Rolls-Royce celebrates the beginning of a new era. The company is celebrating a new chapter with force. Its Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow, the ultimate V12-powered coupé, has arrived, and the car’s design marks Rolls-Royce’s entry into the electric automobile arena. With only twelve vehicles produced for this unique batch, the brand’s exclusivity continues to be its hallmark.
After the Wraith Black Badge was made known in 2016, being the last special and limited edition of this model, the Wraith Black Arrow now bets on a series of finishes inspired by the famous Thunderbolt of 1938, by Captain George Eyston, who went down in history also for breaking the land speed record, reaching a top speed of 357.497 mph. That is something like 575 km/h. The Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow’s unique finish highlights the gradation between a celebratory hue of silver and black diamond. A glass-infused crystal coating covers the black diamond ink to enhance the transition between the two tones and achieve a front-to-back motion blur effect.
This specific technique also gives the bodywork a subtle texture, applied under a high-gloss lacquer, which is polished for over twelve hours to achieve a glass-like finish. It took the design team eighteen months to test and develop the surface before the extraordinary finish desired was achieved. Rolls-Royce claims that the investment in time to develop the material chemistry, application technique, and surface finish makes Gradient Paint one of the most technically complex paints Rolls-Royce has ever created.
Contrasting the Gradient Paint, Rolls-Royce’s Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow features bright yellow accents inside the vehicle, on the steering wheel, and on the cushioned seats, a subtle reminder of the yellow circle within the black Thunderbolt arrow. The use of this bright yellow extends to the base of the car’s carbon fiber Spirit of Ecstasy sculpture, which sits atop the vehicle’s front hood. To commemorate Rolls-Royce’s latest V12 coupé, the Black Badge Wraith, the Black Arrow’s front fascia features an intricate, tactile design that deftly portrays the contemporary V12 engine in the Wraith.
Inside, the Black Arrow is clad in a new type of material that Rolls-Royce has designed specifically for this twelve-unit series. The armrests, seat bolsters, transmission tunnel, door panels and lower fascia are finished in Club Leather, whose gloss and deeper black coloring provide a subtle contrast to Rolls-Royce black matte natural grain leather.
The leather’s natural markings are intentionally emphasized to give the interior more visible lifelines and a greater resemblance to a type of armchair normally found in exclusive clubs. Splashes of bright yellow run through the design elements, and the outer headrest features an embroidered arrow motif, providing rich, tactile detail and referencing the arrow symbol painted on the Thunderbolt’s aluminum body.
Torsten Muller-Otvos, CEO of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, says this Wraith is one of the most significant and influential cars the company has ever produced: “As the last examples of this historic car prepare to leave Goodwood, we celebrate the status of the Wraith as the last V12 coupé in the series we will make. Both the Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow and its inspiration, the V12-powered land speed record-setting Thunderbolt of the 1930s, represent the culmination of many long years of achievement and the end of their respective eras.”
