Technology has been at the core of Rolls-Royce’s engineering philosophy for more than a century. It’s appropriate, therefore, that the Phantom is built around a highly advanced aluminium spaceframe - the largest of its kind ever made in the automotive sector.
Though hidden from view, it is one of the undoubted engineering highlights of the car, comprising some 200 extruded aluminium sections and more than 300 parts made of sheet alloy. Highly-skilled craftsmen weld the structure together by hand, completing some 150-metres of weld in 2,000 separate locations.
Designed to be immensely strong, for safety, and rigid, to provide a solid platform around which the rest of the car can be built, the spaceframe weighs just 550kgs - considerably less than if it were made from steel.
Clever design means the spaceframe is adaptable, making it possible to build new Rolls-Royce models without the need for a radical re-design. It’s an extremely advanced and efficient piece of engineering. A good example of this is the Phantom Extended Wheelbase, which gains an extra 250mm of rear legroom without compromising the styling or engineering integrity of the standard car.
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