The new model will be "a high-bodied car, with an all-new aluminium architecture" and one that "offers the luxury of a Rolls-Royce in a vehicle that can cross any terrain."
DETROIT, MI - Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is building the first SUV in the British luxury automotive company's 111-year history, though the company is calling the forthcoming vehicle about everything but an SUV.
Company Chairman Peter Schwarzenbauer and CEO Torsten Mueller-Ortvoes said in an open letter Wednesday that the new model will be "a high-bodied car, with an all-new aluminium architecture" and one that "offers the luxury of a Rolls-Royce in a vehicle that can cross any terrain."
It is not immediately clear when or where the company, a division of BMW Group, plans to give the public a first look at the yet-to-be-named off-roader. But the announcement that it plans to move forward with the new car comes shortly after rival luxury automaker Bentley announced a name for an SUV it too is building: the Bentley Bentayga.
Rolls-Royce currently makes only the Ghost, Wraith and Phantom model cars. Incidentally, those three 2015 models have base, Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Pricing of $286,750, $294,025 and $407,400, respectively.
"Sir Henry Royce famously said: 'When it does not exist, design it,'" the letter reads. "We are doing just that."
David Muller is the automotive and business reporter for MLive Media Group in Detroit. Email him at dmuller@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter