Test: Rolls-Royce Specter – electric drive fits no car as well as this

What does the name Specter mean?

The name Specter is a fantastic choice for a Rolls-Royce. It is an English word for ‘ghost’ or ‘ghost’ and fits the noble brand perfectly. Because of the James Bond films, you automatically associate the huge coupe with a world full of excitement, glamor and wild chases. With its unusual proportions the car is literally ‘bigger than life’ and then there are the unusual colours. The famous ‘Pantheon Temple’ grille has been enlarged, making it the widest ever fitted to a Rolls-Royce model. To top it all off, the grille is illuminated by 22 LED lights, which emit a dimmed light from the rear of the slats. The 5.45 meter long Specter is not suitable for introverts, but that applies to most Rolls-Royces.

You never heard the engine on a Rolls-Royce anyway, so it makes sense, right, such an electric drivetrain?

In fact, we have before us the most revolutionary Rolls ever. It is not only the most aerodynamic, but also the first fully electrically powered model. For a brand with such a glorious V12 history, that is almost sacrilege. Yet the latter is an incorrect assumption. Co-founder Charles Rolls was convinced 120 years ago that an electric motor would be the ideal form of propulsion. Perfectly silent and clean, but still impractical at the time due to a lack of charging infrastructure. So if there is one obvious brand to electrify, it is Rolls-Royce.

But come on, electric driving is for middle class cars, right?

You are indeed skeptical when you get behind the wheel of this Specter for the first time, because you feel that electric drive belongs more to mid-range cars. The somewhat clinical driving experience is not directly associated with the most luxurious car brand in the world. CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös tries to win over the news with soothing words. “The Specter was initially supposed to be a Rolls-Royce and then an electric car,” he says. “And I think we succeeded.”

And is the CEO right?

Because we are used to this kind of pre-massage from car guys, we only become more combative, only to conclude after two days of driving around Napa Vallay near San Francisco that it is exactly as Torsten said. The Specter drives like all Rolls-Royces, only quieter and smoother and completely free of vibrations. The power delivery is the same, the responses of the ‘power pedal’ are identical and even the sovereign handling is hardly affected.

Would you like a nice portion of electricity?

Under perfect conditions on mainly quiet back roads, it did not drop below 25 kWh/100 kilometers, which means that in colder conditions you have to look for a charging station every 320 kilometers. That feels a bit shabby in such an expensive car.

320 kilometers… and any further disadvantages?

Yes, the regeneration cannot be dosed at all. ‘We know what is good for our customers’, they seem to think at Rolls-Royce and so there is only a button with the letter B that transforms the Rolls-Royce into ‘one pedal drive’. It’s that or no regeneration at all, which means your average consumption increases even faster.

Is the Specter the quietest Rolls ever?

It is precisely because of the completely silent motor that you hear other sounds extra well. Up to speeds well above 100 kilometers per hour, wind noise remains virtually absent and we also hardly notice tire noise. At least, as long as you drive on fresh black asphalt that has been leveled by the ice master of Thialf himself. In all other cases, the noise from the tires and chassis penetrates the interior just a little too annoyingly. That is not strange in a car weighing 2,975 kilos and 23-inch wheels with ultra-flat tires. In addition, not every stomach can withstand the sometimes rocking and slightly soft-feeling chassis of the Spectre. This can be solved in many other cars by selecting a more dynamic chassis in the driving modes, but not with Rolls-Royce, because there is nothing to choose from here. This also seems to go back to the somewhat arrogant, know-it-all attitude at Rolls-Royce: ‘We know what is good for you’.

Isn’t the Specter just a BMW i7 in a different jacket?

You could argue that it’s a shame that the first electric Rolls-Royce is actually a kind of converted BMW i7, but that’s only part of the truth. The drive indeed comes from BMW, but the chassis is identical to that of the Cullinan and Phantom and has therefore been around for years. Moreover, a small company like Rolls-Royce does not have sufficient resources to develop a completely new electric model itself. Perhaps it would have been wise from a marketing point of view to release the Specter first and then the i7. That would give the impression that the i7 is a converted Rolls-Royce and that looks a bit more chic.

Is this Rolls also suitable for driving?

The interior is pleasant and although the back feels tighter than in many other Rolls-Royces, you can get along just fine here as a two-meter-tall European. In most cases the Specter will not be driven with a driver, so it is best to sit behind the wheel. You have a view of a digital dashboard that is kept as minimal as possible and there is even a touchscreen, but there are also large push and turn buttons. And where other brands try to hide their ventilation openings, Rolls-Royce is proud of the massive metal air vents. The interior is reminiscent of other Rolls-Royces in many respects, such as finish, luxury level and use of materials, but there are added some unique design features. There’s the signature starry sky, and the Specter’s door panels have a similar sparkle, created by hundreds of LED lights.

Are they as secretive about the power of the Specter as they used to be?

No. Two electric motors drive the Specter, made entirely of aluminium. These provide a combined power of 585 hp and a torque of 900 newton meters. This means the Specter sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds. The power and speed range of both electric motors are sufficient to cover the entire speed range of the Specter without the need for gears, as is the case with the Porsche Taycan or Rimac Nevera.

So a real Rolls-Royce?

It is amazing how Rolls-Royce has been able to set all the parameters in such a way that you immediately experience that you are not sitting in a big BMW, but in a product from the British luxury brand. It accelerates with unprecedented flexibility and the ‘power pedal’ feels velvety soft. Everything in and around the Specter seems to be wrapped in cotton wool, including the suspension, which seems slightly stiffer than other models, but under the right circumstances it actually gives the feeling that you are floating.

Will the range rival the Spectre?

Range is often a hot topic because of the poor feeling that such an expensive electric car can give you when your battery is almost empty. In the case of the Spectre, that argument will be less important than with other EVs. Every buyer of this model undoubtedly has at least a sports car, a family car and a business car for long distances. The Specter is for extra use and is also charged at home or at work. The big advantage of this is that as a celebrity, captain of industry or other ‘high profile’ person you never have to walk into a gas station again. As a fan of the British luxury brand, you don’t have to pass up on the price. Unlike V12 models, you do not pay an astronomical BPM amount for the Specter, so the Specter is in the price lists from €396,275. That is not a bargain, but that makes it the cheapest model from Rolls-Royce.

This story was previously published in GTO 3 2023.