When it launched in 2003, the current Rolls-Royce Phantom marked the rebirth of the storied British luxury carmaker under BMW ownership. Thirteen years between redesigns is an eternity in the car industry, so the Phantom has certainly had a good run. But a new one is on the way.
Rolls will send off the current Phantom with a special Zenith Collection coupe and convertible. This also marks the end of production for the Phantom Coupe and Drophead Coupe convertible, which won’t continue as part of the next-generation Phantom lineup. The new car will be offered as a four-door sedan only.
The Zenith Collection models have some unusual features, including a glass shelf that folds out of the tailgate to serve as a picnic table. Rolls also found room back there for a champagne cooler that holds two bottles and eight glasses, while sacrificing a bit of trunk space. It’s all about priorities, right?
Read more: Rolls-Royce Dawn convertible drops its top
The interior features unique styling elements, and some memorabilia. The door armrest caps have laser etchings depicting Villa d’Este and Geneva, where Rolls originally unveiled the 100EX and 101EX concepts that became the Drophead Coupe and Coupe, respectively. Each car also comes a piece of metal from Rolls’ assembly line in Goodwood, England, housed in its own aluminum case.
On the outside, Zenith Collection models are set apart by paint schemes inspired by classic Rolls cars. The Phantom Coupe gets a combination of Madeira Red and Jubilee Silver taken from a 1930s Phantom II, while the Drophead Coupe wears Midnight Blue and Arctic White, a combination inspired by a Phantom II Continental from the same period. Both cars use a new “glass clear coat” that improves the paint’s shine, according to Rolls.
There are no apparent mechanical changes, so buyers can expect the same 6.7-liter V12 used in other Phantom models. It produces 453 horsepower and 531 pound-feet of torque, which is sent to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission. Only 50 Zenith Collection models will be built, and Rolls says all are already spoken for.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.