The Rolls-Royce Spectre is a spectacular magic carpet ride

Industry

Published: 10 Apr. 2024, 16:25 Updated: 23 Apr. 2024, 14:33

The Rolls-Royce Spectre is a spectacular magic carpet ride

Rolls-Royce's Spectre, its first-ever electric car. [ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS]

TEST DRIVE

WONJU, Gangwon — It took a while to arrive, but the Rolls-Royce Spectre has finally hit Korean roads.

Korea is seeing its latest unexpected boom for supercars, prompting the British automaker to bring its first electric car in 117 years to Korea before any other country in the Asia-Pacific region.

Rolls-Royce rolls out its first EV 'Spectre'

I doubt the Spectre is a car that requires review. Rolls-Royce buyers don't tend to concern themselves with the opinions of amateur reporters. If they did, this full-sized luxury model wouldn't have consistently sold out through the middle of 2025.

Nevertheless, the Korea JoongAng Daily recently test-drove the beautiful, purple Spectre on a 100-kilometer (62-mile) course from Seoul to Gangwon, both on a crowded road with traffic jams and an open highway where the car could accelerate to around 200 kilometers per hour.

Spectre EV's coach doors [ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS]

I won't lie: I was completely overwhelmed by the dignified posture of the two-door coupe from the beginning. The coach doors and some 10,000 softly illuminated stars printed on the door and roof confused me — I almost felt somewhat attracted to the deep milky way.

As I pressed the brake pedal slightly, the doors automatically closed and the seat position adjusted to my body.

The illuminated stars printed on the roof and door [ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS]

The illuminated stars printed on the roof [ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS]

I was a bit panicky as I drove because the dashboard was so high that it blocked my view of the road — even though my seat was set at its highest. The car was probably designed for Western men, traditionally Rolls-Royce’s major consumer base, rather than Asian females like this reporter, who is 5 feet, 4 inches tall.

That was a bit puzzling. Rolls-Royce says that its female clients are a growing demographic, and I'm the average height for a woman.

The driving experience itself, however, does deliver the feeling of the so-called Magic Carpet ride — and I do understand what Rolls-Royce means by its famous “magic carpet” phrase. The thick wool floor mats and soft, quiet ride, even at speeds faster than 180 kilometers per hour on the highway, left little to be desired.

Trust me: The interior was dead silent, with no wind or engine noise to bother those inside. And despite the model's 3-ton weight, driving was smooth, and handling was easy and soft.

The rear of the Spectre EV [ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS]

“An electrified magic carpet ride. This is a phrase I would like to describe Spectre,” said Irene Nikkein, Rolls-Royce's regional director of the Asia-Pacific region.

“The Spectre offers a distinguishable sound experience as it has 18 speakers inside.”

But the real joy of the drive began when I actually got behind the wheel of the car. No cars intervened or passed me, in the Spectre, on roads.

Even taxis — Korean taxis are known for reckless driving — yielded. I’m done talking here.

The driving assistant system seemed to work quite well. The car detected the appropriate lanes itself and automatically moved its steering wheel — which was very sensitive — for safety.

My phone, however, kept failing to detect the car's location. I attempted to use a navigation app, but it kept saying the car was in the middle of the sea.

“The thick film may cause a sensor problem very occasionally,” explained Jeffery Choi, bespoke client experience manager at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Asia-Pacific.

That means some drivers will have to use the in-car navigation system, which is very complex and unintuitive for Korean roads.

Priced and positioned between the Cullinan and the Phantom in the Rolls-Royce hierarchy, the Spectre can run 383 kilometers per single charge. It generates up to 585 horsepower and 91.8-kilogram meters (663.9 pounds-feet) of torque.

It only needs 4.5 seconds to accelerate from zero to 100 kilometers per hour. Its maximum speed is 250 kilometers per hour.

But the magic carpet ride costs as much as a house. The Korean sticker price starts from 622 million won ($461,395) but can shoot to unimaginable heights with various personalization factors.

But even if you have the cash, you can’t get one unless you've already made an order. Spectre models are already sold out through mid-2025. Korea had the largest number of preorders, though specific details have not been announced.

Korea was the No. 1 market for Rolls-Royce in the Asia-Pacific region last year, with total sales of 234 units in 2023, an on-year increase of 18 percent.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]