The Coming of A New Dawn

Rolls-royce chose to reveal its new Dawn in Cape Town, so Andre Lam heads to the southern tip of the African continent to drive the convertible along some of the most spectacular coastlines on the planet

outh africa is well known for many things but curiously, touring roads is not one of them. If you think the south of France is scenic in places, the coastal roads of Cape Town offer an almost constant swath of spectacular scenery for a 1,000km. Turn inland for 20km and the scenery becomes acres and acres of mature vineyards where some of the world’s best wines are made. This is the exact backdrop that Rolls-royce wanted its new Dawn to be seen against. A beautiful and regal convertible basking in the sun with two open oceans on one side and vineyards stretching as far as the eye can see into the nearby mountains. While it is related to the production platform that spawned the Wraith, just about every body panel and components are different, as the Dawn is considered a separate model rather than a Wraith drophead. Moreover, it looks even more gorgeous and sexy, something not often associated with a Rolls-royce. The stylists have done a brilliant job creating a convertible that looks stunning with or without the top. It even manages to look sportier than the Wraith Coupé with the hood up. On these coastal roads, there is no real incentive to stomp on the accelerator because to go fast is to miss the spectacular Cape Town scenery, and it just seems the locals are never in a hurry. Besides, it is just out of character to be hustling a Rolls-royce in the same manner you would a Ferrari. There is, of course, a surfeit of power and more importantly torque from the 6.6L V12. It delivers 563hp and an impressive 780Nm of torque for the characteristic waftability that allow these behemoths to storm away in such an understated and regal manner. This does not mean that it is slow as this two and a half ton leviathan will pass 100km/h in just 4.9sec and reach a regulated top speed of 250km/h.