another awesome feature on the Cullinan is that Rolls has made a seating arrangement for 2 persons, this folds out from the tailgate so that you can enjoy your weekend picnic. The popular Rolls-Royce ‘Magic Carpet Ride’ which made the Phantom untouchable with respect to riding quality is retained in the Cullinan. This has been re-engineered to cater to the needs of all-terrain ability. The air suspension on the Cullinan will ensure that you get not only the best car ride ever, but also that you can effectively take your Cullinan everywhere. There is an ‘Everywhere’ button, this is when you are in the mood to go off-road. By the simple press of this button, the onboard computers, electronics of the Cullinan in correspondence with the shock absorbers electronically tune the suspension for various terrain duties – snow, mud, gravel, sand, rocks…the Cullinan can capably take them all on. Powering the Cullinan is a massive 6.75 L V12 twin-turbo petrol engine producing a max output of 563 bhp. The Cullinan comes equipped with a whole host of safety features – collision warning, lane-departure warning, cross-traffic assist, thermal imaging driving aids for pedestrians and animals etc.
The Cullinan is named after the largest rough-cut diamond to be discovered. A rightful name for an uber-luxurious SUV part of the most luxurious car line up in the industry. Rolls-Royce has said that the Cullinan would be positioned above the Ghost but below the Phantom. With prices expected to be around the Rs.5.5 crore mark and deliveries to commence in 2019…we just can’t wait to see the Cullinan on Indian roads!
