Report: Rolls-Royce customers not really interested in electric-cars

Rolls-Royce Phantom EE

At the 2011 Geneva Motor Show earlier this year, Rolls-Royce showed off its 102EX electric Phantom Concept aka Rolls-Royce Phantom EE. During the debut, Rolls-Royce said it has no plans for production of the electric sedan and that the Phantom EE is just a test bed. However, a couple of models will go on a global test tour across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North America.

So will Rolls-Royce ever end up producing the car at all? It doesn’t seem like it. According to Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes, the brand’s customers have mixed feelings about an electric Phantom. He said that Rolls-Royce has been showing its electric Phantom EE to customers to gauge interest on whether it should produce such a model.

Rolls-Royce customers usually live on the outskirts of major cities and may not really accept the car’s 124 mile range.

“Let’s wait and see what our customers are telling us, but hybrids have a certain capability to deliver both electric driving combined with a normal combustion engine, and that might be a solution,” he said.

Mueller-Oetvoes said that no customer has approached the brand asking for an electric-version of their cars.

Refresher: The Rolls-Royce Phantom EE is powered by a lithium ion battery pack and two electric motors mounted on the rear sub-frame. The two motors are connected to a single speed transmission with integrated differential. That helps it produce a total of 389-hp with a maximum torque of 590 lb-ft of torque. That allows the Rolls-Royce Phantom EE to go from 0 to 60 mph in under 8 seconds with a top speed of 99 mph. On a full-charge, the Rolls-Royce Phantom EE can travel up to 124 miles.

Rolls-Royce Phantom EE:

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– By: Omar Rana

Source: Automotive News