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Rolls-Royce “Silent Shadow” EV Expected With BMW i7 Hardware, R-R Platform

When it comes to carbon dioxide, the automotive industry will find it hard to hit the fleet-wide average emissions target imposed by the European Commission for 2021. In case you haven’t heard already, automakers that venture beyond 95 grams per kilometer will be penalized 95 euros multiplied by the number of cars they sell through December 2021.
Rolls-Royce 103EX design study 28 photos
Photo: Rolls-Royce
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All told, the EC looks forward to 34 billion euros (about $41 billion) in fines this year, which is pretty bad news for Rolls-Royce because the British automaker doesn’t make eco-friendly vehicles. As a matter of fact, R-R takes pride in offering twelve-cylinder engines across the lineup, from the Ghost to the Phantom.

The worst offender is, of course, the Cullinan at 355 grams per kilometer. If you need a reason for these over-the-top emissions, well, do remember that we’re dealing with a 6.75-liter V12 complemented by a couple of turbos, all-wheel drive, and 2,735 kilograms (6,030 pounds) before options.

Owned by the BMW Group, which has big ambitions in terms of electrification, Rolls-Royce can’t afford to ignore the eco-friendly agenda. This is where the “Silent Shadow” enters the scene, an upcoming model with all-electric propulsion and a few styling cues from the 103EX design study (pictured in the gallery).

Coming courtesy of Autocar, the British motoring publication "has learned of the existence of a battery-powered Phantom prototype at the BMW research-and-development hub in Munich.” R-R was initially expected to electrify an existing model as the British automaker’s first EV, but the original plan has changed to “a bespoke EV” differentiated from the Phantom.

Filed with the German patent and trademark office last year, Silent Shadow is a low-key tribute to the Silver Shadow from 1965 to 1980, the company’s best-selling model. Expected to be underpinned by the Architecture of Luxury instead of the CLuster ARchitecture, the newcomer will likely share the electric motors and lithium-ion battery with the BMW i7.

According to hearsay, the all-electric 7 Series will launch in 2022 with 600 kilometers (373 miles) of driving range from 120 kWh and approximately 650 horsepower from a dual-motor setup. Also worthy of mentioning, the Power BEV Concept presented two years ago is a 5 Series-based prototype with more than 710 horsepower on tap from a three-motor drivetrain.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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