Driven: Rolls-Royce Wraith First Drive Review

DRIVEN: Rolls-Royce Wraith Review

Here is our first drive review of the Rolls-Royce Wraith.

What’s the Rolls-Royce Wraith all about?

The Wraith is Rolls-Royce’s 2 door coupé that is aimed at a younger market than the Phantom or Ghost.

But don’t think that the Wraith is any less serious than the others. The Wraith is the most technologically advanced Rolls-Royce ever built, and also the most powerful.

Rolls-Royce Wraith Review

The Wraith has the high quality luxuries that you would expect from a Rolls-Royce, but it is designed to be driven. That gorgeous body houses a 6.6 litre turbocharged V12 that puts out 624bhp. All that power means that the Wraith is capable of doing 0-60mph in a mind blowing 4.4 seconds.

How does it drive?

Driving the Wraith is a very surreal, yet tender experience. It’s a keyless push button start to fire up the V12, you then move the column mounted gear selector into drive and you’re off. The very first instinctual impression you get from the Wraith is that it has the well-known Rolls-Royce glide sensation when moving away. It’s a feeling of moving from stationary to being in motion without actually feeling any motion at all; the sensation is achieved by class leading innovation, and has to be experienced to be understood.

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Once you have the car in motion, the sensation behind the wheel is nothing but lavish. The Wraith’s smart air suspension firmly irons out any bumps or holes in the road, maintaining a perfectly elegant ride quality in the luxurious cabin.

External Track SMMT Supplied by NewsPress

Exploring the 624bhp of the V12 engine blew my mind, putting your foot to the floor in the Wraith makes the car sit back a little and then swoosh forward to the horizon at an impressive rate, from inside the cabin you know that you have just unleashed 624 of the fastest horses in Britain, but you are still sitting in a cabin more comfortable than a five star hotel. You think to yourself how is it possible for a car to have such a massive urge of energy whilst still being one of the most luxurious cars you can buy, surely there has to be some kind of compromise somewhere?

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What’s it like inside?

Looking inside the Wraith through the trade mark coach doors, you will see that the inside has a very bright and open feel to it and you will find nothing but the finest materials available.

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Exceptional features of the car include deep lamb’s wool carpets, the finest pick of fine grain leather upholstery covering the seats, and my favourite feature, the Starlight headliner that has 1,340 fibre optics woven into the leather headliner to produce a near perfect night sky experience for when the sun goes down.

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The Experience

The Wraith certainly delivers the full Rolls-Royce experience, as I had expected, but I’m thrilled that it does so in its newly designed Grand Touring package. To look at the car it is so provocative, stylish, and ultimately up market, all at the same time.

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Owning a Rolls-Royce, there are two important factors to consider; one is how the car makes you feel, and driving the Wraith makes you feel truly fulfilled, and as if you can’t be challenged by anyone. The second factor is what statement the car makes about you, and quite simply it shows that you don’t settle for second best, you want the best that exists and there is no other choice than Rolls-Royce.

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Verdict

The Rolls-Royce Wraith is yet another chapter of brilliance from the British manufacture; I believe the Wraith will go on to be a legacy of engineering in motoring history.

Specification

Rolls-Royce Wraith
  • Price: £231,480
  • Engine: 6.6-Litre V12 Turbocharged
  • Power: 624bhp
  • Torque: 800Nm
  • Transmission: 8 Speed ZF automatic satellite aided
  • 0-62mph: 4.4 Seconds
  • Top speed: 155mph limited
  • Weight: 2,360kg
  • Economy combined: 14mpg
  • CO2: 327 g/km

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Author: Paul Hadley