Rolls-Royce Motor Cars

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This article is about the BMW subsidiary established in 1998. It is not to be confused with Rolls-Royce
Motors.

For other uses, see Rolls-Royce.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars logo.svg

Type

Subsidiary

Industry

Manufacturing

Distribution

Founded United Kingdom (March 1998)

Headquarters Goodwood, West Sussex, England, United Kingdom

Area served

Worldwide

Key people

Torsten Müller-Ötvös

(CEO)

Peter Schwarzenbauer

Chairman

Giles Taylor

(Design Director)[1]

Products

Phantom
Cullinan

Ghost

Wraith

Dawn

Services Automobile customisation

Number of employees

1,300 (2014)

Parent BMW

Website rolls-roycemotorcars.com

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited is a British luxury automobile maker. A wholly owned subsidiary of
German group BMW, it was established in 1998 after BMW was licensed the rights to the Rolls-Royce
brand name and logo from Rolls-Royce plc and acquired the rights to the Spirit of Ecstasy and Rolls-
Royce grill shape trademarks from Volkswagen AG. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited operates from
purpose-built administrative and production facilities opened in 2003 across from the historic
Goodwood Circuit in Goodwood, West Sussex, England, United Kingdom. Rolls-Royce Motors Cars
Limited is the exclusive manufacturer of Rolls-Royce branded motor cars since 2003.

Although the Rolls-Royce brand has been in use since 1906, the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars subsidiary of
BMW AG has no direct relationship to Rolls-Royce branded vehicles produced prior to 2003. The Bentley
Motors Limited subsidiary of Volkswagen AG is the direct successor to Rolls-Royce Motors and various
other predecessor entities that produced Rolls-Royce and Bentley branded cars between the foundation
of each company and 2003, when the BMW-controlled entity started producing cars under the Rolls-
Royce brand.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom four-door sedan was the first product offered for sale in 2003. Since then, the
company has expanded its product line to include extended wheelbase, two-door coupé, and
convertible versions of the Phantom sedan, as well as the smaller Ghost four-door sedan, Wraith two-
door coupé, Dawn convertible, and the Cullinan SUV.

Contents
1 History

1.1 Ownership and licensing of trademarks

2 Products

2.1 Current

2.1.1 Ghost

2.1.2 Wraith

2.1.3 Dawn

2.1.4 Phantom

2.1.5 Cullinan

2.2 Former

2.2.1 Phantom

2.3 Concept vehicles

3 Sales

4 See also

5 References

6 Further reading

7 External links

History

Spirit of Ecstasy, the bonnet ornament sculpture on Rolls-Royce cars

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited was created as a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW in 1998 after BMW
licensed the rights to the Rolls-Royce brand name and logo from Rolls-Royce Holdings plc and acquired
the rights to the Spirit of Ecstasy and Rolls-Royce grille shape trademarks from Volkswagen AG. Rolls-
Royce Motor Cars Limited has been manufacturing Rolls-Royce branded cars since 2003.

Although the Rolls-Royce brand has been in use on vehicles since 1906, the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
subsidiary of BMW AG has no direct relationship to Rolls-Royce branded vehicles produced prior to
2003. The Bentley subsidiary of Volkswagen AG is the direct successor to Rolls-Royce Motors and the
other various predecessor entities that produced Rolls-Royce and Bentley branded cars between the
foundation of each company and 2003.

Current chief executive Torsten Müller-Ötvös joined the company in January 2010, with a pledge to
regain the quality standards that made Rolls-Royce famous. That year sales in China increased by 600%,
making it the company's second largest market after the US.[2]

Ownership and licensing of trademarks

In 1998, Vickers decided to sell Rolls-Royce Motors. The most likely buyer was BMW, which already
supplied engines and other components for Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars, but BMW's final offer of £340
million was beaten by Volkswagen's £430 million.

A stipulation in the ownership documents of Rolls-Royce dictated that Rolls-Royce plc, the aero-engine
maker, would retain certain essential trademarks, including the Rolls-Royce name and logo if the
automotive division was sold. Although Vickers plc sold the vehicle designs, nameplates, administrative
headquarters, production facilities, Spirit of Ecstasy and Rolls-Royce grille shape trademarks to
Volkswagen AG, Rolls-Royce plc chose to license the Rolls-Royce name and logo to BMW AG for £40
million, because Rolls-Royce plc had recently had joint business ventures with BMW.

BMW's contract to supply engines and components to Rolls-Royce Motors allowed BMW to cancel the
contract with 12 months' notice. Volkswagen would be unable to re-engineer the Rolls-Royce and
Bentley vehicles to use other engines within that time frame. With the Rolls-Royce brand identification
marks split between the two companies and Volkswagen's engine supply in jeopardy, the two
companies entered into negotiations.

Volkswagen agreed to sell BMW the Spirit of Ecstasy and grille shape trademarks and BMW agreed to
continue supplying engines and components until 2003. Volkswagen continued to produce Rolls-Royce
branded vehicles between 1998 and 2003. This gave BMW time to build a new Rolls-Royce
administrative headquarters and production facility on the Goodwood Estate near Chichester, West
Sussex, and develop the Phantom, the first Rolls-Royce from the new company. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
Limited became the exclusive manufacturer of Rolls-Royce branded cars in 2003. Rolls-Royce announced
in September 2014 that a new technology and logistics centre will be built, due to open in 2016, 8 miles
away from the main headquarters, in the seaside resort town of Bognor Regis.[3]
Products

Current

Ghost

Rolls-Royce Ghost

From 2010 – Ghost 4-door sedan. Rolls-Royce announced in September 2006 that it would develop a
new four-door model named Ghost. The Ghost will be smaller than the previous Rolls-Royce automobile
launched, the Phantom. Only 20% of the components would be sourced from BMW F01 7 Series, and it
will be positioned below the Phantom.[4]

On 4 March 2014, the new Ghost Series II was revealed to the public at the Geneva Motor Show.[5] It
has a facelift front with new LED headlights. The interior has had an update as well.

Wraith

Rolls-Royce Wraith

From 2013 – Rolls-Royce Wraith coupé. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars launched a new car at the Geneva
Motor Show on 5 March 2013.[6] The new car, named the Rolls-Royce Wraith (in honour of the original
Wraith built by the original Rolls-Royce Limited from 1938 to 1939) is a luxury coupe, with a long bonnet
and a sleek roof line, and is a coupe version of the Ghost. It is powered by a 623 bhp, twin-turbocharged
V12 engine connected to an eight-speed gearbox.[citation needed] Deliveries were expected to begin by
the end of 2013.[7] Rolls-Royce had stated that the Wraith would be the most powerful Rolls-Royce
motor car to that date.[8]

Dawn