RideLust

Come live vicariously through us as we, the most prestigious automotive blog in the world, grace the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance with our stately presences. We’re sure to be the star attractions – forget the live unveiling of several never-before-seen new cars, and the endless rows of priceless works of automotive art sprawled out on the golf course greens like so many unobtanium sandtraps. Surely Jay Leno and the other celebrities will probably manage to jostle themselves into the photos of our expert appraisals of the class frontrunners, but we won’t be too upset. We’ll take a break from being the life of the Concours every so often to update you, our faithful readers. So check back often, and follow us at http://twitter.com/ridelust and in our Pebble Beach live coverage to catch all of the latest updates.

Image courtesy Pistonheads.

A loyal Pistonheads reader in Belgium shot these shocking pictures of this Silver Cloud II festooned with more flair than a TGI Friday’s waitstaff convention. From the flames to the hood scoop, this Roller is dripping with inconsistent messages. Imagine who would lurk inside – a mullet-sporting teenage Elton John? Anyways, there is a method to the madness, as we will reveal shortly.

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In a thinly disguised attempt to quickly shed excess inventory, Bentley Motors has announced they will be holding a “one-off parts and accessories fair” at their headquarters outside of Cheshire. Stocked with some 7 million Bentley and Crewe-based Rolls-Royce parts for cars manufactured from 1955 on, Bentley’s PR department did a masterful job of making a quick garage sale for extra cash sound like an exclusive after-hours event at Bergdorf’s. Read More…

From our “Slow News Day” file:

Today, Rolls-Royce announced the appointment of Jolyon Nash as Director of Sales and Marketing, ushering in a new era of comically overpriced, ridiculously indulgent luxury (jealous? Us? Perish the thought!). Nash, who succeeds Graeme Grieve, is a graduate of the UK’s Greenwich University where he obtained a BA (Hons) Business Studies. Prior to joining the Rolls Ranks, Nash served as a dealer principal (and later as General Manager) for BMW Group in South Africa before joining Volkswagen in 2001. In 2005, Nash joined McCarthy Limited, one of South Africa’s largest Motor Groups, as Executive Director with responsibility for McCarthy’s Vehicle Import and Distribution business, Yamaha Distributors and McCarthy Financial Services. Read More…

Apparently, Rolls-Royce drew the same conclusions we did after getting a load of the Geely GE at the 2009 Shanghai Auto Show, and they aren’t happy. Presumably citing the huge radiator grill, suspiciously similar hood ornament, and a laundry list of interior accessories as substantive evidence, Rolls-Royce is reportedly discussing the possibility of taking formal legal action against Geely. Feigning innocence, Geely insists their $40,000 GE is merely a budget-friendly interpretation of RR’s famous $365,000 Phantom, as opposed to a blatant knock-off, but Rolls is apparently unconvinced. According to the company, Rolls-Royce is heavily investigating the potential copyright infringement, and although they have yet to take legal action, they are not completely removing the possibility from the table. “Our colleagues in Shanghai are taking a serious look at it,” a Rolls-Royce spokesman told the Daily Mail. “Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is very protective of its brand image and takes seriously any attempt to imitate its products.” Read More…

The Chinese are commonly held as the kings of copyright infringement, and nowhere is this more evident than with the new Geely GE. Produced by China-based Geely Automobile, the Geely GE is a dead ringer for the Rolls-Royce Phantom and mimics every one of its features right down to the extensive interior upholstery options and “starry night” headliner. As a matter of fact, aside from Geely’s badging, the only noticeable difference between the GE and Phantom Drophead Coupe is GE’s somewhat bizarre decision to outfit the GE’s rear passenger space with only a single, throne-like seat. Expected to debut officially next month at the 2009 Shanghai Auto Show, Geely seems dismissive of concerns that the GE is too similar to the Phantom to be considered an original product and expects to market the GE by appealing to the same pseudo-wealthy crowd targeted by the Chrysler 300.

Given that East Asia as a whole enjoys the dubious distinction of being the world’s leading exporter of sketchy-ass shit, the only thing that “shocks” us about the Geely GE is the fact that it doesn’t come with an exclusive set of genuine authentic 100% real Louis Vuitton luggage. Read More…

Expected to sit on the Rolls-Royce lineup as the smallest, most “affordable” model yet, the Rolls-Royce RR4 has once again made the headlines with the revelation of its engine specs. Unveiled in concept form as the Rolls Royce 200EX at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, little production information was given on RR4, leaving many of the more pertinent details up to heavy speculation (which we auto bloggers are very, very good at).

Apparently deciding to throw us a bone, Rolls-Royce CEO Tom Purves resolved one of our most burning questions today by announcing that the new Rolls-Royce RR4 will be powered by BMW’s 6.6L turbocharged 12-banger. Mated to the same 8-speed ZF gearbox found on the Phantom, the RR4 will be capable of producing well-over 500bph (upwards of 373kW/507PS), allowing it to stand toe-to-toe with it’s big brothers. Misleadingly referred to as the “baby” Rolls, Rolls-Royce CEO Tom Purves stressed that there’s nothing minimizing about the RR4, especially in terms of performance. “RR4 will deliver an authentic Rolls-Royce experience to owners, so expect peerless comfort and build quality. However, we have consciously engineered this car to be more involving and dynamic for those owners around the world that will wish to drive it themselves.” Read More…

Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe

Recently, a small ripple was made in the auto world as Rolls-Royce gently broke the news of the new, über-luxurious Phantom coupe they’ve introduced exclusively to the Middle Eastern market. While Rolls-Royce PR refrained from saying, “Hey, we just follow the money people,” they did attempt to distract suspicious auto experts by releasing a few coveted specs on the half-pint Rolls.

Although perhaps not as immediately attention-grabbing as the current melee in Detroit, there’s at least one industry analyst at Automoblog who wasn’t particularly captivated by Rolls-Royce’s carefully worded hype. Read More…

Currently a running back for the New York Jets, Thomas Jones keeps a colorful lineup of whips in his garage including a candy apple red Rolls Royce Phantom, a violently orange Ferrari 360 Spider, and a surprisingly subdued cool-blue Range Rover. Media shy both by nature and on principle, a glimpse into Jones’ private life is a rare treat indeed as Jones is one of those increasingly rare NFL players with a healthy dose of humility. Although it seems painfully cliched to further explain that Jones’ grew up in a small coal mining town to hard-working parents who always stressed the value of education – it’s a fact worth mentioning regardless.

A phenomenal athlete with an unpretentious character the likes of which I haven’t seen Barry Sanders, I like Thomas Jones so much, I’m not even going to give him a hard time for that obscenely-hued Phantom.

Hit the jump to check out Jones’ other rides Read More…

Picked up again by the impossible-to-elude photographers at the Brenda Priddy/LeftLane camp, the new “entry-level” Rolls-Royce RR4 was caught rolling around wearing a surprisingly minimalistic disguise. Sporting little more than a bra, the new baby Rolls appears to be growing into quite the little luxury sedan, retaining much of the same styling as its esteemed elder, the Rolls-Royce Phantom. While definitely sleeker and slightly smaller than the Phantom, the RR4′s large, 5,000-lb body and rumored V12 engine will still offer a commanding presence. While dubbed by Rolls-Royce as an “entry level” sedan, the “baby” Rolls is still expected to come with a $300,000 price tag and like its baby daddy the Phantom, production will be limited to 800 vehicles per year.

Full spy gallery after the jump Read More…