Inspired by Charles Stewart Rolls and the legend of the Schneider Trophy-winning Supermarine S6B (powered by a Rolls-Royce R Type engine), Rolls-Royce recently unveiled the Phantom Coupé Aviator Collection.
The collection celebrates the spirit of human endeavor that drove a very British hero and subsequently led Rolls-Royce to simultaneous world speed records on land, air and in the water.
Finished in Aviator Grey, the Phantom Coupé Aviator Collection features a contrasting matte bonnet, window and grille surround, while inside, the interplay of wood and metal hints strongly at a cockpit theme. A Thommen, aviation-grade clock with blood orange needle tips is embedded in the metal foil upper fascia, complemented by matte black dials for power reserve, speedometer and fuel gauges.
The lower fascia is veneered in mahogany, painstakingly shaped by craftspeople just as the early record-setting propellers were fashioned, and features Sapele contrast. Polished stainless steel veneer ‘onlays’ with bullet-shaped ends are designed to match the floor mat fixings.
Collection cars celebrate the victorious S6B aircraft with a transmission tunnel in anodized aluminum with exposed torx fixings and swage lines that echo the oil cooling veins on the S6B fuselage side. These highlights are repeated on collection car armrests.
The leather-lined glove compartment includes an embossed quote that Charles Rolls made following his first flight with the Wright Brothers in 1908: “The power of flight is as a fresh gift from the Creator, the greatest treasure yet given to man.” A center console chrome plaque describes Rolls — only the second man in Britain to hold a pilot’s license — simply as Pioneer Aviator, below a representation of his sweeping signature.
Fitted with leather floor mats, Aviator Collection cars have also been designed to incorporate the Rolls-Royce of cup holders. Beautifully engineered in highly polished aluminum, the cup holders succeed at the designer’s aim to deliver functionality, but with that special combination of theatre and jewelry, both of which are expected by every Rolls-Royce client.
