Generally, automakers try not to have their prototypes photographed by spy cameras. Rolls-Royce, on the other hand, actually provided “spy shots” to the media.
They went so far as to leave the hood ornament in place, apparently trying to entice people into photographing their station wagon — I mean SUV — and publicizing the images.
This next Rolls-Royce, called an SUV, is named Cullinan — not, as one might expect, a mis-spelling of the water-filter company, but the name of a large diamond. Still to be determined is whether this “SUV” is anything more than a hatchback version of a Rolls-Royce sedan, or why the front end continues to look like a cheaply done version of the 2004 Chrysler 300C.
Rolls-Royce is currently owned by BMW, with former-sibling Bentley owned by Volkswagen. Rolls-Royce aircraft engines are still made by the original firm.
David Zatz has been writing about cars and trucks since the early 1990s, including books on the Dodge Viper, classic Jeeps, and Chrysler minivans. He also writes on organizational development and business at toolpack.com and covers Mac statistics software at macstats.org. David has been quoted by the New York Times, the Daily Telegraph, the Detroit News, and USA Today.