High Roller! The Rolls-Royce Cullinan lands in Manila
IT’S the Rolls-Royce of SUVs. It’s the spectacular Cullinan, and RollsRoyce Motor Cars Manila has rolled out the world’s most luxurious SUV to the Philippines in a glittering unveil held at the Manila Polo Club in Makati City last Wednesday.
Equally at home cruising the streets of Bonifacio Global City, or traversing the mountainscapes of Tagaytay, Cullinan will take a new segment of adventurous customers to the ends of the country in ultimate luxury.
Speaking at the launch, Sven Grunwald, Asia Pacific Regional Product Manager for Rolls-Royce Motor Cars commented, “Cullinan has been Rolls-Royce’s most anticipated new model, greeted with critical acclaim globally and perfectly equipped for the Philippines. Cullinan will be at the pinnacle of luxury here, with Bespoke capabilities that will complement the varied lifestyles of our highly successful customers.”
The Rolls-Royce Cullinan is the marque’s first-ever SUV that promises to redefine luxury travel as Effortless, everywhere. As with all Rolls-Royce motor cars moving forward, Cullinan is underpinned by a platform called the ‘Architecture of Luxury’ wholly unique to the brand, which accords the car a level of performance, comfort and refinement never before seen in the SUV segment.
Willy Tee Ten, President of Autohub Group, authorized distributors of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars in Manila said, “Philippines is an SUV country, and we are very excited to launch Cullinan today. Cullinan is the car our customers have been waiting for, perfectly suited for this market with unmistakable presence on and offroad. This is the car that will set the new benchmark for super-luxury in the SUV segment, an all-purpose
THE WORLD’S MOST LUXURIOUS SUV MAKES ITS PHILIPPINE DEBUT FIRST-EVER ROLLS-ROYCE SUV IS NAMED AFTER THE LARGEST DIAMOND DISCOVERED 4- AND 5-SEATER VERSIONS OFFERED, COMPLETES ROLLS-ROYCE RANGE FOR PHILIPPINES BOLD DESIGN, SOPHISTICATED AIR SUSPENSION AND EFFORTLESS V12 TWINTURBO ENGINE DELIVER ROLLS-ROYCE’S “MAGIC CARPET RIDE” ON AND OFF ROAD PERSONALIZED BESPOKE RECREATIONAL MODULE AND VIEWING SUITE OPTIONS TO CATER TO FILIPINO PATRONS’ LIFESTYLES
Rolls-Royce for our captains of industry.” Power and presence The Cullinan possesses a bold, functional and dynamic design language intended to convey a spirit as adventurous as the journeys it will take. The Pantheon grille sits on a chamfered edge, protruding forward into unknown terrain, all the while guided by the iconic Spirit of Ecstasy. Deep-set Laser headlights and brow-shaped LEDs cast up to 600m into the night, ensuring every foray is made with maximum visibility.
The high-bodied Cullinan reaches 1,836mm, a height accentuated by a large glass to metal ratio as seen from the side. 22-inch wheels give Cullinan a beautiful visual balance, while the depth of the side profile is optically broken up by a most authentic and honest piece of metal, like a Saxon spear, that flies down the lower door surface and gives the whole side of the car a beautiful sense of tension.
At the rear, the design theme for the rear lights remains decidedly simple as two narrow upright units house all the lights and are minimally adorned by thin narrow strips of jewellery at their centre. Final marks of functionality are the exposed metal exhaust pipes and skid plates, both proof one of Cullinan’s ruggedness and durability.
PRACTICALITY BY DESIGN
The Cullinan comes with two interior options. With space for three passengers in the rear, the five-seater ‘Lounge’ seating version shown at Manila Polo Club is perfect for Filipino families.
The rear seats fold down electronically either completely, creating a flat load area or in a 2/3 and 1/3 split, increasing practicality even further. Rear passengers can still travel with a long load, or use the carpeted seat back as an occasional table on which to rest their precious personal items.
The trunk or “boot” offers a standard 560 litres of space, growing to 600 with the parcel shelf removed. With both rear seats folded, Cullinan offers a loading length of 2245mm and load capacity of 1930 litres - one of the largest in the luxury SUV segment.
CONFIGURED FOR SUPREME LUXURY
The four-seater version of Cullinan, also known as the Individual Seat configuration, provides for the highest level of luxury in the SUV segment.
The two individual rear seats are separated by a Fixed Rear Centre Console, which contains a drinks cabinet with Rolls-Royce whisky glasses and decanter at the front, and champagne flutes and refrigerator in the rear. The seats feature ventilation and massage functions, and can be adjusted over a number of planes to offer ultimate comfort for rear seat passengers over longer journeys.
In this Individual Seating configuration, a truly unique glass partition behind the rear seat isolates the passenger
cabin from the luggage compartment, resulting in some of the lowest levels of noise recorded in an SUV cabin, while also protecting Cullinan’s occupants from temperature changes even when the luggage compartment is open.
A fashion theme is evident in the cabin in either version, with the upper dashboard fascia clad in a newly-developed and contemporary-looking ‘Box Grain’ black leather – a durable and water resistant boarded leather similar to that used in Italian high-end luggage and handbag design.
Meanwhile, the seats in Cullinan have a bold, confident character, showcasing Rolls-Royce quality and craftsmanship. Designed to suit the more casual and dynamic quality of Cullinan, they feature a simple but modern horseshoe graphic which emphasises the supportive bolsters of the seat. These new seats also showcase Rolls-Royce’s mastery of leather craft, made from a single piece of leather to ensure a highly three-dimensional surface.
CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY
The Cullinan is the most technologically advanced SUV of its type in the world. On activation via its bespoke key, Cullinan lowers itself by 40mm to make entry – through segment-unique coach doors – effortless into its sanctuary of a cabin. Passengers are greeted by wide aperture, electronically-closing doors with touch sensitive door handles.
Within the cabin, Cullinan’s passengers are pampered by an industry-leading panoramic glass roof. On request, a studio-grade 18-channel, 18-speaker Bespoke audio system, touch-screen operated video entertainment systems as well as Rolls-Royce’s signature picnic tables underline the level of luxury present. Cullinan’s occupants can keep their devices charged with USB-C ports strategically placed in the cabin; phones can also be wirelessly charged at the front of the cabin.
Cullinan’s safety features are peerless: Night Vision and Vision Assist including daytime and nighttime Wildlife & Pedestrian warning; Alertness Assistant; a 4-Camera system with Panoramic View, allround visibility and helicopter view; Active Cruise Control; Collision Warning; Cross-Traffic Warning, Lane Departure and Lane Change Warning; an industry leading 7x3” High-Resolution Head-Up Display, WiFi hotspot, and the latest Navigation systems.
IMPECCABLE ENGINEERING
Underneath Cullinan is the Rolls-Royce’s unique allaluminium architecture called the ‘Architecture of Luxury”, delivering extraordinary body stiffness for exceptional ‘bestin-class’ performance on rough terrain, whilst maintaining the ‘Magic Carpet Ride’ that RollsRoyce is famous for.
Add the latest generation of self-levelling four-corner air suspension, sophisticated allwheel drive and all-wheel steering systems, a complete reworking of the new 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12 Rolls-Royce engine (850Nm of torque at only 1,600rpm) and the world’s smoothest eight speed transmission, and you have the world’s pinnacle luxury SUV.
Off-road, electronically-controlled air springs use a powerful compression system to actively push down any wheel when the system detects loss of traction - to ensure every wheel is constantly in contact with the ground and maximum torque is delivered usefully to all wheels.
Effortless, Everywhere is available from a single source, known within Rolls-Royce as the ‘Everywhere’ button, offering four different programmes within the off-road driving mode, in addition to Hill Descent and suspension height controls.
The Cullinan also delivers the deepest wading depth of any superluxury SUV at 540mm thanks to its ride height. But no off-road trip will ever mess up patrons’ grand plans – as is the way with Rolls-Royce’s attention to detail. Both front and rear coach doors wrap low under the sill of Cullinan, ensuring that all dirt remains outside the door.
BESPOKE — ONE LIFE, MANY LIFESTYLES
Driving to any faraway destination of our patrons’ choosing is only part of the adventure in a Rolls-Royce Cullinan – further enjoyment awaits in the form of the Rolls-Royce Recreation Module.
For example: Having chosen an adventure, an owner loads the Drone Racing Module into his or her Cullinan, selecting it from the rack containing several other Recreation Modules that the owner has had commissioned from RollsRoyce to satisfy his or her preferred recreational pursuits.
From Fly fishing, to photography, rock climbing, snowboarding, parascending, kite boarding, base jumping, volcano boarding or simply sitting and taking in the view, anything is possible thanks to the Rolls-Royce Bespoke Collective. Easily slotted into boot of Cullinan and powered via its systems, each Recreation Module contains a motorised drawer housing the equipment and paraphernalia specific to each Cullinan owner’s pursuits. When the owner is ready to engage, the Recreation Module comes into play.
CULLINAN IN MANILA
Cullinan is now available for order in the Philippines, with first customer deliveries beginning in Q2 2019. As the saying goes, if you have to ask the price…