Mini’s RC cars were not the only vehicles representing Britain’s motor industry at the 2012 London Olympic Games. Just in time for the Closing Ceremony, Rolls-Royce whipped out three commemorative Phantom Series II Drophead Coupes.
The Drophead Coupes (convertibles to you proles) were built to commemorate the closing of the London games. They carried three of the performers in Closing Ceremony, titled “A Symphony of British Music,” to the event, driven by Rolls-Royce employees.
The performers were whisked along by the same 6.7-liter, 453 horsepower V12 and six-speed automatic transmission as the regular Phantom Drophead.
The cars were designed by Rolls’ Bespoke Design Team, which normally handles custom orders for clients. Fittingly, each car is finished in English White and, according to Rolls, they mark a historic milestone for the company. That’s because, for the first time in Rolls’ 108-year history, the company substituted its traditional “double-R” logo for a new one. To remind everyone of the company’s participation in the London Games, the Bespoke Design Team made a new logo featuring Rolls’ “Spirit of Ecstasy” mascot (draped in a Union Jack) framed by “London 2012.”
For the first new logo in over 100 years, it’s not bad. Not that anyone would mistake these massive convertibles for anything other than Roll-Royces, new logo or not.
Rolls-Royce takes its logos very seriously, though, which is why the Phantom’s wheels have self-centering hubs. On the London 2012 cars, the Rolls-Royce logo is replaced by “London 2012” and the Olympic motto, “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (“Faster, Higher, Stronger”).
The final bits of badging are an Olympic torch and laurel wreath on the steering wheel hub and special treadplates denoting the cars’ one-of-three status.
“I am delighted that Rolls-Royce Motor Cars was invited to take part in celebrating the success of the Games and it is appropriate that we should recognize this occasion with a fitting tribute,” said Torsten Müller-Ötvös, CEO of Rolls-Royce. When enthusiasts think of automotive athleticism, Rolls usually doesn’t spring to mind. Still, the company is a British institution, so its participation in the London Olympics makes sense.
A Phantom Drophead Coupe is already a rare car, so having one of the three used in the 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony would certainly set a collector’s mind racing. Indeed, Rolls-Royce is calling the three Olympic Phantoms “perhaps the most collectable (and unobtainable) Rolls-Royce Bespoke items ever produced.” They’re unobtainable because the company has no plans to sell them.
