Photo: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien
Bentley, Maserati, Alfa Romeo - here are a few of the brands that already have or are about to introduce SUV models for the first time in their history. And even though it's been a long time ago, let's not forget about the one that seemed the worst of them all: Porsche.
If all these brands will turn out to have the same fate as the German manufacturer, then the only bad bit about their decision to build sport utility vehicles is that it came so late. Like it or not (and you most definitely have feel one way or another about it), SUVs are all the rage at the moment, and the trend doesn't look like it's going to die anytime soon.
Rolls-Royce was pretty mysterious about its plans in this segment at first - so much so that it wasn't even perfectly clear whether it was going to build an SUV at all. In the meantime, all doubts have disappeared and no further than a week ago, we even had the first spy pictures of the production-ready version.
Now, our photographers are back with even more snaps, and this time they've managed to capture the car in full. And make no mistake: there's a lot to fit on that tiny camera sensor. The Rolls-Royce Cullinan is a huge vehicle, but what would you expect from the SUV of a brand that's renowned for making very big cars?
The images show a car that can best be described as a much taller Phantom, meaning that the SUV is borrowing the more boxy desigh of the flagship model instead of borrowing the smoother lines of the Ghost. The BMW-owned brand refuses to refer to the Cullinan as an SUV, calling it instead an "all-terrain high-sided vehicle." Does that mean, in true BMW fashion, we're about to get another acronym that basically means the same thing as the good-old-fashioned "SUV"? ATHSV sounds more like a disease, so they'll probably sweep that under the rug.
The Cullinan - or whatever its name will be as Rolls-Royce has not confirmed it yet - is going to mark another premiere for the brand: its first all-wheel-drive vehicle. Power is expected to come from an evolved version of the 6.8-liter V12 engine, with the added possibility of a hybrid version as well. Just like the Bentley Bentayga, a diesel version is out of the question - there's no room for oil-burners in this stratospheric segment.
That's about the extent of what we know about the Rolls-Royce SUV at the moment. Design-wise, you can make an idea by browsing the image gallery on the right. It's definitely big, but since the front end is sacrosanct at Rolls-Royce, the only remaining question mark hangs above the rear side of the car. Coincidentally, that's also where Rolls-Royce chose to apply the more camo and cover the production taillights as well.
A release date for the Rolls-Royce Cullinan has not been set yet, but it should be sometime during next year. Expect the Cullinan to become the brand's best-selling model the instant it's available for order, with production capacity being the only thing holding back the sales. That's just the way things are.
Rolls-Royce was pretty mysterious about its plans in this segment at first - so much so that it wasn't even perfectly clear whether it was going to build an SUV at all. In the meantime, all doubts have disappeared and no further than a week ago, we even had the first spy pictures of the production-ready version.
Now, our photographers are back with even more snaps, and this time they've managed to capture the car in full. And make no mistake: there's a lot to fit on that tiny camera sensor. The Rolls-Royce Cullinan is a huge vehicle, but what would you expect from the SUV of a brand that's renowned for making very big cars?
The images show a car that can best be described as a much taller Phantom, meaning that the SUV is borrowing the more boxy desigh of the flagship model instead of borrowing the smoother lines of the Ghost. The BMW-owned brand refuses to refer to the Cullinan as an SUV, calling it instead an "all-terrain high-sided vehicle." Does that mean, in true BMW fashion, we're about to get another acronym that basically means the same thing as the good-old-fashioned "SUV"? ATHSV sounds more like a disease, so they'll probably sweep that under the rug.
The Cullinan - or whatever its name will be as Rolls-Royce has not confirmed it yet - is going to mark another premiere for the brand: its first all-wheel-drive vehicle. Power is expected to come from an evolved version of the 6.8-liter V12 engine, with the added possibility of a hybrid version as well. Just like the Bentley Bentayga, a diesel version is out of the question - there's no room for oil-burners in this stratospheric segment.
That's about the extent of what we know about the Rolls-Royce SUV at the moment. Design-wise, you can make an idea by browsing the image gallery on the right. It's definitely big, but since the front end is sacrosanct at Rolls-Royce, the only remaining question mark hangs above the rear side of the car. Coincidentally, that's also where Rolls-Royce chose to apply the more camo and cover the production taillights as well.
A release date for the Rolls-Royce Cullinan has not been set yet, but it should be sometime during next year. Expect the Cullinan to become the brand's best-selling model the instant it's available for order, with production capacity being the only thing holding back the sales. That's just the way things are.
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