Building bespoke low-volume or one-off cars has become a highly lucrative business for ultra-premium carmakers such as Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley and Aston Martin, but Rolls-Royce has elevated the art to an entirely new monetary dimension with its mega-exclusive coachbuilt specials.
The UK-based marque has just unveiled a jaw-dropping convertible dubbed La Rose Noire Droptail, which is the first in a series of four Droptail commissions that the brand will build and sell. Although Rolls-Royce doesn’t divulge prices for its bespoke models, past vehicles in its coachbuilt line are believed to have sold for more than $28 million, and La Rose Noire is likely to be the most expensive one-off to date, with a speculated price of $30m.
“Rolls-Royce La Rose Noire Droptail is a love story, thoughtfully captured and stunningly projected on to the canvas of a Rolls-Royce motor car,” said Rolls-Royce chief executive Torsten Muller-Otvos at the reveal. “It is an expression of the deep and passionate partnership between a husband and wife who are the heads of a prominent international family. To be part of their remarkable story is a privilege.”
Rolls-Royce’s head of coachbuild design, Alex Innes, explains that the guiding inspiration for “this dark, bold and powerful commission” was the dark-burgundy black baccara rose (hence its La Rose Noire moniker), as this is a significant point of affection for the client.
Rolls-Royce previously based its bespoke models on the Architecture of Luxury platform that underpins the Cullinan, Ghost and Phantom, but La Rose Noire is built around a brand-new monocoque chassis constructed from steel, aluminium and carbon fibre, in a first for the coachbuild division.
Propulsion comes from Rolls-Royce’s familiar twin-turbo 6.75-litre V12, but its power output has been bumped up to 602hp – an increment of 30hp. Although its owners aren’t likely to cane the living daylights out of it, La Rose Noire should be rapid enough as the now-retired Dawn convertible sprinted from 0-100kph in under five seconds and easily hit its electronically governed top speed of 250kph.
Bespoke features of La Rose Noire Droptail
La Rose Noire is an enormous vehicle – almost yacht-like in dimensions – yet its svelte, low-slung bodywork helps disguise its enormous girth. The exterior coachwork is finished in True Love red and, like the Black Baccara rose, the vehicle appears to change colour depending on the point it is viewed from.
Rolls-Royce said it achieved this colour variation via a completely new paint process, which was allegedly perfected over 150 careful iterations. A base coat, the colour of which is “a closely guarded secret”, was followed by five layers of clear lacquer, each blended with a slightly different tone of red.
The duotone theme extends into La Rose Noire Droptail’s brightwork. The dark finish, named Hydroshade due to its liquid quality, was developed specifically for this project. These pieces are not painted; rather, a specific chrome electrolyte is introduced in the chrome-plating process and co-deposited on each stainless-steel substrate in a layer just one micron thick – roughly the same width as a strand of spider-web silk.
A removable hard top has been designed to give Droptail two distinct characters. In the words of Rolls-Royce: “Without its roof Droptail is a lithe, open-top roadster; with the roof installed, it becomes a formidable and dramatic coupe.” The roof features an electrochromic glass section, which instantly transitions to a near-translucent shade at the touch of a button.
Other bespoke touches in La Rose Noire include 1,603 wooden pieces hand-finished and hand-placed in the interior over an almost two-year period, a wearable 43mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept watch – which can either be worn or taken off its strap to sit in the centre of the dashboard – and a chest commissioned to house bottles of the mystery owners’ favourite vintage champagne.
Most expensive cars in the world
Although ultra-opulent, La Rose Noire Droptail isn’t the only coachbuilt car to wear a price tag that could easily apply to a premium villa on Palm Jumeirah. Rolls-Royce has already rolled out the megabuck Boat Tail and Sweptail, and other notable one-offs in recent years include Bugatti’s La Voiture Noire (The Black Car), which sold for $19m.
Bugatti has also rolled out the $9m Centodieci, of which 10 units were made to celebrate the EB110 that propelled the brand into the limelight in the early 1990s, while in 2020 Aston Martin released the one-off Victor coupe, rumoured to cost up to $6.5m.
If you go
The flights
There are various ways of getting to the southern Serengeti in Tanzania from the UAE. The exact route and airstrip depends on your overall trip itinerary and which camp you’re staying at.
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Kilimanjaro International Airport from Dh1,350 return, including taxes; this can be followed by a short flight from Kilimanjaro to the Serengeti with Coastal Aviation from about US$700 (Dh2,500) return, including taxes. Kenya Airways, Emirates and Etihad offer flights via Nairobi or Dar es Salaam.
Indian origin executives leading top technology firms
Sundar Pichai
Chief executive, Google and Alphabet
Satya Nadella
Chief executive, Microsoft
Ajaypal Singh Banga
President and chief executive, Mastercard
Shantanu Narayen
Chief executive, chairman, and president, Adobe
Indra Nooyi
Board of directors, Amazon and former chief executive, PepsiCo
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
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Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Afro%20salons
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11 cabbie-recommended restaurants and dishes to try in Abu Dhabi
Iqbal Restaurant behind Wendy’s on Hamdan Street for the chicken karahi (Dh14)
Pathemari in Navy Gate for prawn biryani (from Dh12 to Dh35)
Abu Al Nasar near Abu Dhabi Mall, for biryani (from Dh12 to Dh20)
Bonna Annee at Navy Gate for Ethiopian food (the Bonna Annee special costs Dh42 and comes with a mix of six house stews – key wet, minchet abesh, kekel, meser be sega, tibs fir fir and shiro).
Al Habasha in Tanker Mai for Ethiopian food (tibs, a hearty stew with meat, is a popular dish; here it costs Dh36.75 for lamb and beef versions)
Himalayan Restaurant in Mussaffa for Nepalese (the momos and chowmein noodles are best-selling items, and go for between Dh14 and Dh20)
Makalu in Mussaffa for Nepalese (get the chicken curry or chicken fry for Dh11)
Al Shaheen Cafeteria near Guardian Towers for a quick morning bite, especially the egg sandwich in paratha (Dh3.50)
Pinky Food Restaurant in Tanker Mai for tilapia
Tasty Zone for Nepalese-style noodles (Dh15)
Ibrahimi for Pakistani food (a quarter chicken tikka with roti costs Dh16)
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
Match info:
Burnley 0
Manchester United 2
Lukaku (22', 44')
Red card: Marcus Rashford (Man United)
Man of the match: Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United)
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
