Rolls-Royce Arcadia Droptail by Coachbuild

The Droptail series of cars by Rolls-Royce are the first models to have the roadster bodystyle in Rolls-Royce’s modern history. They represent the ultimate in personalisation as each has been designed virtually from scratch so that it is a unique model that no one else in the world owns.

The Droptails are the work of Rolls-Royce Coachbuild which collaborates with the customer to bring his or her ideas to life. There are four such cars and to date, two have been revealed – the La Rose Noire and Amethyst.

The third creation – the Arcadia Droptail– has now been revealed. Named after Arcadia, a place known in Ancient Greek mythology as ‘Heaven on Earth’, it was commissioned by a customer who recently took delivery of it in Singapore.

“This motor car is deeply connected to the client’s personality and preferences, and in capturing their character we have been empowered to make inspiring design, craft and engineering statements that show the world our ambition, and our unparalleled abilities,” said Chris Brownridge, Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.

While the rest of us car-buyers can choose colours, some of the materials and fittings and perhaps the wheels, the customer who works with the Coachbuild department can specify every single aspect and item. In the case of the Arcadia Droptail, it is said that the person possesses a distinct affinity for architecture and design, with sensibilities and personal codes of luxury, defined by purity and subtle restraint.

Arcadia in ancient Greek mythology is depicted as a land renowned for its extraordinary natural beauty and perfect harmony. Like the haven that inspires its name, the Arcadia Droptail was envisioned by the customer as a serene space characterised by reduction, material depth and tactility that would serve as a refuge from the complexities of their business life.

Design, sculpture and architecture
In capturing the theme of tranquillity, Coachbuild designers embarked on an exploration of design, sculpture and architecture from the customer’s favourite regions around the world. This included the precision and richness of modernist tropical sky gardens seen in Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam as well as British ‘Biomimetic’ architecture, where organic forms and material honesty are celebrated.

In addition to these references, the customer was also inspired by the motorcar itself and the purity of the Droptail design concept. It had to be absolutely faithful to the earliest hand-drawn sketch first presented as far back as 2019 – which shows just how long the process of making such an exclusive car takes.

It was the profile of this highly contemporary projection of the roadster body type that resonated so strongly with the customer. Apart from the bold, low stance, ensconcing cabin design and dramatic body lines, there is also the nautical inspiration behind Droptail’s ‘sail cowls’: named after their resemblance to a yacht’s jib. These sharp, angular forms rise behind the doors and curve gently inwards, subtly directing the eye to the motor car’s occupants.

In a key departure from the other coachbuilt Droptails in this series, the carbonfibre used to construct the lower sections of Droptail is painted in the solid Bespoke silver colour rather than left fully or partially exposed, visually ‘lifting’ the car in profile to intensify its lithe, dynamic intent.

As the exterior celebrates the car’s form, the interior is a deeply personal reflection of the customer’s individual aesthetic, reflective of the style they have curated in their residences and business spaces around the world. The colour palette and material treatment was envisioned to be a truly personal statement and instantly recognisable as a personal signature of the customer.

Focus on the wood
Wood development was central to Arcadia Droptail’s interior; the customer’s focus was very specific, with expectations concentrated on the texture, grain, colour and richness of the material itself. The designers were referred by the customer to many examples from architecture, residences and classic cars, to provide guidance and inspiration.

Given that Arcadia Droptail will be used internationally, including some tropical climates, specific attention was paid to developing a protection system and testing process for the exterior wood surfaces. Coatings used on superyachts were initially considered but rejected given that they require regular servicing and re-application. Instead, a Bespoke lacquer was developed that requires just one application for the lifetime of the motor car.

To validate this coating, Rolls-Royce specialists conceived a unique testing protocol wherein veneer pieces were subject to a punishing cycle inside a specialist machine simulating global weather extremes. This involved spraying sample wood pieces with water intermittently, between periods of leaving them to dry in darkness and exposing them to heat and bright light.

This was repeated for 1,000 hours on 18 different samples before the marque’s specialists were satisfied with the endurance of the pieces. In total, the wood pieces and protective coating required more than 8,000 hours of development.

Applying wood to the complex curvatures of Droptail’s interior required Rolls-Royce engineers to develop an entirely new substructure for several components. The dramatic geometry of the dashboard, door linings and central cantilevered ‘plinth’ armrest had to be incredibly rigid to ensure the stability of the wood pieces once they were laid in place.

The engineers called on carbonfibre layering techniques used in Formula 1 racing cars to develop an incredibly stiff base onto which the wood could be applied, ensuring that it remained secure regardless of the dynamic extremes the car experienced.

Most complex Rolls-Royce clock face
The Santos Straight Grain veneer fascia incorporates a clock conceived and developed by Rolls-Royce Coachbuild designers and craftspeople. This expression of haute horlogerie is the most complex Rolls-Royce clock face ever created: the assembly alone was a 5-month process, which was preceded by more than 2 years of development.

The clock incorporates an exquisite geometric guilloche pattern in raw metal with 119 facets. Its face also includes partly polished, partly brushed hands and 12 ‘chaplets’ – or hour markers – each just 0.1 mm thick. To ensure the readability of the timepiece, specialists gave each chaplet an infill bridge and painted them by hand using a camera capable of magnifying an image by up to 100x.

Themes from the clock are paired with the instrument dials, sharing materials, techniques and execution. They feature the same repeated guilloche pattern, as well as brushed and polished brightwork and frosted white inserts, recalling the colourway of the car.

Viewed around the world before being built
Reflecting the owner’s international lifestyle, the car has lefthand drive to facilitate its use around the world. This international dimension was so important to the customer that the Coachbuild Collective had the customer experience the car in multiple locations around the world before it was built.

Of course, a running unit was not used. Instead, the designers used a ‘holodeck’ to facilitate this – a unique virtual 3D environment in which an advanced virtual reality (VR) headset provides a view of  the car as it would appear in specific locations around the world.

“The significance of Rolls-Royce Arcadia Droptail lies in its subtlety. It is a projection of an individual who values clarity and precision in all areas of their life – from their passion for fine cuisine, their highly curated personal and professional spaces and affinity with contemporary design. This motor car is one of the most faithful expressions of an individual’s personal style and sensibilities we have ever created within the Coachbuild department. In capturing their spirit, we reveal a unique appreciation for simplicity, serenity and beautifully restrained elegance – one that was a privilege for me to have been a part of,” said Alex Innes, Head of Coachbuild Design.

Rolls-Royce Amethyst – the second Coachbuild Droptail creation