2012 & 2013 Rolls Royce Convertible Reviews & Ratings

The history of the Rolls Royce Convertible is a long one. The company began in 1906 when Henry Royce and Charles Rolls formed the Rolls-Royce Limited. Rolls had been previously impressed with Royce's automobiles and wanted to purchase and sell them. From day one they had been badged as a Rolls-Royce. The company seemed the next likely step and would take them on an exciting venture into the automotive world. Less than 30 years later, Rolls-Royce acquired Bentley and began to produce both vehi... (full review continues below)

The history of the Rolls Royce Convertible is a long one. The company began in 1906 when Henry Royce and Charles Rolls formed the Rolls-Royce Limited. Rolls had been previously impressed with Royce's automobiles and wanted to purchase and sell them. From day one they had been badged as a Rolls-Royce. The company seemed the next likely step and would take them on an exciting venture into the automotive world. Less than 30 years later, Rolls-Royce acquired Bentley and began to produce both vehicles. Though they were each marketed under their respective names, the cars were nearly identical.

By 1973 there was so much diversity in business at Rolls-Royce Limited that the automobile division was separated. Rolls-Royce Motors branched off and became its own entity. Less than a quarter of a century later, the company would be offered for sale and the expectation would be that BMW would be the buyer. However, Volkswagen was interested in the Bentley automobiles and beat the bid offered by BMW. The cars would be sold to VW in 1998, but the brand and logo remained the property Rolls-Royce. They were sold to BMW and an interesting situation took place. It was uncertain who, if anyone, would produce the vehicles.

BMW would reach an agreement with VW that would satisfy them both. Between the years of 1998 and 2002, Volkswagen would produce and market both brands. Beginning in 2003, BMW would have the Rolls and Volkswagen would acquire Bentley. The agreement worked and for those few years both the Rolls-Royce Coupe and Rolls-Royce Convertible was designed and manufactured by Volkswagen. However, once BMW took over production, both styles of automobile would then be completely produced and manufactured by them.

The first Rolls Royce convertible to be designed and manufactured for sale was the Rolls-Royce 10. It was the first car to be badged under the Rolls-Royce name and was sold in only one location. Rolls' dealership was the only place to offer the Rolls-Royce 10. The 10 in the name stood for the 10 hp engine that was in the vehicle. It was debuted at the Paris Salon in 1904.

The Rolls Royce Convertible has come a long way from those early days. At the 2007 North American International Auto Show Rolls-Royce debuted their latest in a long line of convertible coupes. The Phantom Drophead Coupe is a convertible that has been based on the platform of the Rolls-Royce Phantom. This beloved car receives it's styling from the 100EX concept car and boasts a design quite unlike most vehicles. Combining historical style with technology to design the best luxury car, Rolls-Royce has made one that is truly unique and one of a kind. It is a two door and four seat convertible that is still being manufactured today.

The first Rolls-Royce convertible from the Phantom Drophead line that was made for the US market was auctioned off for Charity. The car sold for two million dollars with 1.6 million being given to charity. This made it the most expensive new car to ever be sold in the United States.