2019 Rolls Royce Cullinan first drive review: Elevating the SUV experience

I’ve simply completed driving a Rolls Royce up a mountain, traversing damaged, rutted trails the whole manner. At the same time as I kind that sentence now, with the reminiscence recent in my thoughts, it looks like a really unusual factor to say. At 1,500 toes vertical, Wyoming’s Snow King is not precisely K2, however it’s house to the steepest ski run within the continental US — however that is a bit tutorial. Your common Rolls-Royce would have been left stymied by the bunny slope. Fortunately, Cullinan is not your common Rolls-Royce.

Rolls-Royce is a kind of few manufacturers that has turn out to be so iconic over the previous century and alter, that to say an merchandise is “the Rolls-Royce of…” is to say it’s the finest in its class. So, then, is the $325,000 Cullinan really the Rolls-Royce of SUVs? After a day spent on- and off-road on this 6,000-pound brute of a Curler, it is definitely wanting like a contender.

Tall Phantom?

Few manufacturers would have the arrogance to present one thing as pedestrian as a automobile chassis a reputation like “The Structure of Luxurious,” however then that is Rolls-Royce and being evocative is what it is all about. Certainly, that what the corporate calls the muse of its newest sedan, final yr’s Phantom VIII, and it is those self same underpinnings that sit between the Cullinan’s upright physique and the bottom.

And you may simply see that household lineage. From a styling standpoint, Cullinan appears very very similar to a vertically elongated Phantom — not less than in passing. Look nearer, although, and you may see the brand new creases, traces and cues connecting that imposing and now even taller entrance visage to the distinctive and wholly new rear finish.

Certainly, it is the form of the hatch on the again that is most controversial from a styling standpoint, slotting in someplace between the pseudo-coupe pattern we’re seeing from many current, luxury-minded SUVs and the full-fledged, sq. rear finish that adorns your common big-box utility machine. Taken as an entire, the Cullinan suits very properly into the present Rolls-Royce aesthetic, however maybe lacks the innate fantastic thing about among the firm’s finer machines.

That is regardless of to me, as a considerably utilitarian visage on a Sport Utility Car is not a turn-off. Definitely, it is secure to say that is probably the most sensible Rolls-Royce ever. The cargo area of 21 cubic toes behind the rear seats is maybe just a little restricted given the scale of the factor, however you may configure the automobile with a folding, bench rear seat in the event you like. As soon as folded, most capability is 68 cubic toes.

These are power-folding seats, after all, with buttons hidden within the suicide rear doorways and on the edges of the rear cargo compartment. These seats do not flop down or groan noisily again into place. They slowly, gracefully pivot and tuck themselves away, and there is even an built-in ramp within the rear cargo bay that rises into place, overlaying the unpleasant hole between the ground and the again of the rear seats.

The extra comfy, if much less sensible, possibility would be the conventional configuration of separate, adjustable seats within the rear, that are spacious and plush and heated and cooled and so very, very comfy that I am beginning to get drowsy simply desirous about them. Wood picnic cabinets built-in into the entrance seat-backs prolong on the push of a button, revealing touchscreens to entry the infotainment system, together with full management of media, navigation and local weather.

The rear seats, then, are simply nearly as good as you’d anticipate on a Phantom however, as CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös advised me, 80 % of Rolls-Royce house owners drive themselves, and certainly Cullinan is meant to be a machine for driving, not simply being pushed in.

On the path

That run up Snow King occurred simply 10 minutes after climbing behind the wheel of Cullinan for the primary time. I would barely had time to get my mirrors adjusted earlier than I used to be scampering over rocks, that crystal Spirit of Ecstasy emblem on the nostril pointing towards the sky. Fortunately, Cullinan makes off-roading fairly simple.

Many premium SUVs current the driving force with dozens of various traction modes, and certainly many SUV house owners relish within the collection of simply the correct one. Cullinan has a single mode, accessed by a single button that claims “Off-Highway.” Evocative? Not fairly, however the mission for all Rolls-Royce automobiles is to be easy, and certainly that is echoed right here. Press that single button and the automobile girds its loins, air suspension lifting about an inch and a half, and the traction-control system changing into extra aggressive. And then you definitely simply drive.

The automobile lacks any fancy locking differentials and does not provide something so crude as a selectable low-range switch case. However, with 627 pound-feet of torque obtainable at simply 1,600 rpm, it is fairly comfortable to claw its manner up very steep inclines at very low speeds, even on the bespoke, 22-inch, road-oriented Continental ContiSportContact 5 tires. The paths we climbed have been principally gravel, usually dry and, to be sincere, would not bother most light-duty SUVs. Nonetheless, few if some other autos may make the summit whereas providing that sort of consolation.

Cullinan coasted over the rocky trails and ruts with the sort of composure that some automobiles battle to take care of on clean asphalt. Sure, I may inform once I’d crested a very giant rock, however by no means as soon as did the automobile really feel challenged, and by no means as soon as did I really feel harassed — although my blood strain might have spiked a bit when the 360-degree cameras revealed we have been inches away from a sheer cliff.

The hill descent management made the journey again down simply as simple, the most important menace being an area hiker who did not take too kindly to a sharing the path with a dozen or so luxurious machines.

Flagbearer on the street

Again on asphalt, it was time to essentially see how the Cullinan carried out in what can be its typical playground, and from right here the massive SUV continued its easy efficiency. A lot of the roads we crossed within the Jackson Gap, Wyoming space have been in excellent form, however neither stray potholes nor cattle guards may fluster the trip high quality. Rolls-Royce calls it Magic Carpet, and that is not hyperbole.

A part of that consolation is thanks to a different evocative little bit of branding, the so-called Flagbearer system that depends on stereoscopic cameras to learn the character of the street’s floor, adjusting the energetic suspension each few milliseconds. Cullinan additionally borrows parent-company BMW‘s trick of utilizing GPS information to assist make sure the trip is all the time prepared for the street forward.

However that is not to say you’re fully remoted or, certainly, bored when sitting behind the wheel. The steering is gradual and light-weight, however there may be some really feel right here, and the brakes are progressive and stable. Drew Stearne from our UK group has spent a greater than his justifiable share of time rolling in numerous Rollers, and he too was impressed by the automobile’s sense of engagement.

Most partaking, nonetheless, is that motor. With 563 horses on faucet, step onerous on the accelerator and the Cullinan launches ahead in a manner that may put an enormous smile in your face. The eight-speed automated, in the meantime, is totally invisible in its operation, providing the sort of smoothness and consistency most CVTs dream of.

In the meantime, most EVs can be jealous of simply how serene the Cullinan is. It took a whopping 100 kilograms (220 kilos) of sound deadening materials to make it so. Price it.

Accoutrement

I may most likely spend three,000 phrases simply describing the texture of the switchgear within the Cullinan, how the vent-pulls transfer with exceptional heft and even the buttons really feel substantial, however I will not. Suffice to say, each floor is impeccably refined.

This refinement extends into most of the automobile’s extra difficult techniques. The adaptive cruise management, for instance, does not dazzle you with infinite info and warnings on the automobile’s digital gauges. As a substitute you get a easy carat on the speedometer indicating your present velocity, with just a little crimson or inexperienced line that paints the gap between your present velocity and what’s been deemed authorized in your present locale.

Devoted buttons make it simple to alter the observe distance, and must you stray out of your lane, the steering wheel subtly buzzes to warn you. There is no annoying chime or harsh vibration, just a bit shake that appears to say “Pardon, however you might want to apply a little bit of steering angle.”

The one place this breaks down considerably is inside the depths of the BMW iDrive-based infotainment system. On the floor it is clear and straightforward to make use of, but it surely’s nonetheless fairly simple to get misplaced in a sea of submenus right here. Fortunately, contact is now supported, so exiting out of mire is just a little bit simpler. 

Heaters on the seats, entrance and rear in addition to most of the surrounding surfaces, will toast your personal surfaces very quickly. They got here in fairly helpful on our blustery check day. And climbing into these seats is surprisingly simple. Although tall, the Cullinan does not sit as excessive on the street as you may suppose. Slim sills imply much less of a stretch to climb in, so you will not get no matter filth you have been simply driving by on the hem of these fabulous new designer denims you will most likely by no means put on once more anyway.

And, in the event you actually wish to decorate, Rolls-Royce will provide a sequence of so-called “Leisure Modules” to fit into the rear hatch. The best one has a pair of seats that fold out for tailgating on the polo grounds, or just a little low-impact quail searching. Rolls plans to supply a sequence of those modules to swimsuit an proprietor’s each want, even one for drone racing. You already know, simply in case you wanted one more reason to wish to attempt drone racing.

Wrap-up

The Cullinan begins at $325,000 within the US, however while you’re shopping for a machine like this the sky is really the restrict — except you really are into drone racing, at which level you will need to outline some new set of superior limits for your self. That is an terrible lot of cash no matter your hobbies and professions, however on this phase the idea of “worth” is difficult to outline, so Cullinan have to be judged by itself deserves.

And people deserves are robust. Cullinan delivers all the identical poise and composure you anticipate from Rolls-Royce, now with way more usability and, dare I say it, practicality. This might fairly be the one automobile that might take you mudding within the afternoon after which to the Met Gala that very same night — simply ensure you swing by a automobile wash alongside the best way.

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