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NEWS
Rolls-Royce hybrids confirmed
But SUV still being debated, thumbs down for diesel and EVHybrid yes. SUV maybe. Diesel and pure electric a definite no.
That's the product debate in a nutshell for the BMW-owned ultra-luxury brand Rolls-Royce.
On course for a record 4000-plus sales in 2014, the company rolled out the Phanton Metropolitan Collection (pictured) at the Paris motor show last week, but has much more substantial new product plans in the pipeline.
It will start with a Wraith convertible within 12 months and after that will come the next generation Phantom and Ghost.
And it seems inevitable both will feature some form of hybridisation technology sourced from within the BMW Group.
"As a company we are bringing out hybrid versions," BMW Group sales and marketing boss Ian Roberston told motoring.com.au. "So more and more cars are coming, it is in the technology pallet for the company and that means you will see it spreading across other products as well."
Robertson acknowledged that proposals for both diesel and electric Rolls-Royces had recently foundered, but did not think hybrid would be rejected by customers.
"No I don't think so," he said. "Hybridisation will affect everything.
"We tested a number of options on Rolls-Royce a couple of years ago, including a fully electric one. It works. The driving characteristic is very good, but the feedback from the customers was maybe not yet.
"Diesel is very regionalised and one thing for certain with Rolls-Royce is you need powertrains which are global because of the volume equation. Diesel is in essence a European product and a little bit in the USA now, but actually none in Asia, so that was the reason the diesel came away from our discussions."
The much-mooted Rolls-Royce SUV is in the early stages of external design debate and according to an Autocar magazine report still a long way from being pitched to the BMW board for a green light, something Robertson tacitly acknowledged.
"We have said we are looking. Whether we take this car a step further yet we haven't finally decided.
"Rolls-Royce is enjoying great success. We will sell more cars around the world this year than in the 109 year history of Rolls-Royce and we have done that by offering new cars in new segments.
"You can be sure we will look at what the opportunities are and over time we will take these decisions. But we are not confirming anything at this point in time."
Roberston said Rolls-Royce would not be influenced into a decision on the SUV by the confirmed plans of Bentley and Lamborghini to enter the booming segment with luxurious new models. Rather, he suggested, they should be concerned about what decision Rolls makes.
"The positioning of Rolls-Royce is almost unique," Robertson insisted. "We are quintessentially at the top of car positioning all around the world. We have proven in the last 10 years that we can not only position that car but also give our competition a lot of worries and with that in mind we are intent on continuing that success.
"Cars are coming all the time and there are more cars coming in the Rolls-Royce pipeline that you will see in the next year or so."
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Written byBruce Newton
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