The Rolls-Royce Cullinan has become the brand’s most profitable model, reconciling the marque’s relationship with rough terrain
Words: Jon Burgess
While an SUV might have seemed a big departure for Rolls-Royce, its products have a history with heading off the beaten track. Barely two years after the Cullinan diamond was discovered in the Magaliesberg Mountains of South Africa, ‘AX 201’, otherwise known as ‘The Silver Ghost’, conquered the Scottish Reliability Trials as the competition fell behind (and apart) in its wake.
It would not be the last time the 40/50 series prevailed: were it not for a fleet of nine armoured Rolls-Royces, Lawrence of Arabia’s raids during the First World War would have been impossible. His team required fast, nimble and resilient vehicles to race across the desert; Rolls-Royce heeded his call.
Before the Cullinan became the first factory-sanctioned four-wheel-drive Rolls-Royce, others attempted to follow in T. E. Lawrence’s tracks. A controversial Corniche appeared at the starting line of the 1981 Paris-Dakar Rally; in truth, it was a silhouette machine built on a spaceframe chassis by off-road specialist (and rally entrant) Thierry de Montcorgé, ditching everything but the original car’s grille and Spirit of Ecstasy.
Together with his mechanic, Michel Mokrycki, the pair mated a fibreglass Corniche replica body to the running gear of an HJ45 chassied Toyota Land Cruiser, ditching its 6.75-litre L Series V8 for a Chevrolet small-block V8. It went the distance but was disqualified after hitting a tree in Burkina Faso; a repair was deemed illegal, so while it crossed the line it did not record a result.
Rolls-Royce took the desecration of its model seriously – although de Montcorgé did not suffer the same litigation as the late John Dodd, whose Merlin-engined ‘Beast’ had its grille and Flying Lady removed after losing a High Court battle with the firm in 1981. Eschewing its existence until 2018, de Montcorgé’s Corniche appeared in selected Cullinan promotional material at launch.
Coachbuilder Robert Jankel was the next to give a Royce product four-wheel-drive; offered on all of Robert Jankel Design’s conversions of the marque, its proprietary system drove the front wheels at speeds of up to 30mph whenever low or reverse was selected. Between 1989 and 1992, 11 examples of the SZ-series Bentley Turbo R were converted into Val d’Isere estate cars; all used Jankel’s part time four-wheel drive system. It would not be for another 23 years that a four-wheel-drive Rolls-Royce would be entertained.
The firm broke its silence in the pages of the Financial Times, where it confirmed that work was proceeding apace on an ‘all-terrain, high-bodied car’, with development slated to take up to three years. Immediately the press seized on ‘Project Cullinan’ as the firm’s ‘working title’ for a Royce sport utility vehicle; the company denied its new car belonged to that segment until 2018, when the term ‘SUV’ appeared prominently in press releases. Rolls-Royce – much like Ferrari with its Purosangue – was, for the longest time keen to avoid the negative connotations of the segment.
Extensive testing readied the car for launch in 2018 – by which time the Cullinan name ‘hidden in plain sight’ was revealed to be its official title. A fitting nameplate given Cullinan’s status as the largest diamond ever found, with its cut stones appearing in the Crown Jewels. Indicative of its ability, the firm’s ambition in the car’s off-road ability embodied TE Lawrence’s writings of his beloved 40/50, the Blue Mist. ‘A Rolls in the desert was above rubies,’ he observed, long before development Cullians battered across the Arctic Circle and Middle East for weather testing.
Although Cullinan appeared at the 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed, it would not be until the model’s launch in Jackson Hole, Wyoming that the press got to sample the car. It had long appeared in the public gaze; images of dazzle-camouflaged Cullinan prototypes had been released two years prior, with National Geographic documenting the last stages of pre-production testing in 2018.
A far cry from the Springfield, Illinois works that produced pre-war Rolls-Royces, Jackson Hole was at the time the wealthiest corner of the United States of America per capita; a chance for high-worth individuals to go off the beaten track, the Cullinan was the car to take them there.
While its styling was the subject of intense debate, the mechanical specification of Cullinan was plain to see. It was the second Royce to appear on the new aluminium spaceframe, otherwise known as the ‘Architecture of Luxury’, that first underpinned Phantom VIII. It used that car’s 6.75-litre, twin-turbocharged BMW V12 (N74-B68), too: with peak power rated at 563 bhp, peak torque (664lb ft) was billed as available from as little as 1600rpm, to help keep up momentum on rougher routes. Normally rear-wheel drive, a push-button drive selector engaged all four wheels electronically; as much as 50 per cent of the torque could be sent up front if needed, with torque vectoring from braking also directing drive.
What’s more, five-link air suspension based on that of Phantom VIII was also specified, with forward-looking cameras pre-loading the drivetrain to keep the ride as refined as possible; Rolls-Royce cited a ‘magic carpet ride’ whatever the road surface. Rounding off the specification was an eight-speed ZF automatic and a 54cm specified wading depth – not Range Rover territory but more than respectable. Crucially, Cullian could go deeper than the Bentley Bentayga (50cm) – which mattered most of all.
Cullinan was (and still is) the only V12-engined luxury off-roader in its class; while Rolls-Royce Motor Cars’ owner, BMW AG, had toyed with the notion of offering V12-engined Range Rover P38s to the public during its tenure of Rover Group, the prototypes had not progressed further.
Dynamically, Cullinan was something of a departure for Rolls-Royce, as it expected more than ever for owners to drive their cars rather than employing the services of a chauffeur. To that end, a smaller, thicker-rimmed steering wheel was fitted; the brake pedal was also modified to respond sooner to prompts, as opposed to the long travel modulation of Phantoms VII and VIII. Not that Cullian neglected its back seat passengers; access to the rear seats – in either configuration – was afforded by rear hinged coach (‘suicide’) doors, with which the car took its cue to lower itself by 40mm.
Buyers could also choose from five-seat ‘lounge’ or four-pew individual seating with two spots in the back; while the former offered split fold backs (with an electronically rising boot floor) the latter laid out individual seats split by a centre console. So equipped, a Champagne fridge with crystal flutes, a whisky decanter and crystal tumblers made the journey that bit more comfortable, with a glass partition fitted between the luggage and passenger compartments emulating the hush of a traditional Royce three-box saloon.
100kg of sound deadening, 6mm double-thick glass, and foam-filled Continental tyres completed the package for 2018; the following year, Cullinan became the fastest-selling Rolls-Royce model in the firm’s history. The company’s Bespoke service was also extended to Cullinan that year: the first model demonstrated, the Genève 2019, appeared at the Swiss capital’s motor show, incorporating a lavish picnic set and a pair of rear seats – known as the Viewing Suite – which fitted into Cullinan’s drop-down, split tailgate.
Very little was off the Bespoke menu: customers, working in conjunction with independent and in-house designers, could specify a body colour removed from the 44,000 shades of paint currently offered, while altering their car’s décor, wood stain and upholstery to their exact requirements. While many customers chose to keep their commissions private, collector Michael Fux unveiled his special orange Cullinan to the world in 2019; the body shade, Fux Orange, could only be used on future Cullinans with his express permission. Three years later, another Bespoke commissioned Cullinan was shown at Pebble Beach, in another wild colour listed only as ‘Forbidden Pink.’
Rolls-Royce had barely scratched the surface of Cullinan, adding Black Badge options to the menu that same year. Also available on the Dawn, Wraith and Silver Ghost, Black Badge specification was aimed squarely at younger buyers, upping the power output, offering special décor, and adding larger wheels to further alter the appearance of the car in question.
No exceptions were made for the Cullinan Black Badge. Adorned with Sir Malcolm Campbell’s ‘infinity’ water speed record logo in homage to his Rolls-Royce aero-engined Blue Bird K3 (last seen on the 35 unit Phantom Drophead Coupé Waterspeed Collection of 2014), Cullinans so equipped came as standard with black paint and yellow trim inserts, and painted brake calipers, a first for any Rolls-Royce. As per other Black Badge models, all brightwork, including the front grille shell, and Spirit of Ecstasy, are black. Power went up, too: the Black Badge’s two-inch larger, 22-inch wheels now had 592bhp to deal with; the shorter travel brake pedal, a dynamic hall mark of Cullinan, had its travel reduced even further.
By 2021, further additions to the Bespoke range were offered on Cullinan, including the Recreation Module: a sliding cassette drawer that could be fitted to the tailgate for outdoor pursuits, including hunting, hiking, or skiing.
Effortless, Everywhere; Rolls-Royce’s slogan for Cullinan befits its status and legacy. While TE Lawrence may not have approved of its looks, its ability remains unquestioned.
Rolls-Royce Cullinan timeline
2015
Rolls-Royce confirms it is to enter the luxury off-roader market with an ‘all-terrain, high-bodied car’.
2016
Public testing begins on ‘Project Cullinan’, confirmed only as a ‘working title’.
2017
Weather cycle testing concludes in the Arctic Circle and Middle East.
2018
Cullinan name confirmed in February; appears at that year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed; launched in October at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, with coach doors, four-wheel-drive, and four-wheel-steering. 6.75-litre, 563bhp V12 fitted as standard, with an eight-speed ZF automatic.
2019
Cullinan becomes the fastest-selling Royce model in the marque’s recorded history, helps Rolls-Royce record 25 per cent year on year growth.
Cullinan demonstrated at Goodwood Festival of Speed; driven flat out up the hill.
Bespoke service extended to Cullinan; first Bespoke model, the Genève 2019, revealed at the Swiss motor show of the same name.
Black Badge Cullinan launched, with more powerful, 592bhp V12, special black paint, and 22-inch wheels.
2021
Cullian Recreation Module released, a new Bespoke addition based around a 48-litre sliding automatic drawer.
2022
Sales record broken again by Rolls-Royce; Cullinan confirmed as most in-demand model.
2023
Rolls-Royce celebrates 20 years of its Goodwood headquarters and manufacturing base.
