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Company type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Automotive |
Founded | March 1998 | in the United Kingdom
Headquarters | Goodwood, West Sussex, England , United Kingdom |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Chris Brownridge (CEO) Henry Cloke (Chief Design Officer) Jonathan Simms (Lead Engineer)[1][2] Peter Schwarzenbauer (Chairman) |
Products | |
Services | Automobile customisation |
Number of employees | 1,300 (2014) |
Parent | BMW |
Website | rolls-roycemotorcars.com |
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited is a British luxury automobile maker that has operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW AG since 2003 – as the exclusive manufacturer of Rolls-Royce-branded motor cars. The company's administrative and production headquarters are located on the 42-acre (17 ha) Goodwood Estate in Goodwood, West Sussex, England, United Kingdom.[3]
From 1906 to 2003, motor cars were manufactured and marketed under the Rolls-Royce brand by Rolls-Royce Limited and Rolls-Royce Motors. The Rolls-Royce Motor Cars subsidiary of BMW AG has no direct relationship to Rolls-Royce-branded vehicles produced before 2003, other than having briefly supplied components and engines. The Bentley Motors Limited subsidiary of Volkswagen AG is the direct successor to Rolls-Royce Motors and various other predecessor entities that produced Rolls-Royce and Bentley branded cars between the foundation of each company and 2003, when the BMW-controlled entity started producing cars under the Rolls-Royce brand.
The BBC called Rolls-Royce "probably one of the most recognised icons in the world", and that "the name Rolls-Royce entered the English language as a superlative."[4]
The company's line of vehicles includes the Phantom, a four-door saloon first offered in 2003 as well as its extended wheelbase two-door coupé and convertible variants; the smaller Ghost four-door saloon; Wraith two-door coupé; Dawn convertible; the Cullinan SUV, and the 2023 Spectre, the first all-electric Rolls-Royce.[5]