Rolls Royce Cullinan Better Than Black?

Rolls Royce Cullinan

Rolls Royce Cullinan

From Maharajas to the landed aristocracy, Rolls Royce has always conveyed prestige, luxury, and money, allowing the transported credible separation from the masses. And in the minds of unwashed many, Rolls has always been the king of stodgy, at least until now.  Two surprises coming out the company is  of release of it’s first SUV (if you don’t count the Phantom Vlll) shouldn’t be all that surprising considering it’s nearly the very last manufacturer to do so, and whether the world needs another SUV or not is irrelevant.  Sure to be a hit with sports stars, reality TV queens, Sean Combs, etc., but perhaps we are less in need of an ultra-lux machine capable of off-roading than something a bit, well, darker.

But Rolls has also signaled the company’s youthful future direction with the Black Badge Editions of the existing Wraith and Ghost, and some interesting demographics should tell you why.

According to Bloomberg Press: (RR owner age)

• the average age of a Rolls Royce owner is 45, down from the mid-50’s a scant decade ago.

• since the millennia, the number of millionaires in the world has increased by nearly 160%

• the number of ultra high net worth individuals (defined as having a net worth of $50 million) has increased by more than 200% and more than 50% of those people reside in North America.
• The rise of the very wealthy millennial…

Millennials are set to be the most unequal generation yet

If you don’t believe Rolls Royce is betting heavily on income disparity continuing for the next generation, here in 30 seconds is all you need to know about where British manufacturer is going…

From the now black chromed Spirit of Ecstasy to the jet black carbon fiber composite 21 inch rims, Black Badge Edition Wraiths gets nearly a 40 pound-foot torque increase and slips past 60 MPH in 4.1 seconds, besting the normal car by .3 of a second.  624 HP is the same as the normal Wraith, but is now run through an 8 speed transmission that’s smooth as silk.

Available as a $50,000 aesthetic option on both the Wraith and Ghost, the Black Badge Editions add edgy (read youthful) to the normal models.

A strong signal to the 25-45 year old market, that Rolls isn’t your grandfather’s, your father’s or even your older brother’s company anymore.

Dave Miller

Dave Miller drives the fastest, coolest, sexiest cars on the planet. He travels the world uncovering the hidden gems in luxury transportation, meeting the owners, and connecting with extraordinary car enthusiasts. Dave is a member of the Midwest Automotive Media Association and writes for various publications.

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