The Next Corniche?
Rolls Royce, which is celebrating its hundredth birthday this year, kicked the party off by creating a lavish, over-the-top concept? Not limited by doors, roof, cylinders, and definitely not by cost, the world's most prestigious nameplate rings in their 100th with the 100 EX concept, a V16-powered convertible based off the outlandish Phantom sedan.
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| To celebrate the luxury marque's 100th birthday, Rolls-Royce has gone all out and created the stunning 100 EX concept. (Photo: Rolls-Royce Motor Cars) |
Whether or not Rolls Royce set out to create what would be the most expensive production car at Geneva if the luxury marque ever put it up for sale is unbeknownst to me, but it certainly drew the attention of show-goers - the basic premise of any concept car.
Its naming scheme, if you haven't figured it out yet, is simple - 100 stands for 100 years in existence, and EX for 'experimental', a term that Rolls Royce has used for many years to denote practice vehicles and mockups. Like the Phantom sedan the new concept was styled by BMW's DesignWorks studio in California, rather than at the company's British headquarters, headed by Adrian Van Hooydonk who is also responsible for the current BMW 7-Series and latest 6.
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| The 100 EX concept is powered by two BMW 4.5-liter V8 engines joined together, creating a 64-valve 9.0-liter V16. (Photo: Rolls-Royce Motor Cars) |
Similar to the "production" Bugatti 16.4 Veyron and Cadillac Sixteen concept from last year's Detroit show the engine stuffed under the long nose of the 100 EX features 16 cylinders. Rolls Royce, that is linked to BMW in more ways than just the DesignWorks studio has utilized much of the German brand's engine technology in order to create this powerplant. Two BMW 4.5-liter V8 engines, boasting 32-valve and dual overhead cam technology a piece (though stripped of their variable valve timing and variable manifolds) have been linked together to create the 64-valve 9.0-liter V16. Going back to Rolls Royce's older days, when power and torque figures were merely stated as "adequate," this engine's specifications are classified as well. So, how about an educated guess? Being that there's no Double VANOS variable valve time, the R-R's engine won't be able to stir up 325-hp times two, but more realistically should be capable of something near 600 horsepower, backed by about 670 lb-ft of torque. Another reason I feel so little output comes from an engine so big is that the 100 EX utilizes the same ZF six-speed automatic gearbox as the BMW, and without serious modifications it is doubtful that it would be able to cope with higher levels of power and torque. Regardless if the power output is greater or less than what I've calculated, it will be more than adequate to move the 100 EX at a decent pace.