Rolls-Royce Motor Cars PressClub · Article.
ROLLS-ROYCE BLACK BADGE CULLINAN SERIES II: THE ALTER EGO, EVOLVED
07.05.2024 Press Release
Rolls-Royce’s disruptive alter ego, Black Badge, reached its apotheosis in Cullinan where its assertive and uncompromising attitude appeals to clients who seek the boldest forms of self-expression. Today, the marque presents a clear evolution of this subversive motor car with Black Badge Cullinan Series II.
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Georgina Cox
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
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Author.
Georgina Cox
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
Related Links.
- Black Badge Cullinan Series II, an evolved, more visceral expression of Rolls-Royce
- Caters to a select subset of Rolls-Royce clients with specific tastes and priorities
- Unique Black Badge exterior coachwork and interior details developed for Series II
- More overt and expressive application of contemporary materials and technologies
- Integrates advanced digital interface, SPIRIT, and private members app, Whispers
- New interior Clock Cabinet vitrine incorporates Black Badge Spirit of Ecstasy figurine
- New Duality Twill seating incorporates 2.2 million stitches and up to 11 miles of thread
- New Placed Perforation seat pattern inspired by clouds over the Home of Rolls-Royce and comprises up to 107,000 individual perforations
- First time a 23-inch wheel is available for a Black Badge Rolls-Royce
- Proven performance of 600PS and 900Nm torque preserved
- Available from launch, alongside Cullinan Series II
“Black Badge strongly appeals to a distinct group of clients
who seek a more visceral interpretation of the Rolls-Royce
experience. In its engineering, technology, materials, and design,
Black Badge Cullinan Series II satisfies these clients’ keen
appetite for innovation and new modes of self-expression. Cullinan's
darker alter ego has always asserted its own unique place in our
product portfolio; I'm certain that this new incarnation will build
on its predecessor's success.”
Chris Brownridge, Chief Executive, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
“Black Badge Cullinan Series II reflects the changes we’ve seen in
our client profile since we first launched this transformative motor
car five years ago. Today, self-expression, individuality and
boldness are demanded more than ever before – all attributes that
form the core of the Black Badge attitude. Our creative response has
matched the daring of those who commission these motor cars. The
dark, primal elements that are so essential to the Black Badge
character are expressed here in extremis, and are further amplified
by dramatic and assertive coachwork reserved for this disruptive
expression of the brand.”
Anders Warming, Director of Design, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
Rolls-Royce’s disruptive alter ego, Black Badge,
reached its apotheosis in Cullinan where its assertive and
uncompromising attitude appeals to clients who seek the boldest forms
of self-expression. Today, the marque presents a clear evolution of
this subversive motor car with Black Badge Cullinan Series II.
BLACK BADGE CULLINAN SERIES II: EXTERIOR
Black Badge Cullinan Series II asserts its presence
with an impactful front-end treatment. The principal differentiator is
the lower air intake design. These geometrical pieces incorporate
widened veins, signalling the motor car’s more urgent dynamic
character. Above this is the marque’s iconic Pantheon grille, which
has been illuminated for the first time across Cullinan and Black
Badge Cullinan Series II. For Black Badge, the grille is finished in
the series’ hallmark Black, though a silver ‘horizon line’ creates a
sense of breadth and solidity while framing the motor car’s vertical
daytime running lights. For clients wishing to fully cloak their motor
car in darkness, this is also available in an all-black finish.
All exterior body detail elements and brightwork, including the
Spirit of Ecstasy figurine, are also finished in Black. For the first
time in the history of Black Badge, this now extends from the window
surrounds and door spears to the door handles. Each piece is
hand-prepared by the marque’s artisans: first, a light abrasive is
used across the handle to provide a ‘key’ for a hardwearing primer,
onto which four coats of Black paint are then applied. After curing,
these pieces are individually polished to ensure that they match the
rich, high-gloss coachwork of Black Badge Cullinan Series II.
Other darkened elements, including the rear tailgate and bumper
accents as well as the motor car’s exhausts, are treated with a
specific chrome electrolyte to achieve the mirror-black effect. This
is introduced to the traditional chrome plating process and
co-deposited on the stainless-steel substrate, darkening the finish.
Its final thickness is just one micrometre – around one-hundredth of
the width of a human hair. Each of these components is
precision-polished by hand to achieve a mirror-black chrome finish
before it is fitted to the motor car.
Black Badge Cullinan Series II clients are now able to extend
exterior colours to all lower body surfaces, as well as the subtly
enhanced lower sill, valances, and lower front bumper – a treatment
reserved for Black Badge Cullinan Series II. This visually lowers the
motor car, creating a more dynamic statement that further amplifies
its monolithic form.
The exterior treatment is completed with 23-inch wheels – the
first time wheels of this size have been offered by the marque for a
Black Badge motor car. From a distance, the design appears to consist
of five spokes finished in gloss-black and silver. In fact, there are
10 interwoven spokes: the visual effect is created by a
carefully-orchestrated interplay between polished, painted and
recessed, negative surfaces. The design also allows a clear view of
the Black Badge disc brake callipers, shown in a signature Red, which
can also be finished in Black, Turchese, Mandarin, or Forge Yellow.
BLACK BADGE CULLINAN SERIES II: A SUBVERSIVE INTERIOR TREATMENT
Advanced, technical materials have become a hallmark
of Black Badge Rolls-Royce motor cars. For Black Badge Cullinan Series
II, this theme continues. Clients expressed their appreciation of the
original Black Badge Cullinan’s Technical Carbon finish – on this
basis, this exquisite material has been retained for Series II. The
naked-weave carbon-fibre finish has been developed to create a precise
repeating pattern of geometrical shapes that create a
three-dimensional effect. Each leaf of Technical Carbon is finished
with six coats of lacquer before being left to cure for 72 hours then
all 23 pieces are hand-polished to a mirror finish. This process takes
21 days in total.
If Individual Rear Seats are commissioned, clients can include
the Black Badge family motif, known as the infinity symbol, onto the
rear Technical Carbon ‘Waterfall’ section that separates the rear
reclining seats and conceals the Cullinan Series II Champagne cooler.
This delicate aluminium piece is placed between the third and fourth
layer of six layers of subtly tinted lacquer, creating the illusion
that the symbol is floating above the Technical Carbon. In Lounge Seat
configuration, the infinity symbol is embroidered.
The seats themselves are available to commission in the marque’s
stunning new Duality Twill textile, a new rayon fabric made from
bamboo and inspired by the extensive bamboo grove in Le Jardin des
Méditerranées on the Côte d'Azur, which neighbours Sir Henry
Royce’s former winter home, Villa Mimosa. The twill textile is
embroidered with an artistic ‘Duality’ graphic. Based on an abstract
interpretation of the two interlinked letter R initials of the
marque’s founders, the design reflects a clear nautical influence,
reminiscent of the interweaving rope lines found on sailing yachts –
another subtle allusion to the French Riviera.
A complete Duality Twill interior of the intricately embroidered
textile incorporates up to 2.2 million stitches and 11 miles of
thread. This exquisite material can be further dramatised with bold
Bespoke colourways, further enhancing this remarkable new finish for
Black Badge clients.
Placed Perforation seating can also be incorporated into this
bold expression of Cullinan. Up to 107,000 0.8- and 1.2-millimetre
perforations are made onto the seat leather, creating an abstract
pattern, inspired by the constantly changing shapes and shadows of the
clouds over the Home of Rolls-Royce at Goodwood in the twilight hours.
The dark ambience of Black Badge continues with the interior
metals. Air vent surrounds on the dashboard and in the rear cabin are
darkened using physical vapour deposition, a method of colouring metal
that does not discolour or tarnish over time or through repeated use.
The subversive design principles of Black Badge motor cars have
also been applied to Cullinan Series II’s unique Clock Cabinet. This
inset vitrine displays both an analogue timepiece and an up-lit Spirit
of Ecstasy figurine. The Spirit of Ecstasy is constructed from solid
stainless steel and rendered in Black, recalling the figure that sits
on the prow of Black Badge Cullinan Series II. The Clock Cabinet is
flanked by Cullinan’s new Illuminated Fascia, which displays an
ethereal glowing infinity symbol within the new vertical Cityscape pattern.
Black Badge Cullinan Series II is also the stage for an
exclusive digital Bespoke treatment, with instrument dials now
available in five neo-futuristic colourways: Vivid Grellow, Neon
Nights, Cyan Fire, Ultraviolet and the kaleidoscopic-style Synth Wave.
BLACK BADGE CULLINAN SERIES II: PROVEN ENGINEERING
In Black Badge Cullinan’s first guise, clients
requested that the Black Badge experience extended beyond the
aesthetic treatment of the motor car. In the five years since its
launch, the changes made by Rolls-Royce engineers for the 2019 motor
car, which included higher capacity air springs to alleviate body roll
and the addition of even greater power reserves, have become integral
to this bold motor car’s appeal. Accordingly, these qualities are
preserved for Black Badge Cullinan Series II, including the
twin-turbocharged 6.75-litre V12 engine, which generates a total
output of 600PS, and 900Nm of torque.
To exploit the additional power, the transmission and throttle
remain calibrated for more immediate acceleration. The ZF eight-speed
gearbox and both front- and rear-steered axles work together to adjust
the levels of feedback to the driver, depending on throttle and
steering inputs without compromising the motor car’s effortless ‘magic
carpet ride’ experience.
Depressing the ‘Low’ button on the gear selection stalk
continues to unlock further Black Badge technologies. When activated,
drivers experience a change in tone and volume from the Bespoke Black
Badge exhaust system, signalling that all of the 900Nm torque reserves
are available from 1700rpm – just 700rpm above tick-over. Low Mode
also increases the speed of gear shifts by 50% when the throttle is
depressed to 90%. To fully exploit Black Badge Cullinan Series II, the
brake pedal travel has been decreased to create a more immediate
response to driver inputs.
A BOLD BESPOKE TREATMENT
Like its predecessor, Black Badge Cullinan Series II
defines a distinct attitude and aesthetic code within the super-luxury
sector. The clients who patronise this expression of the brand do so
on their own terms – with Black Badge Cullinan Series II, Rolls-Royce
signals its ongoing commitment to these individuals’ requirements, and
their bold appreciation of luxury.
Please find the Cullinan Series II press release
here.
CO2 EMISSIONS & CONSUMPTION.
WLTP (combined) CO2 emission: 380-363 g/km; Fuel consumption: 16.8-17.7 mpg / 16.8-16.0 l/100km.
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