Earlier last year, Rolls Royce’s CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös confirmed that the luxury automaker was considering on their first ever SUV. The historic British marquee’s plans to add an SUV to its ranks received mixed reaction from auto journalists and industry experts with some believing that it would be impossible for Rolls Royce to formulate the perfect design of an SUV without undermining the brand’s position. But in an interview to Autocar magazine, Rolls Royce’s deign chief, Giles Taylor, has revealed that the automaker’s plans are on track and the design team is working on sketches to assess the viability of the concept.
Taylor also said the ultra-luxury SUV in his early sketches showed a vehicle inspired by “function and functionality.” “I’m looking to create a properly functional vehicle – a shooting brake, not a crossover with a sloping roof. A proper SUV,” Taylor explained. An insider is also reported to have said that a “Mercedes GLK-plus-plus” is what the design team is aiming for and said it would be priced at £200K ($335K) and above. Autocar also reports that the Rolls-Royce SUV is unlikely to arrive before 2017 and that it is more likely to share a platform with the next-generation Ghost, due in 2018.
[Autocar]