Evelyn Reynolds

It can be hard to keep up with the pace and complexity of McLaren’s model program. Many of us find ourselves struggling to list the subtle differences that distinguish what is meant to be the Porsche-fighting Sports Series and the Ferrari-baiting Super Series, especially as all McLaren’s roadgoing cars share the same core architecture. And as the carbon-fiber tub, mid-mounted twin-turbo V-8 and dual-clutch transmission are nearly identical in each variant, it’s easy to presume that the cars and the driving experiences are equally interchangeable.
Yet that categorically isn’t true, as proven by the new 765LT. This car is based on the existing 720S, itself the lightest and quickest machine in its light, quick segment. But the LT has been given increases in both urge and aerodynamic downforce, while also losing a claimed 176 pounds compared to the already svelte 720S. The result is a car that is nearly as fast and exciting as the range-topping Senna, despite costing less than half as much. It’s also a much more handsome proposition from every angle.

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McLaren

LT stands for Long Tail, a name that harks back to the race-evolved McLaren F1 GT of 1997 and that has become modern McLaren’s way of designating models that are track biased while still being road viable. The 765LT is a successor to both the 2015 675LT and last year’s 600LT. Like both earlier cars, it will ultimately spawn a spider version. But following complaints from some 600LT buyers that their cars were not part of a limited run—a strategy that helps protect residual values—765LT coupe production is restricted to, appropriately enough, no more than 765 examples. Around a third of those are expected to come to the United States. Starting at $358,000, it’s only slightly more expensive than the 675LT was five years ago.

McLaren 765LT: 750+ HP, Weighs under 3000 Pounds

The Great Compromise: McLaren 600LT vs. GT

We’ve already given you a tech rundown of the new car, with highlights including an increase in engine output to 755 horsepower—enabled by a higher-capacity fuel pump, forged aluminum pistons, and a beefier head gasket. A free-flowing quad-tailpipe titanium exhaust system shaves 8.3 pounds of weight compared to the system on the 720S. Further mass has also been saved with lightweight race seats, ultralight alloy wheels, polycarbonate rear side glazing, and even the removal of interior carpeting. The lightest possible configuration requires buyers to opt to live without air conditioning or infotainment systems, but we’d guess most buyers will keep both (as no-cost options) and live with the 25.3-pound weight penalty. Even with A/C and a stereo, McLaren says the 765LT weighs but 2988 pounds fully fueled.

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McLaren

We suspect many buyers will opt to make their 765LTs fractionally more luxurious than the company’s spartan ideal, especially as many of the weight-adding comfort options come free. Plusher sports seats, power adjustment for those and the steering column, parking sensors, a front-axle lift, and even the 12-speaker Bower & Wilkins audio upgrade are all offered at no extra cost in the U.S. Conversely—and perversely—you’ll be able to save ounces by paying even more, the option list even including a $1520 “MSO Defined lightweight front badge.” More significant extra-cost upgrades include the Senna’s skeletal ultra-lightweight carbon seats ($7580) and the uprated brake package that brings the hypercar’s more thermally efficient carbon-ceramic rotors in place of the standard carbon discs. That’s a pricey $18,030 box to tick, but having experienced the upgraded brakes on a track, we can attest to the benefit.
Our experience of the 765LT was exclusively on the 1.8-mile International layout at the Silverstone circuit in England. (There was meant to be a road-driving element in the original plan, but COVID-19.) While the truncated program denied the chance to assess the new car’s abilities in the real world—a shame given how rounded the 600LT’s talents are—it did confirm that the 765LT is both outrageously quick and remarkably easy to drive at a high percentage of its abilities.

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McLaren

As with all of McLaren’s harder-core offerings, the 765LT’s cabin is big on carbon fiber and light on toys and fripperies. The core architecture is shared with the 720S and includes the same fold-down instrument pack that motors itself from a conventional display to a pared-down rev-counter and speed readout when the car is put into Track mode. There is no elegant way to climb into the tight-fitting Senna-spec bucket seats and negotiate their six-point harnesses—a conventional seatbelt is also fitted—but once in place the view over the microfiber-trimmed dashboard is appropriately racy.
While the 765’s 4.0-liter engine makes 34 fewer horsepower than the Senna’s V-8 and the LT carries slightly more weight, the performance difference between the two cars is slight. A change in gearing has sharpened the 765’s acceleration dramatically over the 720S. According to McLaren’s numbers, the LT can blast its way from zero to 124 mph in just 7.0 seconds, 1.4 seconds quicker than the 720S and just two tenths behind the Senna. During our testing of the 720S, we rocketed to 120 mph in 6.9 seconds. Its 18.0-second zero-to-186-mph time—yes, apparently that is a thing—is only a half-second adrift of the Senna.

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McLaren

The reality of those accelerative forces are substantial enough to cause physical discomfort—don’t take a 765LT on track after a large lunch. Yet the huge grip of the track-spec Pirelli Trofeo R tires can be deployed with remarkably little drama. Fully unleashed, the new exhaust system creates more angry noise than melody—our wait for a truly fine-sounding McLaren continues—but despite the fury (and upshift lights), McLaren also gave the LT a chime that sounds as it gets close to its 8100-rpm rev cut.
Mechanical grip levels are huge. We soon realized that even what felt like daringly early accelerator applications in Silverstone’s tighter corners were excessively cautious, especially as the fast-acting stability and traction management systems intervene to hold the LT on the cusp of rear-end breakaway, feeding power back in seamlessly as the steering unwinds. A more permissive stability-control mode allows heroic-feeling slip angles in slower turns, although—as with all McLarens—the 765LT is short on steering lock when it comes to dealing with serious oversteer. Most owners will prefer to leave the systems watching their backs, especially given how unobtrusively they intervene.

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McLaren

The car’s aerodynamics help with high-speed stability, too. McLaren refuses to say how much downforce the 765LT can make, only saying the figure is 25 percent higher than the equally unquantified total for the 720S. But on Silverstone’s faster turns, the hand of God could be clearly felt pushing the car into the asphalt and increasing confidence, especially when turning into high-speed corners without first settling the front end with the brakes. While downforce levels are obviously less than those of the Senna, which produces up to 1764 pounds of aerodynamic assistance, the 765LT also feels lighter on its feet and more adjustable in corners than its wing-covered sister. The upgraded brake package is also close to extraordinary, turning what felt like outrageously late braking points into timidly early ones.
It took two stints at Silverstone in the 765LT to feel as if we were getting close to what it is capable of. Even those who regularly track supercars—or even race cars—will find it an adrenaline-spiking challenge. It might not sit at the top of the McLaren hierarchy in terms of pricing, but it is almost certainly the most thrilling choice in the current range and possibly the entire supercar segment. And thrilling is what cars like this are supposed to be all about, right?

Specifications

Specifications
2021 McLaren 765LT
VEHICLE TYPE mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door coupe
BASE PRICE $358,000
ENGINE TYPE twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injectionDisplacement 244 in3, 3994 cm3Power 755 hp @ 7500 rpmTorque 590 lb-ft @ 5500 rpm
TRANSMISSION 7-speed dual-clutch automatic
DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 105.1 inLength: 181.1 inWidth: 76.0 inHeight: 47.0 inPassenger volume: 48 ft3Cargo volume: 13 ft3Curb weight (C/D est): 3000 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST) 60 mph: 2.4 sec100 mph: 5.0 sec1/4 mile: 9.9 secTop speed: 205 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST) Combined/city/highway: 15/14/18 mpg

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Sometimes what a car lacks can be just as significant, if not more so, than what it has in abundance. Take for instance the new 2020 Audi e-tron Sportback, which has no shortage of technology, luxury, and engineering. And yet, its arguably standout quality is how little noise it actually makes, or at least how little of it you can actually hear. If silence is golden, then the e-tron is the gilded chariot of electric SUVs.
Just how quiet is the e-tron Sportback? Our sound meter registered a low 63 decibels inside it at a steady 70 mph—one decibel less than the standard e-tron. The Sportback nearly matches the $335,350 Rolls-Royce Cullinan’s 62 decibels in the same test. Yet, even R-R’s rolling sensory-deprivation chamber makes a comparative racket (71 decibels) when you unleash its 563-hp V-12 engine. In contrast, matting the e-tron Sportback’s accelerator only raised the volume to a 65-decibel whir.

HIGHS: Supremely quiet inside, improved range, beautiful and spacious cabin.

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Audi

Audi e-tron Is an EV Hiding in Plain Sight

All the Right Moves: 2021 Audi e-tron S Sportback

This is not surprising. EVs are inherently quiet due to the absence of controlled explosions under their hoods, which is why safety regulations now require all new electric vehicles to hum like spaceships at low speeds to avoid running over pedestrians. But Audi deserves kudos for refining the e-tron’s aerodynamics so as to generate almost no audible wind noise at speed. In addition to laminated side window glass on higher trim levels, there’s enough sound insulation packed into the Sportback’s structure to account for a good chunk of its massive 5819-pound curb weight. Tire roar on the highway is faint, and even rough roads and pavement seams produce only distant thumps from the wheel wells.
The Sportback’s quiet operation was particularly noticeable on our loaded Edition One test vehicle—one of only 200 built for the 2020 model year—because it otherwise performed the same as the mechanically similar 2019 e-tron we last tested. The Sportback weighs a negligible 24 pounds less than the standard e-tron. Like its sibling, toggling the Sportback’s shift trigger to S mode unlocks an overboost setting that juices the combined output from its front and rear motors from 355 horsepower to 402, which is good for a plenty adequate 5.1-second run to 60 mph. There’s certainly no confusing it with a cheetah-mode Tesla, as it passes the quarter-mile in a 13.8 seconds at 101 mph. But the e-tron powertrain’s quick responses and instant torque make passing maneuvers a snap. Its 3.0-second 50-to-70-mph time is seat-pinningly impressive, although we’ll hold our full excitement for the three-motor S version of the Sportback that we’ve already driven in prototype form.

LOWS: Range and performance doesn’t match Tesla, regen isn’t aggressive enough to allow one-pedal operation, $3200 more than the standard e-tron.

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Audi

The e-tron Sportback is also un-Tesla-like in that it won’t regenerate as aggressively as the Tesla when you lift off the accelerator. There is no one-pedal driving for this Audi. The deceleration from the regeneration system’s default Auto setting is minimal, but you can ratchet it up via the paddle shifters on the steering wheel. The strongest of the three settings noticeably slows the vehicle when you let off the accelerator and was our preferred setup, allowing the friction brakes to be used only for larger braking events and when pulling to a complete stop.
The big news for both 2020 model-year e-tron SUVs is that Audi now uses more of their 95.0-kWh battery packs—91 percent, up from 2019’s 88 percent—which earns the Sportback an EPA-estimated range of 218 miles. Based on our 75-mph highway test, we calculate a real-world range of 220 miles versus 190 miles for the 2019 e-tron. That figure is average for today’s electrified SUVs, but it can’t match the Tesla’s models. But it’s a useful improvement for what is a large and accommodating SUV that can pull up to 4000 pounds when fitted with its optional towing package. Audi says the e-tron can recharge to 80 percent in about 30 minutes using a 150-kW Level 3 DC fast charger, but hook it up to a 240-volt household outlet and a full refill of electrons takes around 10 hours.

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Audi

The Sportback’s less-than-sporty demeanor makes it easy to nurse its energy capacity. Ride comfort over bad roads is quite good with the standard air springs, even on our test car’s optional 21-inch wheels and 265/45R-21 all-season tires (20s are standard). And the e-tron’s substantial mass combined with the Quattro all-wheel-drive system—which operates in rear-wheel drive most of the time—gives it a solid sense of composure. Competent, secure, and isolated, despite having Sport in its name, there’s not much to urge the driver to crank the Sportback’s numb and heavily weighted steering wheel around corners. Pushed to its limit of adhesion, our test car returned a modest 0.84 g of grip around the skidpad and needed a lengthy 184 feet to stop from 70 mph.
Anyone that’s sat in an Audi Q8 will be immediately at home with the Sportback’s interior. Most of the controls, the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, and the dual MMI touchscreens on its center stack are all from the Q8. Overall comfort, refinement, and perceived build and material quality are excellent, all of which make the Sportback a lovely (and quiet) place to relax. If you’re taken by the Sportback’s sleeker fastback silhouette versus the standard e-tron, know that its back seat remains cavernous for two riders and generous for three, with plenty of headroom for all but the tallest occupants. And its truncated cargo hold, at a decent 27 cubic feet, is a mere two cubes smaller than the standard model’s.

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Audi

With limited production for the 2020 model year, 2021 will be the e-tron Sportback’s first full year on sale. Major changes include an expansion of the lineup to Premium, Premium Plus, and Prestige trim levels, up from 2020’s Premium Plus and Edition One. But you’ll want to opt for at least Premium Plus to get the thicker side windows, a convenient second charge port on the passenger-side front fender to allow you to charge from either side, and fancy matrix LED headlights, even if archaic headlight regulations in the United States limit their advanced capability to cheeky animations when the vehicle is parked.
As with most fastback derivatives of conventionally shaped SUVs, the stylish roofline costs more. A 2021 e-tron Sportback Premium has a base price of $70,195, the Premium Plus version asks for $79,095, and the top Prestige model costs $83,395. Compared to the standard e-tron, that works out to an upcharge of $3200 regardless of the trim. The value of silence, however, is harder to put a price on.

Specifications

Specifications
2020 Audi e-tron Sportback
VEHICLE TYPE front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door hatchback
PRICE AS TESTED $89,490 (base price: $78,395)
MOTOR TYPE 2 induction AC motors, 184 and 224 hp, 228 and 262 lb-ft; combined output, 402 hp, 490 lb-ft; 86.5-kWh lithium-ion battery pack
TRANSMISSION 2 single-speed direct drive
CHASSIS Suspension (F/R): multilink/multilinkBrakes (F/R): 14.8-in vented disc/13.8-in vented discTires: Bridgestone CrossContact LX Sport, 265/45R-21 108H M+S AO
DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 115.0 inLength: 193.0 inWidth: 76.2 inHeight: 65.0 inPassenger volume: 102 ft3Cargo volume: 27 ft3Curb weight: 5819 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS 60 mph: 5.1 sec100 mph: 13.3 sec120 mph: 22.2 secRolling start, 5–60 mph: 5.2 secTop gear, 30–50 mph: 2.3 secTop gear, 50–70 mph: 3.0 sec1/4 mile: 13.8 sec @ 101 mphTop speed (governor limited, mfr’s claim): 125 mphBraking, 70–0 mph: 182 ftRoadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.84 gStanding-start accel times omit 1-ft rollout of 0.3 sec.
C/D FUEL ECONOMY 75-mph highway driving: 75 MPGeHighway range: 220 miles
EPA FUEL ECONOMY Combined/city/highway: 77/76/78 MPGeRange: 218 miles
C/D TESTING EXPLAINED

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Smoke hangs in the air. Not tire smoke. That will come later. Half of California is on fire. The closest blaze to Malibu is more than 50 miles away, but the shifting winds have grayed its coastal skies, turning the air thick and bitter. White flecks of ash, like hell’s own snowfall, have coated the Jeep Wrangler 392 concept’s dark Granite Crystal paint and custom Red Rock leather upholstery.
The Wrangler’s Hemi explodes to life and quickly settles down, idling like a 450-hp V-8 should: ba … ba … ba. It exhales through an active exhaust system with a large muffler and four tailpipes hidden below its rear bumper. Pushing a button amplifies the V-8’s volume and drops its timbre a few octaves: BA … BA … BA.

450-HP V-8–Powered Jeep Wrangler Is Coming

Jeep Seen Testing New V-8–Powered Wrangler Rubicon

The long tease is over. For years Jeep has tantalized us with dirty talk of a V-8-powered Jeep Wrangler. Now it’s finally happening. Earlier this summer, in response to the introduction of the Ford Bronco, the Wrangler’s first real rival in more than a decade, Jeep made it mostly official. First it unveiled the beastly 392 concept with a 6.4-liter Hemi, and then it unleashed production-ready prototypes into the wild for spy photographers to capture. They didn’t miss.

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Jeep

It appears the production version of the concept will be a Rubicon Unlimited and wear the non-functional scooped hood from the Gladiator Mojave pickup, just as the 392 concept does. We expect the same engine under that hood as well—Fiat Chrysler’s iron-block 392-cubic-inch Hemi, which presently brings 475 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque to the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT and Dodge Durango SRT 392, and 485 horsepower to Charger and Challenger variants.
Fitting the engine into the Wrangler required reinforcements to its frame and engine mounts. It’s crammed in there with about a finger’s width between its accessories and cooling fans. But the bulk of the engine sits behind the front axle line, and there’s still room for the battery against the firewall. Overall Jeep says it’s roughly 200 pounds heavier than a Wrangler with the standard, aluminum-block 3.6-liter V-6, which would put it at roughly 4800 pounds.
Jeep has also fitted the concept with the Grand Cherokee SRT’s strengthened ZF eight-speed automatic transmission, and it borrows the two-speed Selec-Trac transfer case from the Wrangler’s Sport and Sahara models with the same 2.72:1 low-range gearing. The Rubicon’s standard part-time Rock-Trac transfer case has 4.0:1 gears, and an optional full-time four-wheel-drive unit is newly available for 2021. Strengthened with heavy-duty ARB differential covers, the Rubicon’s Dana 44 axles with electronic locking differentials front and rear are still in place, as is its disconnecting front anti-roll bar.

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Jeep

Since the 392 concept was originally destined for this year’s Easter Jeep Safari, which was ultimately canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a two-inch lift kit was installed, as were Fox shocks from the Gladiator Rubicon. A Warn winch was added to its front bumper, and bead-lock wheels, which are projected to make it to production in some form, wear 37-inch BFGoodrich mud-terrain tires and provide an additional two inches of ride height. Jeep says there’s a total of 13.3 inches of ground clearance and that the 392 can ford 34 inches of water, 4 inches more than a Rubicon.
Jeep also says the 392 concept gets to 60 mph in less than five seconds, but we weren’t able to launch it with any anger. Its transfer case is jacked. It’s only sending power to the rear tires, and those big, knobby BFGs don’t grab asphalt very well. With a functioning all-wheel-drive system, a Grand Cherokee SRT rips to 60 mph in a little more than four seconds, so the Wrangler will probably be in that neighborhood. But anything more than half throttle sends the traction-control system into panic mode and turning it off just results in a smoke show that lasts through first and second gears. We spent quite a bit of time contributing to southern California’s current air-quality problem.

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Jeep

Even nailing the throttle at 50 mph sends the traction-control light flickering. Usually such intervention is cause for complaint, but in this case there’s a sense that the electronics are the only thing keeping the Jeep on the road every time we put the pedal to the floor. The V-8 feels its strongest above 3000 rpm and carries its power curve to the 6400-rpm redline. Its rumble is always there, whipping through your hair with the hot winds of summer. The transmission’s calibration could still use some tweaking. Left in Drive, the eight-speed short shifts into second gear at around 5900 revs and is slow to respond to downshift requests.
The driveline malfunction also bins any hope of exploring some trails, so we spend our time on the two lanes that carve through the Santa Monica Mountains, where the Wrangler feels tall but surprisingly sorted. Its steering is sloppier than stock, but its ride is relatively supple, and there’s little indication of its increased curb weight and heavier nose. It isn’t nearly as clumsy as you’d expect.
Jeep says customers have been asking for a V-8 Wrangler for some time. Probably since the CJ-7 lost its AMC 304 V-8 in 1981. Well, it’s almost time for those power-hungry Jeepers to spend their money—at least $50K to start, if we had to guess. If our time in the Wrangler 392 concept is any indication of what we expect to be coming, they won’t be disappointed.
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When we look back on the late era of the internal combustion engine, the new Rolls-Royce Ghost may well prove to be the last sedan powered by a V-12 without hybrid assistance. This is a distinction that might be celebrated noisily, but 220 pounds of expertly applied sound-deadening material has other ideas. This is a car that never shouts and rarely does much more than whisper. It seemingly requires wide-open throttle to produce any evidence of internal combustion, and even then the V-12 merely issues a distant but purposeful hum of the sort you’d hear on the bridge of a luxury yacht a few seconds after moving the engine order telegraph to full ahead. Many brands will struggle to maintain their identities in the age of electrification, but for Rolls-Royce it will be a liberation from the small amount of disruption its engines still cause.
Much about the new Ghost is familiar, for the simple reason that the first version became the brand’s best-selling model of all time over a decade-long run. The new car is slightly bigger and considerably cleverer but looks very similar from the outside. Exterior styling is cleaner and less fussy, Rolls reckoning it has identified what it terms a “post opulent” trend among the sharp-end one percenters who make up its clientele. But although more visually modest than the full-baller Phantom, the 218.3-inch, 5700-pound Ghost is never going to be short on presence, especially now that its rear-hinged second-row doors have gained power operation for opening as well as closing. It also gets the option of an illuminated radiator grille.

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Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce Goes All In for the Last Ghost Zenith

2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost Changed, Still Elegant

Beneath the surface, all has changed. The first Ghost sat on the same underpinnings as the F01 BMW 7-series, but this one is based on the modular Rolls-only Architecture of Luxury platform that underpins both Phantom and Cullinan. Like its SUV sibling, the new Ghost gets both all-wheel drive and rear-wheel steering, with its 6.7-liter twin-turbo V-12 making the same output of 563 horsepower.
Yes, it will hustle. Those Ghost buyers who will drive the car themselves—a clear majority in the United States—will be able to enjoy the surprising accelerative forces it is capable of generating. While never unseemly enough to chirp its tires, the Ghost will launch hard with the nose-up attitude common to the powerful but softly sprung. We didn’t confirm the claimed 4.6-second 60-mph time during our drive in the United Kingdom, but considering the nearly 400-pound-heavier Cullinan has beat that, we’re expecting the Ghost to be a bit quicker. It certainly seems quick enough. Steering is light and short on resistance, but front-end responses are accurate and grip levels are keen. An active anti-roll bar is fitted to the rear, but this is powered by a 12-volt motor (the Bentley Flying Spur has a 48-volt system), and the effect under harder cornering is limited. The brake pedal is weighted to make ultra-smooth stops easy and thus is also a little too soft for accurate modulation under hard braking.

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Rolls-Royce

The Ghost is much happier at a gentler pace, with the most important statistic being the supine 1600 rpm at which the mighty engine attains its peak torque of 627 pound-feet. There is no way to manually select gears for the eight-speed automatic transmission, nor is there any obvious need to with the system software working as unobtrusively as an attentive valet. Just as in Phantom and Cullinan, the transmission uses GPS assistance to help intelligently select the right gear for approaching corners and junctions. Rolls-Royce is now happy to publicly state power and performance figures—it used to just claim an “adequate sufficiency”—but it still refuses to fit anything as vulgar as a tachometer to the instrument panel. Yet even with the Power Reserve meter showing more than 80 percent of the engine’s output untapped, performance is still brisk.
At first, suspension settings feel too soft. The Ghost’s pillowy initial response to a bump feels as if it will be followed by the wallow of a ’60s land yacht, but the air springs and adaptive dampers arrest the seemingly inevitable counter heave. At higher speeds it turns into a true magic carpet, with a road-reading stereo camera system informing the dampers of upcoming undulations. There are also dampers fitted to the top control arms that are designed to counteract vibration. Even sizable compressions are digested without apparent effort, with snug sound insulation doing a similarly good job at stopping the too-real world from spoiling the tranquillity of the Ghost’s cabin. At 70 mph it is as quiet as most cars would be at 30 mph; conversations between front and rear seat can be conducted in a whisper. One strange omission is lane-keeping cruise control. The Ghost will keep distance from a car in front but doesn’t have active lane assist.

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Rolls-Royce

The cabin is spacious, although slightly less roomy than you might expect given the car’s external dimensions. In regular form, the new Ghost is only barely shorter than the extended-wheelbase version of the outgoing car. Large adults can sit comfortably in the rear but without the ankle-twirling room that many associate with true luxury, a deficit that the inevitable stretched version will rectify. The combination of a high beltline and huge pillars also limits visibility, especially from the driver’s seat, where there are substantial blind spots to the front three-quarters and over the shoulder. We also noted that, at a regular seating height, only the top half of the Spirit of Ecstasy hood mascot can be seen, meaning the visible silhouette looks more like Dumbo than the Flying Lady.

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Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce continues to deliberately make its cabins feel closer to the 1920s than the 2020s, with archaic details like mechanical-style rotary heater controls in place of the omnipresent digital climate readouts of every upmarket rival. For the Ghost, it has added individual digital instruments that look and behave exactly like the conventional dials they replaced. But the overall effect still feels entirely special, thanks to details like the perfectly weighted metal air vents and the beautifully stitched leather dashboard. Even the starry headliner—which uses hundreds of fiber optics to mimic a clear night sky—doesn’t feel like a gimmick.
It is hard to criticize a car that betters a successful predecessor in every key regard, which is what the new Ghost manages. As ultra-luxury buyers follow the herd toward a preference for SUVs, it seems unlikely that this Ghost will be as popular as the outgoing version. But on every empirical and even subjective regard, it is the superior car.

Specifications

Specifications
2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost
VEHICLE TYPE front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan
ESTIMATED BASE PRICE $320,000
ENGINE TYPE twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 48-valve V-12, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injectionDisplacement 412 in3, 6749 cm3Power 563 hp @ 5000 rpmTorque 627 lb-ft @ 1600 rpm
TRANSMISSION 8-speed automatic
DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 129.7 inLength: 218.3 inHeight: 61.9 inTrunk volume: 18 ft3Curb weight (C/D est): 5700 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST) 60 mph: 4.3 sec100 mph: 10.4 sec1/4 mile: 12.7 secTop speed: 155 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY Combined/city/highway: 14/12/19 mpg

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