Rolls Royce – are there two words more synonymous with excellence? When unimaginative sales folk wish to drive home just how marvellous their particular product is, the term “The Rolls Royce of…” is inevitably rolled out – the Rolls Royce of garden hoses, the Rolls Royce of nail clippers, the Rolls Royce of industrial extractor fans…
This then gives Rolls Royce something of a problem. How can it express the innate Rolls Royceiness of its own products without sounding a little “me too”? Denied the easy superlative, the company has to be more inventive when it comes to its own marketing spiel. Thus Rolls Royce’s latest creation – the Dawn – is catchily described as being by far the quietest and most structurally rigid convertible car in the world.
The emphasis on the hush is understandable. Historically, after all, the company has prided itself on the fact that its cars are so quiet that their loudest component is a softly ticking clock. The stiffness claim, however, seems rather less de rigueur for a Roller.
Traditionally, chassis stiffness is something that performance car makers tend to take pride in. The more ridged the frame, the harder a car can corner without any unwelcome chassis-flex making the suspension geometry go all wonky.
This is a particular problem when it comes to taking an angle grinder to an existing fixed-head vehicle in order to render it a convertible. Hacking the roof off weakens the body shell, forcing a compromise between adding more metal to stiffen up the remaining half-car or simply putting up with a chassis that bends around the bends.
The new Dawn shares a base platform with its fellow Rollers, the four-door saloon Ghost and two-door Wraith coupé. Inevitably, then, its designers had to contend with similar roof-chopping problems. Faced with a choice of light-but-flexi or stiff-but-heavy, they seem to have opted for the latter. At 2,560 kilogrammes, this Dawn couldn’t be described as being on the light side.
The agility lost to that enormous mass is, of course, irrelevant in the case of a Rolls Royce. The added stiffness it delivers is much more in keeping with its promise of luxurious cruising. A stiffer chassis provides a smoother ride, along with greater cornering prowess, and it’s in the silkiness department that the Dawn truly excels.
Its air suspension system has been carried over from the Rolls Royce Wraith, which is lighter and – dare one say it of Rolls Royce? – a little sportier. As the Dawn is somewhat heavier than its stable mate, this results in both a softer ride and sleepier handling. Thankfully, the Dawn is fitted with new active anti-roll bars that temper its nautical inclinations when it comes to cornering.
When cruising along a fairly rough surface with the soft-top up you can’t help but wonder whether Rolls Royce has actually created the ultimate virtual reality simulator rather than the ultimate convertible. The scenery whizzes past with the occasional barely-detectable murmur through the seats, and, while the Dawn encounters the larger bumps and potholes, beyond that there is barely any sensation. No road noise from the tyres, no wind rush through the six-layer fabric roof, no hum from the 6.6 -litre V12 engine, no vibration through the steering wheel.
The Dawn, then, must either have very good ride quality and sound insulation, or very convincing simulation displays where the windscreen should be.
This illusion, though, is shattered as soon as you press the accelerator pedal hard to the floor. Heavy though the Dawn is, its twin-turbo, 563bhp power plant is more than equal to delivering urgent propulsion whenever it is called upon.
At full throttle, passengers are left in no doubt that the car is accelerating in the real world. And accelerating hard. There is, however, little in the way of the usual heavy metal soundtrack to accompany the hurtling. You could almost be in an electric car, save for the petrol gauge moving towards empty at a rather alarming rate.
Power delivery is, predictably, very smooth. Even with forced induction coming courtesy of the exhaust-driven turbochargers, rather than the more predictable electrically-driven superchargers, there is no hint of power lag or sudden surge. Peak torque comes at a sleepy 1,500rpm, ensuring that the car is never caught unawares when an immediate burst of speed is required.
From a standing start, the Dawn will silently dash to 62mph in five seconds dead, going on to a limited top speed of 155mph. Only the elite of the modern sports car world could beat it leaving the traffic lights, should any Roller driver stoop to such hooliganism.
Acceleration is about the only aspect of the sports car repertoire where the Dawn has any prowess. The steering is very light – perfect for insulating the pilot from road imperfections, but less than ideal for reading road conditions through the fingertips.
Despite the vague sensations channelled through the wheel, it’s surprisingly easy to accurately place the Dawn on the road. The car obeys control inputs well, albeit at a stately – rather than a sporty – pace.
When pressed, the Dawn will give way to under-steer at the limit of grip. This sees it washing wide in corners, with an accompanying shriek of outrage at it being asked to do anything so undignified as hurry.
It’s unlikely, then, that any driver will persist in such antics. The lack of feel, combined with sluggish weight transfer from braking to cornering posture, make the Dawn unsatisfying to drive hard – unsettling almost. That, of course, is not what it’s designed for.
Wafting through the bends fairly fast – rather than very fast – is the standard Rolls Royce modus operandi, and so driven, the Dawn’s great mass becomes a positive boon. Its great inertia, combined with its absorbent suspension, helps to isolate passengers from all but the most Himalayan of road blemishes, as well as making sure that the tyres maintain a firm hold.
Of course, unlike most cars, such perfect isolation is optional in the Dawn. Curtail the velocity to less than 30mph and – at the flick of a switch – the soft-top will fetchingly tuck itself away behind the rear seats.
Top down, however, matters become rather less serene, with the wind buffeting at higher speeds somewhat considerable. Thankfully, a wind deflector is on offer to reduce this toupée-thrashing tempest, but at the expense of covering the rear seats.
At lower speeds, open air driving is a much more pleasant prospect. Even stripped of its sound-deadening roof, there’s little more than a self-assured, bass sigh from the V12. And, should a cloud burst loom, it takes just 22 seconds to re-seal the cocoon.
All the weight-loss gained in the roof amputation process, though, is somewhat mitigated by the car’s unconventional door arrangement. The two rear-hinged “coach” doors add extra strength where it’s most needed – in a chop-top, in the middle of the car. The coach doors also provide comfortable access for rear seat passengers, removing the need for an undignified scramble, even when the folding hood is in place.
Its 5.3-metre overall length leaves plenty of space within for the Dawn to be a proper four-seater, unlike most convertibles’ two-plus-two arrangements. Tall adults will find both ample head and leg room – more accommodating even than the permanently-roofed Rolls Royce Wraith. The rear-seat rack is also surprisingly good, coming with a comfortably reclined backrest instead of the bolt-upright stress position inflicted on rear passengers in most convertibles.
Good rear seating and space for the hood, however, leave the luggage compartment less cavernous than you might hope for, though there’s space enough for two good-sized suitcases. This, however, is a car for touring the south of France in summer, not hauling four adults’ ski clobber to the Alps in winter.
Whether in terms of the front or rear, the Dawn’s interior is an exercise in true elegance. While most luxury carmakers offer interiors with as many gimmicks as possible, Rolls Royce favours quality over quantity. You can feel the heritage in each flawless leather stitch and every inch of deeply-stained wood veneer.
The quality of workmanship throughout the car is a given. Rather more uncertain however, is the final aesthetic. Rolls Royce are actively targeting younger buyers with the Dawn, as well as with the Wraith, and, to a degree, the Ghost.
In order to appeal to this nouveau riche target market, the car comes with a bewildering array of options when it comes to every aspect of the interior and exterior. Alarming colour contrasts, both inside and out, are more than possible for those hell-bent on making sure everyone notices this four-wheeled exercise in true “bling.”
Predictably, the majority of the items on the options list do not come cheap. While the base price for the Dawn is around £250,000, most buyers are likely to hand over more than £300,000 after taking their particular pick of the many flawlessly crafted bells and whistles.
Overall, though, the Dawn has few credible competitors. The larger Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead will soon be discontinued, leaving the Dawn as the only convertible boasting a Spirit of Ecstasy figurehead.
The Bentley Continental Convertible, while undeniably luxurious and prestigious, is far smaller than the Dawn, especially at the rear. It also offers a sportier ride quality while being notably noisier inside. And, at around £100,000 cheaper, it’s also a great deal less exclusive than the Roller.
You could, perhaps, consider Maserati’s GranCabrio or perhaps even Ferrari’s California, though both are much smaller and sportier. In truth, there are no other car that offer the Dawn’s combination of space, comfort, speed and, of course, prestige.
The Dawn, then, lives up to its maker’s grand heritage. It is both the cabriolet of Rolls Royces as well as the Rolls Royce of cabriolets. And that can’t be bad.
Rolls Royce Dawn
Engine: 6.6 litre twin turbo V12
Power: 563bhp at 5250rpm
Torque: 575lb ft at 1500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic through rear wheel drive
0-62mph: 5.0 seconds
Top speed: 155mph (limited)
Price: from £250,000 (HK$2.7 million plus import duty)
Above: It’ll soon be the only convertible with the Spirit of Ecstasy figurehead