My happy place on the planet is the South of France between Nice and Monaco. Here, the visually spectacular enclaves of Villefranche-sur-Mer, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Eze and Cap d’Ail are where the blue, blue Mediterranean collides with the craggy Alps Maritime mountains.
They’re connected by a 30-mile snaking ribbon of blacktop, the Basse Corniche, that hugs the coastline so tightly you feel one mis-turn of the wheel could dump you unceremoniously into that azure briny.
Along the way, take a side-trip around magical Cap Ferrat, stopping for cafe croissant in the port of St. Jean, or a frosty rosé at the Grand-Hôtel du Cap. Glide through Monaco, pose through Casino Square, then follow the Grand Prix course down around the famous harbor.
There’s obviously no shortage of automobiles that would be suited for such a spectacular drive. But Rolls-Royce is about to offer a car that will exceed all others in delivering the perfect Cote d’Azur experience. It’s called Project Nightingale.
New from its towering 24-inch rims up, this all-electric, just-two-seat, drop-top convertible is set to go into production in two years time with a price tag expected to top $5 million. Just 100 will be built, 30 of which are ear-marked for U.S. buyers.
And it’s a car that boasts a real connection to the South of France. Take the name. Back in the 1920s, co-founder Sir Henry Royce owned a winter home near Toulon, east of Marseilles. On the property was a villa, known as Le Rossignol, translated as ‘The Nightingale’. As for the car’s light blue paintwork, it’s aptly named Côte d’Azur Blue.
Project Nightingale – that’s the code-name for now – will be the first of Rolls-Royce’s new Coachbuild Collection. This will be a new line of highly-bespoke, limited-production models that will sit between the mega-priced, one-off commissions and production models, like the new Black Badge Spectre.
This powdery blue Nightingale is currently the only model in existence right now, and I was lucky enough to get an exclusive preview in Miami recently. See it in the metal and there aren’t enough superlatives in Websters to describe its presence.
Measuring an audacious, near-19 feet bow to stern, it’s as long as a Phantom flagship with its lines said to have been inspired by the torpedo-shaped, high-speed experimental EX Rolls-Royce two-seaters of the Roaring ’20s.
While for now, Rolls execs are staying mum about the tech details, we know it’ll use the same aluminum spaceframe and dual-motor electric powertrain of the Spectre coupe, though with more power, performance and range.
But what truly sets it apart is the jaw-dropping design. This is automotive style at its most audacious, from that massive, three-feet-across Pantheon grille, to the mile-high waistline, to that drooping, boat-tail-like rear end.
Talking of rear, the piece de resistance is the so-called “Piano Boot” – boot is Brit-speak for trunk – which opens to the side, just like with a grand piano.
The front end is a true thing of beauty, not only because of the enormity of that iconic stainless steel grille with its 24 upright vanes, but through the wafer-thin LED headlights at each side and those forward-thrusting fenders.
If rain drops do dare to descend on to this majestic machine, there is a power-folding canvas top to provide cover. But again this is special in that it’s made from a melange of cashmere, fabric and sound-deadening composites to quell any outside noise.
What is the surprise – and maybe delight – is that the cabin accommodates just two. Rolls says it heightens the exclusivity, though I’m sure some buyers would prefer sharing the experience with friends and family as they could with the previous four-seater Phantom Drophead Coupe and Dawn convertible.
But what an experience it should be, especially at nighttime with the top down. That’s because the interior features a whimsically-named ‘Starlight Breeze’ constellation of 10,500 twinkling LED ‘stars’ wrapping around the driver and passenger.
That’s fitting, as I’m sure anyone lucky enough to be one of the 100 buyers will be totally star-struck with this breathtaking new Rolls-Royce.
