CAR magazine UK drives the Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV with pictures, price, specs and verdict
Six years ago there was a lot of embarrassed coughing and a few howls of outrage when Rolls-Royce unveiled the first Cullinan. Partly the negativity was down to the very idea of a Rolls-Royce SUV. Like Ferrari with the later, Rolls didn’t call it an SUV, initially favouring the awkward phrase ‘high-sided vehicle’, but an SUV it very plainly was.
The rear end also gets some visual tweaks – new surrounds for the exhaust exits, a more prominent bash plate, a new section of gloss black bodywork – and the sides, where the sills that used to be matt black are now gloss black. There are new wheels, a multi-faceted seven-spoke design available in either part-polished or all-polished finish.Inside, there’s a new facia, similar to that already seen in the Ghost and Spectre.
The aluminium spaceframe is a version of the hardware also used in the Phantom, Ghost and Spectre. The body is predominantly aluminium too. The air suspension can be lowered at the touch of a button to make it easier to get in and out without losing your dignity.The boot is a useful 600 litres, or 1930 litres with the rear seats folded, and access is easy thanks to a top-hinged hatch and a bottom-hinged lower section, pick-up style. That lower section is sturdy enough to be sat on while you watch the polo etc.
Big interior changes include the new pillar-to-pillar glass dash, which is functional on the driver’s side and in the middle, and decorative on the passenger’s side. Between them is a new analogue clock with, for the first time, an in-cabin Spirit of Ecstasy. The dash lights up in three phases when you open the door. First the driver’s instruments, then the passenger’s section, and finally the clock cabinet and mascot. It’s quite an event after dark.
The steering is lovely and natural. Relaxed, but accurate. It’s a big car, but you get a good view of the extremities, helped by cameras if need be, and you soon learn the trick of using the Sprit of Ecstasy’s wing tips as a guide to how close to the edge of the road you are. There is, however, the caveat that a wealthy customer can work with the Bespoke department to turn a Silver Badge into something closely akin to a Black Badge, or vice versa.
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