Rolls-Royce makes some of the finest cars in the world, but do they equip them with their own engine, or do they outsource them?
While Rolls-Royce is known for the manufacture of aircraft engines, the engines in its cars are actually built and supplied by BMW. The German manufacturer has been the supplier of Rolls-Royce engines since 1998.
Read on to learn more about Rolls-Royce, and the relationship it has with BMW, the supplier of its engines.
The Foundations Of Greatness
Rolls-Royce is one of the oldest names in motor engineering, having been founded in 1904 in Manchester. However, while Rolls-Royce started with the vision of manufacturing the best car in the world, the company quickly moved on to dominate the aero-engine space.
When the First World War kicked off, Rolls-Royce invested heavily in the manufacture of airplane engines. It was relatively new ground for the entire world, and Rolls-Royce was something of a pioneer in the space.
At the end of the Second World War, Rolls-Royce started research and development in jet engines, yet another new innovation. They’d come to be known as the de facto standard for aircraft engines, up until the collapse of the organization in the 1960s.
The mid-to-late twentieth century was a confusing time for Rolls-Royce, which fragmented and split into several sub-organizations. These fragments were picked up by various competing names, such as Volkswagen and BMW, but the aero-engine portion of the company was nationalized.
Today, Rolls-Royce is still a prominent manufacturer of aircraft engines and turbines, one of the biggest in the world, in fact. It has seen many beneficial partnerships with the likes of Boeing, Airbus, and it has received contracts to work with the British Ministry of Defence.
However, it can be argued that Rolls-Royce is better known today for the remarkable cars that are manufactured bearing the company name and image. These days, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited is an automotive subsidiary owned by BMW.
Since 1998, BMW has supplied the engines that power the Rolls-Royce cars on the road. In 2003, BMW assumed direct control of the entity and started manufacturing cars that carried the Rolls-Royce name.
Remarkable Car, Powerful Engine
Most Rolls-Royce models are powered by the BMW N74 engine, a massively powerful, twin-turbo V12 engine that has been in production since 2008. It’s an eight-speed engine, built with a displacement of around six liters.
However, it doesn’t end with that one particular engine, as there are several variants that are used in Rolls-Royce cars. For example, the Ghost, Dawn, and Wraith all use the N74B66, an ‘enlarged’ version of the standard engine.
This variant is capable of producing more than six hundred horsepower, and it effortlessly powers these uber-luxurious Rolls-Royce models. The Rolls-Royce Cullinan, the SUV offering, is powered by a slightly different engine.
The N74B68 is a 6.75-liter variant that has also seen use in the Phantom and Ghost models, but it’s used consistently under the hood of the Cullinan. These engines are considered some of the highest-quality builds in the world, which makes sense considering their use cases.
Rolls-Royce cars are some of the most dramatically expensive cars on the road today. At the most affordable end of the spectrum, a Rolls-Royce will cost you around $314,000, assuming you were to purchase it brand new from the manufacturer.
At the top end of the scale sits the Rolls-Royce Phantom, a half-a-million-dollar car that is unsurpassed in luxury and finery. This is arguably the flagship model for Rolls-Royce, and it absolutely dominates the road wherever it goes.
From the sound-proof cabin that eliminates outside noise to the iconic LED ceiling of the car, every inch of the Phantom is crafted for luxury. The seats are sumptuous, the legroom is overwhelming, and the specification is mindblowing.
When you’re in the back of a Phantom, you feel as though you’re flying first-class on the world’s finest aircraft. It comes as no surprise to learn that the Phantom is the vehicle of choice for many high-class executive chauffeuring companies.
With the intensely powerful BMW engine under the hood and decades of Rolls-Royce engineering experience driving the vehicle forward, there’s no finer choice. The sheer appearance of this vehicle on the road is sure to turn heads.
Thankfully, if you are parting ways with half a million dollars, you can do so safe in the knowledge that your Phantom is your Phantom. Rolls-Royce offers extensive customization options, meaning you can quite literally build the car of your dreams.