Rolls-Royce marks end of Wraith era with Black Arrow Collection

MANILA: Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has unveiled the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow in honor of the end of production of one of the most revolutionary motor cars in the history of the brand.

Only 12 units of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow will be produced worldwide.

The Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow is also the last V12 coupe Rolls-Royce will ever produce as it transitions to a new electric era.

The Rolls-Royce Wraith, which debuted in 2013, is one of the most notable and significant models ever produced at Goodwood. The Rolls-Royce Wraith profoundly changed perceptions of Rolls-Royce and introduced new, younger customer groups to the brand for the first time because it was more performance-focused than its predecessors, the Rolls-Royce Phantom and Rolls-Royce Ghost. Many references to the Rolls-Royce Wraith in music, film, art, and fashion highlight its wider cultural relevance.

“Wraith is one of the most significant and influential cars we have ever made at Goodwood. Its extraordinary power, performance and presence opened the Rolls-Royce brand to an entirely new group of clients. It created its own following within contemporary culture and then expanded that further in its alternative Black Badge guise. As the last examples of this landmark motor car get ready to leave Goodwood, we commemorate Wraith’s status as the last series V12 coupe we will ever make. Both Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow and its inspiration, the V12-powered land speed record-holding Thunderbolt of the thirties, represent the culmination of many long years of achievement, and the end of their respective eras. This magnificent final V12 coupe Collection captures both the significance and spirit of Wraith through the marque’s hallmark and peerless Bespoke capabilities — a fitting finale for this transformative motor car,” Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Chief Executive Officer Torsten Muller-Otvos stated.

The dramatic “fastback” silhouette of the Rolls-Royce Wraith indicated the motor car's dynamic purpose, which was further enhanced in 2016 with the release of Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith in 2016, a provocative and even more powerful expression of this groundbreaking vehicle that offered some of the highest levels of performance ever realized by a V12-powered Rolls-Royce.

When deciding on the best way to mark the conclusion of the Wraith era, Goodwood's designers and engineers looked to an equally major V12 in Rolls-Royce's lengthy and illustrious history for inspiration for the Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow Collection. In 1938, Captain George Eyston, whose daring endeavors epitomize the Black Badge spirit, established the world land speed record in 1938 with Thunderbolt, an eight-wheeled, seven-ton behemoth powered by two Rolls-Royce V12 “R” Series aero engines, at 575.335kph. The Second World War's outbreak the following year put an end to Eyston's effort. All following records have been established with other engine types and configurations, cementing Thunderbolt as the fastest V12-powered vehicle ever made.

The renowned Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah was the site of Thunderbolt's record-breaking attempts. It was nearly impossible to determine exactly when the car passed the timing equipment due to reflections from its polished aluminum body flashing in the bright white surface's glare and the scorching desert heat. Eyston's simple but brilliant idea was to paint a large black arrow with a central yellow circle motif that was visible even at high speeds on the sides of the car. This is the origin of the name and unique historical context of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow Collection.

Celebration Silver and Black Diamond are the two tones that make up the unique Bespoke finish of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow. The Black Diamond paint has been enhanced with a glass-infused “Crystal” paint over layer to smooth out the transition between the two colors and create a dramatic motion blur effect from front to rear. With the use of a special Bespoke technique, the coachwork is given a delicate texture modeled after the crusted Bonneville Salt Flats surface. This texture is layered beneath a high gloss lacquer that is polished for more than 12 hours to produce a glass-like sheen.

The creation of this remarkable finish required Rolls-Royce to spend 18 months in surface testing and development before Rolls-Royce's Bespoke Collective of engineers, craftspeople, and designers produced a result suited to Rolls-Royce standards. Gradient Paint is one of the most technically challenging paints Rolls-Royce has ever produced due to the extensive time commitment in establishing the material chemistry, application technique, and surface finishing.

Bright Yellow bumper inserts and Bespoke wheel pinstripes give contrast to the gradient paint, delicately evoking the yellow circle within Thunderbolt's black arrow. Another Rolls-Royce first, the Black Arrow's V-struts, which are situated in front of the engine and behind the radiator grille, are also finished in Bright Yellow. This subtly draws attention to the V12 engine, which is hidden behind the Black Badge grille's dark chrome surround. This use of Bright Yellow continues to the base of the vehicle's layered carbon fiber Spirit of Ecstasy, which features an etching of the Collection name and a Bright Yellow ring detail.

Black Arrow's interior is equipped with a new material type that was specially made for the Collection. As a subtle contrast to the matte Rolls-Royce natural-grain black leather, the armrests, seat gussets, transmission tunnel, door detail, door panniers, and lower dashboard panel are all finished in Club Leather. This leather is intentionally glossier and even deeper in color. To give the interior more noticeable “life lines” and a closer likeness to what was once described as “the club-armchair type of driving seat which George [Eyston> prefers above all others,” the natural markings of the leather were deliberately emphasized. Bright Yellow is applied to the front seat leather in keeping with the Black Badge series' usage of bold color pulses. The outer headrest of the seat has an embroidered arrow motif that provides tactile detail and alludes to the painted arrow symbol on Thunderbolt's aluminum body, which enables the electric timing equipment to “see” and record the car traveling at top speed.

All 12 units of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow have all been reserved to customers worldwide.

Photos from Rolls-Royce

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