When it comes to the automotive industry, the curious case of British elegance is striking, indeed. Especially since they could not remain independent but still make some of the finest autos out there.
Think about it for a second. Rolls-Royce, for example, is the maker of unique dreams – if you have around $500k, which was the average transaction price for last year. But it is also under German ownership, after it twice changed hands to the Volkswagen Group between 1998 and 2002 and then also to the BMW Group in 1998, which established the current Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited located on the Goodwood Estate in Goodwood, West Sussex, England.
Meanwhile, Jaguar Land Rover is another good example of how the Brits managed to botch internal things up to the point of first coming together in 1968, then disbanding as independents or as subsidiaries of BMW (Land Rover) and Ford (Jaguar). In 2000, though, they again reunited as part of Blue Oval’s Premier Automotive Group before getting sold off to India’s Tata Motors in 2008. Luckily, since then, both historic nameplates (Rolls-Royce and JLR) have thrived under the new ownership and do not mind they have ‘dual citizenship.’
But why am I telling you all that? Well, simply because they are both in focus in a different corner of the world – aka the United States of America. There, most things revolve around the cool aftermarket realm if you want the posh British rides to stand out in any ritzy crowd. And there is no need to take our word for granted as we have a couple of positive examples, courtesy of the good folks over at Hollywood, California-based RDB LA, who have another YouTube vlog episode out, and we are certainly going to be talking about the rare Phantom Drophead Coupe.
Alas, first things first, let us put the social media reel into the proper perspective with the JLR side of the equation – aka the latest and arguably greatest, fifth generation L460 Range Rover flagship SUV. Costing at least $106,500 in America and going up to $226,500 in OEM form, the off-roader is certainly pushing the boundaries of luxury SUVs as close as possible to the ultra-luxury super-SUV stratosphere of the Bentley Bentayga, Aston DBX, Lambo Urus, and Rolls-Royce Cullinan, right?
Well, as it turns out, there are still a few details that need to be ironed out – such as the black plastic bits and pieces of the lower portion of the body, the coolness of new rims, and the overall two-tone appearance. Thus, if you want all that and also love a quick ‘yin-and-yang’ transformation, maybe this white-and-black two-tone Range Rover with matching lower body parts and Aerodisc-style RDB Wheels will become your new customization and personalization favorite of the week.
If not, there is always the option of hitting the rarefied space of “one of 35” Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe, just like in the crew’s latest YouTube feature. By the way, as always, that is not the only thing they are working on – and the range is wide and bonkers, from vintage Ferrari 360 Spiders to classic Chevy Impalas and modern Lambo Aventador SVJs!
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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