Rolls-Royce has revealed a one-of-a-kind Phantom Extended that pays tribute to the marque’s association with the 1964 film Goldfinger. The one-off takes inspiration from the 1937 Phantom III Sedanca de Ville driven by the film’s eponymous villain Auric Goldfinger.
Called Phantom Goldfinger, the bespoke machine boasts a raft of unique features that relate to the plot of the Goldfinger film. Rolls-Royce says it took three years to design, develop and create these features, which range from a complex sculptural ‘Gallery’ inset into the dashboard, to a gold golf putter affixed to the inside of the boot.
The tribute begins with the exterior, which is finished in a colour that precisely matches the yellow paintwork of the 1937 Phantom featured in the film. The yellow is complemented by a black finish that wraps around the vehicle’s bodywork as a single uninterrupted graphic.
Sections of the Spirit of Ecstasy mascot are finished in 18-carat gold beneath the traditional silver
Phantom Goldfinger incorporates some of the most extensively engineered bespoke features applied to a one-of-one motor car in Rolls-Royce history, each linking to the Goldfinger film plot. Meanwhile, 21-inch disc wheels are also finished in black, contrasted with silver floating hubcaps that replicated the wheel design of the movie car.
Fittingly, sections of the Spirit of Ecstasy mascot are finished in 18-carat gold beneath the traditional silver. This suggests a solid gold finish and serves as a subtle reference to the film’s plot, which sees Auric Goldfinger smuggling gold within the body panels of his Phantom III.
The interior was co-created by an in-house contingent of designers, engineers and artisans. Details include a hidden vault beneath the centre console, featuring an illuminated 18-carat gold bar sculpted in the shape of a stylised Phantom.
The film’s Phantom III is referenced by the navy leather and Royal Walnut veneer interior that also serves as a contrast to the gold detailing, RR headrest monograms and stitchwork. Gold-coloured ‘bullets’ also cap the seat-piping sections.
Gold accents adorn the base of the front and rear centre consoles, as well as the interior of the glovebox. The inner glovebox lid is also debossed with Goldfinger’s quote: “This is Gold, Mr Bond. All my life, I have been in love with its colour, its brilliance, its divine heaviness.”
The Midas Touch has also been applied to the air vents and organ stops throughout the car, in addition to the speaker grilles and tread plates that resemble gold bars embossed with ‘Goldfinger’ in the same font as the film’s title. The VIN plates, meanwhile, are manufactured from 24-carat gold and feature identification numbers that end in ‘007’.
Another eye-catching feature is the bespoke artwork contained within the Gallery that spreads across the length of the dashboard fascia. The three-dimensional, hand-drawn design is an artistic map of the Furka Pass – the Swiss alpine road where Bond tails Auric Goldfinger to his smelting plant in the Alps. This complex artwork required a year of development to complete, and ten prototypes were created to perfect the design. Framing the clock inset in the centre of the gallery is the James Bond gun barrel rifling motif that has been featured in every 007 movie since Dr No (1962).
In the rear of the car, the Royal Walnut picnic tables are decorated with a 22-carat gold inlay that measures just 0.1mm thick. The inlay depicts a fictional map of Fort Knox, the bullion depository where the US Government’s gold reserves are stored. It incorporates apt locations such as Gold Vault Road, Bullion Boulevard and the Bullion Depository that Goldfinger intends to attack in ‘Operation Grand Slam’.
One of the most iconic scenes from Goldfinger is the tense golf contest held between 007 and Auric Goldfinger. Paying homage to the scene is a reproduction of the gold putter used by Goldfinger in the movie, which can be found mounted on the underside of the bootlid. The harlequin umbrellas that fit within the rear doors bring another subtle touch, because they replicate the one loaded into the Phantom III’s boot by Oddjob alongside Goldfinger’s golf bag.
Cherished registration plates that read ‘AU 1’ have been fitted front and rear. The registration references the chemical symbol for gold, and was seen on the Phantom III in the film. These desirable plates will remain on the car, which has been delivered to a Rolls-Royce collector based in the UK.
“Bringing Phantom Goldfinger into being was one of the Bespoke Collective’s greatest creative journeys to date,” reports Rolls-Royce bespoke designer Nick Rhodes. “The elegant and whimsical features that reference the film’s most memorable moments are an exquisite demonstration of the power of bespoke in adding a new chapter to an existing story. It was a privilege to be a part of the creative team that brought this highly sought-after collector’s piece to life.”
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