Rolls-Royce Spectre leaves its natural environment
All-electric super coupe clocks up 625,000km of testing in the French RivieraThe 2023 Rolls-Royce Spectre has just wrapped up the latest phase of its development program in the French Riviera, where Rolls says it notched up another 625,000km of testing on “the very roads that many production Spectres will be driven”.
Around 45 per cent of the Spectre’s time in the Côte d’Azur was spent at the Autodrome de Miramas proving ground, where more than 60km of dedicated closed routes served as the basis for arguably the most relevant testing the new high-end electric coupe will go through.
Conceived as an electric continental tourer, the Spectre needs to be as at home in the twisties as it is cruising along the Riviera and blasting down high-speed freeways, which is why the remaining 55 per cent of its time in France was spent on the roads surrounding the test facility.
“The French Riviera and its roads present a perfect combination of the types of conditions that will be demanded from Spectre’s clients, ranging from technical coastal corniches to faster inland carriageways,” said Rolls-Royce.
The British super-luxury brand says similar testing will be carried out in other key markets around the world before the Spectre launches globally in the final quarter of next year.
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös said the upcoming coupe was easily the marque’s most advanced model to date, because it is “free from the restrictions connected to the internal combustion engine”.
“Our battery-electric vehicle will offer the purest expression of the Rolls-Royce experience in the marque’s 118-year history,” he said.
“This latest testing phase proves a suite of advanced technologies that underpin a symbolic shift for Rolls-Royce as it progresses towards a bright, bold, all-electric future.”
Roughly 40 per cent of the Spectre’s development has now been completed, equating to around a million kilometres, with another 1.5 million to go.
In announcing the conclusion of the Riviera testing phase, executives also revealed the car’s drag coefficient has been reduced down to 0.25Cd thanks to “rigorous wind tunnel testing, digital modelling and continuous high-speed testing”.
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