00:00 Welcome to a very secret corner of Goodwood, the home of Rolls-Royce motorcars.
00:07 In this unique facility, the Amethyst drop tail was hand-crafted.
00:13 Drop tail represents a fundamental examination of our design principles,
00:18 expressed in their purest form.
00:21 And this is perhaps no more evident than with the treatment of our iconic Pantheon grille.
00:26 For the first time in our brand's history, the grille vanes, which are usually straight,
00:31 are actually kinked at the top and raked rearwards.
00:34 That, in turn, together with the deeply set eye sockets for the headlamp,
00:39 create this strong, heavy brow effect that emphasises a horizontal proportion to the front of the car.
00:46 This progressive treatment is also extended to the lower area of the grille,
00:50 where we would typically find the more rectangular conclusion in the corner, we have a chamfered effect.
00:55 And this, together with the deep draw, almost promises a more functional aesthetic by way of its impression.
01:02 And unique to the drop tail Amethyst expression is the inclusion of an Amethyst stone,
01:07 the birthstone of the eldest son of the commissioning family,
01:11 which is here placed at the base of the Spirit of Ecstasy,
01:15 and in turn informs the overall colour palette that you see here on the car.
01:20 Now, as we take in the visual silhouette of drop tail, perhaps the most unique aspect is its stance.
01:27 And in the first instance, this is established by way of its proportions.
01:31 In the front end, you have a very short front overhang and a raked rearwards inclination to the face of the car.
01:37 But more unusual for a Rolls-Royce, at the rear there is a compact overhang.
01:41 Typically, we have very regal rear ends to Rolls-Royces that provide that sense of elegance,
01:46 that visual sense of waftability, but here there's an assertiveness that comes by way of the overhangs from the axles.
01:53 But more importantly, is actually the ratio of a very, very generous body side section
01:58 to an incredibly shallow windscreen proportion.
02:01 This visually pushes the occupants down inside the car,
02:05 really emphasising the two-seater roads to nature of the design.
02:10 Now, what you will also notice is the general distillation and purification to the surfaces.
02:16 So, even where you would typically find on a Rolls-Royce the side indicator coupled together with the Rolls-Royce badge,
02:23 we work to, in the first instance, relocate the indicator into the forward edge of the door handle.
02:28 A first for us.
02:29 But secondly, actually take the Rolls-Royce monogram and deconstruct it and place it up here on the sail panel.
02:36 And this leaves the surface uninterrupted here and emphasises the visual elongation of the dash to axle proportion.
02:44 And as we move rearwards, we discover the sail cowl,
02:48 which on the interior serves as almost the collar-up impression, you know,
02:52 cossetting and protecting the occupants within.
02:54 But from an exterior standpoint, it really underlines the two-seater nature of the design.
03:01 Now, as we find ourselves at the rear of Drop Tale, the immediate impression is one of sculpture,
03:07 particularly this transom surface that helps to establish the width of the car.
03:12 It takes its inspiration from the construct of a yacht, where you have the hull form running rearwards
03:18 and then this strong truncation to provide this very pure, clean and uninterrupted surface that establishes the width of the car.
03:27 You also see with this large canvas, we're able to place these beautifully delicate, almost jewel-like rear lamp elements
03:34 that are incredibly contemporary in their execution here,
03:37 but actually serve a very serious historical nod to the cars from the '20s and the '30s.
03:44 But the real visual highlight here at the rear is, of course, the aft deck,
03:49 the largest single piece of wood that has ever been produced here at Goodwood by our artisans in the home of Rolls-Royce.
03:57 It was very much defined by the unique grain of caramel hue that you see in here
04:04 that also went on to inform the wider colour palette within the interior.
04:08 We also pioneered differing techniques and even filed a patent specifically for the Amethyst Drop Tale
04:15 in our fulfilment of what the client was looking for.
04:18 What is quite interesting here visually is, of course, you have the familiar bookmatching on centreline
04:24 where the leaf is opened and spliced to provide this complete mirror down the centreline
04:29 and here exaggerated with the chevron effect that darts towards the rear edge of the car.
04:34 But moreover, this is then coupled with the technique of slipmatching,
04:38 which is actually when we move the leaves to ensure that you have no visual repetition between the individual splices,
04:45 so that what you see here provides a texture and a richness as it would have been found were it in the wild.
04:52 But beyond its aesthetic beauty is actually a very serious function.
04:56 This surface actually provides the downforce for the car when it is travelling at speed.
05:02 A feature, a normal spoiler as you would find on many other motorcars, would simply not be appropriate for a Rolls-Royce.
05:10 And here we worked hand in hand with not just the engineers doing the digital simulations to provide us with the optimal profile,
05:17 but on the other hand, together with the artisans in the woodshop,
05:20 to ensure that the limitations of the material and the way that it is sculpted
05:24 could accommodate the aerodynamic profile that we are looking for.
05:28 And as we follow the cow line up, our eye spills over into the interior.
05:33 Now the cabin of Drop Tale is made up of three key gestures.
05:37 The first is the shawl element that takes the line that comes off the grille rearwards in the waist rail
05:42 and then wraps behind the two occupants and encircles them and cossets them within the interior,
05:47 almost as if it is pulling them forward.
05:49 And as you see it here, this beautiful sculpture continues the calamander light wood down onto the interior of the car itself.
05:57 The second gesture is the plinth, this cantilevered and beautifully elliptical form that sits between the two occupants
06:04 and gives the impression that they are sitting low within the cabin space of the car itself.
06:09 And finally, the instrument panel, providing this precision and visual clarity to piloting such a unique Rolls-Royce Roadster.
06:18 There is a general pursuit of distillation here.
06:21 You will notice only the display of analogue interfaces at the request of the client.
06:26 And in nod to also the amethyst that is featured on the exterior,
06:31 it appears here in the interior on these beautiful rotary control dials as a cabochon cut gemstone.
06:38 Here, drawing inspiration from the high complication timepiece,
06:42 we draw on the hot horology techniques of fine brushing,
06:47 which of course is sympathetic to the brushing that we have on the stainless steel parts here on the exterior,
06:52 but also the centre caps that incorporate the guilloche pattern,
06:57 but also incorporate the amethyst hues as you find it here in the wider palette of the interior.
07:04 The centrepiece of the amethyst drop tail is the meeting of the client's two great passions in life.
07:10 The first, of course, is Rolls-Royce motorcars.
07:13 The second, their appreciation of fine watchmaking.
07:17 And here the client commissioned horology maison Vacheron Constantin to create a unique timepiece.
07:24 Here with the roof in place, drop tail is transformed from a lithe open top roadster
07:30 to a dramatic and formidable looking coupe.
07:34 Here as a design team, we actually studied 1930s West Coast hot rods
07:38 to establish the right glass ratio to roof.
07:42 And the speed with which it exits rearwards really emphasises that sense of drama
07:47 that you would expect with such a distinctive design.
07:50 Here this cantilevered impression is mimicking the treatment on nautical tenders
07:55 and also picks up on the design resolution here at the rear.
07:59 But perhaps more unique to the amethyst drop tail
08:03 is the inclusion of a vast uninterrupted glass application over the centre of the roof.
08:09 Here we were guided by the very clear wish from the client
08:13 that they intended to use the car in an environment where not only did they wish to view out,
08:18 but also to view up.
08:20 And not only that, knowing that it would be in very different parts of the world during its lifetime,
08:25 it actually incorporates an electrochromatic function
08:28 that allows you to transition between a completely obscured expanse of glass to translucent.
08:35 Our contemporary movement of Coachbuild is about creating something beautiful
08:39 that's emotionally resonant and intellectually stimulating.
08:43 The amethyst drop tail sensitively captures the cultural heritage and the family legacy
08:49 through quiet artistry, sophisticated details and exceptional craft.
08:55 The Rolls-Royce drop tail is our most profound statement of this applied art to date.
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