The 2012 Pebble Beach Concours in California has gotten off to a flying start quite literally with Rolls Royce showing
off its new special edition Phantom Coupe Aviator Collection. The
collection is inspired by company co-founder Charles Stewart Rolls – a
passionate aviator and only the second man in Britain to have received a
pilot license – and the Supermarine S.6B racing seaplane, which,
powered by the Rolls- Royce R-Type engine, won the prestigious Schneider Trophy in 1930.
Finished in Aviator Grey, the luxury coupe has a contrasting matt
finish to the hood, grille surround and window frame. Inside, a
combination of wood and metal hint strongly at an aeronautical theme.
The lower fascia is veneered in mahogany and fashioned to imitate early
airplanes. The metal foil upper fascia features a Thommen aviation-grade
clock with blood orange needle tips embossed on the dash. The clock is
complemented by matt black dials for power reserve, speedometer and fuel
gauges. Even the transmission tunnel is finished in anodised aluminium
and feature lines that echo the oil cooling veins on the S6B seaplane.
Other touches include leather floor mats and polished aluminium cup
holders, which the car maker calls the ‘Rolls-Royce of cup holders’. The
most special touch, perhaps, is on the leather-lined glove compartment,
which has an embossed Charles Rolls quote following his first flight
with the Wright Brothers in 1908: “The power of flight is as a fresh
gift from the Creator, the greatest treasure yet given to man.”
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