Enjoying the Rolls Royce experience first-hand is just the way to crown the summer.
Most people can only dream of stepping into a gleaming new Rolls-Royce and driving off into the sunset, but just recently Michel Cruz and Adriano Martins of Manifesto Design got a personal taste of just what that is like.
It all started when our client Callum Swan asked us to write a piece about the fact that the Rolls-Royce Experience was coming to Marbella – and Callum Swan had been handpicked as a local partner. With its client profile and reputation as a select boutique real estate agency run on firm ethical principles, the company founded by husband and wife team Callum and Louise Swan was deemed to be the ideal partner to offer the Rolls-Royce experience to its clients.
Most are accustomed to the finer things in life yet I very much suspect they were just as impressed with the new-look range of Rolls-Royce, which is designed to rejuvenate a famous marque sometimes felt to be out of reach of even wealthy car buyers. Many see a Roller as a stately limousine with a chauffeur as a must-have accessory – a privilege usually reserved for statesmen and tycoons – something that the new series of sleek, sublimely luxurious models certainly challenges.
An experience to savour
Invited to sample this experience, we were introduced to the Rolls-Royce Wraith at the offices of Callum Swan on the Golden Mile. One of the new collection of Rolls-Royces that features a sleek limousine, cabriolet and coupe, we took this magnificent fastback onto the famous avenue and felt more at home than ever! Driving a car of this kind gives you a swagger and makes you feel quite the gent as you negotiate your way through lesser traffic en route to quieter sections of road.
Eventually we cleared Banús, San Pedro and Estepona, and headed for the open road, where having got the feel of this gracefully powerful car we opened up and felt the hair rise on our arms as the 6.6-litre engine let some of its 600bhp effortlessly propel us up to…er…the speed limit in a question of seconds. There was a civilised but exciting roar and a serious surge of power and pace, but always with the decorum and grace you would expect of a Rolls-Royce.
Power and grace
What Rolls-Royce set out to showcase with the Experience project is that anno 2016 its cars continue to be exquisitely stylish and well-made, yet are now no longer exclusively chauffeur-driven limousines. Indeed, in taking the fight to makes like Bentley the likes of the Wraith offer class and power combined, complete with the kind of responsive steering and road holding that makes you want to pass your destination and drive on…and on.
We were certainly convinced and have started saving already. While RR are not holding their breath on that score I’m sure they were very pleased with the feedback they received in Marbella, and the collaborators they have chosen to work with here. From our side we would like to thank Callum and Louise for a fantastic experience that will stay in our memories!