Introduced in 1998, this nameplate marked a major turning point for the marque at the end of the Crewe era. It was developed as a clean-sheet successor to the long-running Silver Spirit family, but its gestation stretched across years of financial uncertainty, ownership changes and shifting expectations in the luxury-car market. When it finally reached production, it represented one of the most important bridges between traditional Rolls-Royce design and the brand’s modern future.
The car was notable for being the first Rolls-Royce designed with computer-aided design and the first to use a BMW-sourced V12, a detail that became historically significant because BMW would later take control of the Rolls-Royce marque while the model was still being built. Its styling intentionally echoed earlier Rolls-Royce themes—especially the formal upright grille, yacht-like proportions and classic four-door saloon silhouette—while moving the brand toward a more contemporary interpretation of luxury.
Production continued through 2002, making it one of the shortest-lived full-size Rolls-Royce saloons of the modern era. A long-wheelbase derivative, the Park Ward, appeared later and extended the same basic platform into chauffeur-focused territory. Today, the model is remembered as a transitional flagship: the last major Rolls-Royce of the old ownership era, and a technologically important precursor to the Goodwood-built cars that followed.