Category: Convertibles 
Price Range: £315,250 to £315,250
Incredible presence, fabulous ride, engine refinement, material quality.
Insufficient wind isolation with roof down, modest performance, rear legroom.
A beautifully engineered wealth statement which doesn't quite deliver on the promise of its appearance.
Before the involvement of BMW, you'd never question the quality of the materials used in a Rolls-Royce, just the way they were put together. Many feared a slip in standards when a mass-market manufacturer took the reins but, to date, these concerns have been unrealised and Rolls-Royces have been constructed to a standard that surpasses even those achieved in the past.
The Drophead continues this theme: everything you touch is either leather, wood or chrome. The teak on the rear deck is not a veneer but a specially treated slab of wood. The detailing is impeccable, from the beautiful ashtrays shaped like tubes to the provision of special umbrellas in the front wings; they have weak spots designed into their shafts so they collapse in a heavy frontal impact rather than intrude into the passenger area. However, we did notice that some of the dashboard panels, where wood meets leather for instance, were less well aligned than you might find in many massively cheaper cars. It is perhaps the price you pay for assembly by naked eye, rather than laser-guided robot.
