Used 2017 Rolls-Royce Wraith

The 2017 Wraith is literally the Rolls-Royce of coupes, a majestic yet elegant 2-door fastback touted as the most powerful, most dynamic vehicle ever built by the British ultra-luxury brand. By nature such a vehicle is meant to appeal to a younger clientele, but with a starting price over $320,000, you’ll still need to be at least a multimillionaire to afford one. Like other Rolls-Royce motorcars, this one is hand-built, powered by a monstrous V12 engine and festooned with every creature comfort you can imagine, from massaging front seats to option packages that alone cost as much as a mainstream sedan. A Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe and even a Bentley Continental can be had for far less, but nothing brings the prestige of a Rolls-Royce.

The Wraith may be Rolls-Royce’s most driver-focused vehicle, but if you’re expecting a lithe and nimble sports car, look elsewhere. Yes, with its twin-turbo V12 that heaves out 624 horsepower, the Wraith can certainly hustle. This Rolls-Royce coupe does 0-60 mph in 4.4 seconds (or 4.3 for the Black Badge Wraith). But its power, velocity and overall handling come with a gracefulness and the innate serenity long associated with a Rolls-Royce. The cabin is a library, and there’s a reason why the brand describes its ride quality as a "magic carpet." One thing you can’t get around noticing is the Wraith’s girth. At nearly 17.5 feet in length and with a weight of roughly 2.5 tons, the Wraith can be a handful in tight confines. We shudder at the thought of dinging this masterpiece in a plebeian’s parking lot.

It goes without saying that the Wraith’s interior is among the most opulent available in a car. As with any other Rolls-Royce, this one uses only the finest leather, wood and other materials, hand-crafted, of course. A Rolls-Royce is usually commissioned to fit each client’s taste. In common for all Wraiths, however, is a 4-passenger cabin with good space even for the pair of rear occupants, who are treated to deeply sculpted seats, split by a wide armrest. Up front in the standard massaging seats, switchgear is easy to see and use, highlighted by a central rotary control.

Fitting its more dynamic, young-money nature, the very design of the Rolls-Royce Wraith stands out from past models with an aggressive, fastback style. “Length” and “strength” are the operative words here, highlighted by the massive hood up front and the fantastically low-swept roof at the rear. It’s an exercise in opulence and abundance, but one that works. To our eye, the Wraith is at its best when seen from the front three-quarters. That’s where you can get full display of its rear-hinged doors swinging open to easily grant passengers entry and exit.

STATELY DESIGN
There’s no missing the hulking, beautiful lines of the 2017 Rolls-Royce Wraith. Arrive in one or simply whisk by, and you’ll surely create a stir. At a standstill it will draw equal amounts of awe and envy, the latter exemplified as soon as the rear-hinged doors open wide.

SPIRIT OF ECSTASY
It’s a little thing but we’re suckers for it. The lady with wings who flies through the air atop the Rolls-Royce grille is known as the Spirit of Ecstasy. In solid silver, she’s $6,675 extra; up-lit is $4,125; illuminated is $8,025; gold-plated is $10,300. We’ll take her in gold.

What does over $300,000 buy you in a car? When it’s a Rolls-Royce, you of course get the finest hand-crafted automobile money can buy, but that kind of wealth also nets intangibles on which it’s hard to put a price: namely the power and prestige of simply owning a Rolls. That said, the Wraith’s standard tangibles are impressive, such as quad-zone climate control, surround-view camera system to aid in parking, power front seats with massage functionality, leather and wood interior and universal garage-door opener. The standard Driver Assistance One system includes lane-departure warning, high-beam assist and a head-up display.

Part of the reason for buying a Rolls-Royce is the ability to create it to your taste. Via bespoke options, you can have everything from the enviable starlight headliner to your initials emblazoned throughout the cabin. The Wraith you want is the Wraith you get. Among the more popular options are a fixed-glass roof, various interior piping themes and Rolls’s second-to-none lambs-wool foot mats. The Wraith Package, which alone costs nearly $30,000, bundles some of those items and the Driver Assistant Three system with night vision and active cruise control.

The 2017 Wraith is powered by Rolls-Royce’s glorious twin-turbocharged 6.6-liter V12 rated at 624 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. Black Badge variants have the same horsepower but increased torque, 642 lb-ft. Both use an 8-speed automatic transmission that sends power to the rear wheels. According to Rolls-Royce, the transmission is so sophisticated that it uses GPS information to know what the road ahead has in store and then makes gear-selection decisions based upon that information, but for better or worse we didn’t know the system was at play. If you’re buying a Wraith you probably don’t bother parsing fuel-economy numbers. Good thing, as this one is strapped with a gas-guzzler tax.

6.6-liter twin-turbocharged V12
624 horsepower @ 5,600 rpm
590 lb-ft of torque @ 1,500-5,000 rpm
642 lb-ft of torque @ 1,700-4,500 rpm (Black Badge edition)
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 12/19 mpg

Note: Due to changes in EPA testing to more effectively reflect real-world conditions, some 2017 models show slightly lower fuel-economy scores than their 2016 versions.