2022 Rolls-Royce Ghost

The Rolls-Royce Ghost has a base MSRP of $332,500, excluding the destination charge of $2,750. You also have to pay the gas guzzler tax, adding another $2,600 to the price.

It's not as simple as that, however. There is no such thing as a base Ghost, as the various customization options are as alluring as the badge.

However, we can provide some insight into the actual price of Ghost ownership. As part of the Ghost's global media launch, Rolls-Royce built eight demonstrators with the most popular features equipped. The average cost of these cars works out to $430,000 or roughly $100,000 more than the base price.

Porsche is famous for putting the tachometer front and center. Real enthusiasts will know you need a tach and the various temperatures on display if you want to hoon a car. Instead of a traditional tach, all Rolls-Royce models have a power reserve meter showing you how much grunt you have left. So you're cruising along on the Pacific Coast Highway at 20%, and you know you have 80% of the twin-turbo V12's power left over to overtake any plebs that might get in your way.

The Ghost does have a sport mode, but here it's referred to as "Low" on the gear selector stalk. It does the same job, however. The throttle response is sharper, and the Ghost will cling to a gear for longer. To us, it feels uncouth, even though the rear-wheel steering makes this 219-inch beast feel smaller than it is.

Rolls-Royce still aimed for comfort above all else. After designing the car's multilink suspension setup, the development team still noticed a minor vibration from within the cabin of the test mule. So they put another damper on top of the suspension setup, and the result is unmatched refinement and comfort. Couple that with the best sound insulation in the business, and you have a near-silent V12 monster that cuts through the air like a hot knife through butter. Rolls-Royce's engineers had to remove some of the sound dampening as some test team members became nauseous because of the silence.

This car's main aim is to transport you between two points as comfortably as humanly possible. It's meant to be soothing, even when everything else around you is a dumpster fire. On a cold, wet Tuesday morning in rush hour traffic, you'll be sitting in the front (or back) listening to the calming sounds of Enya. And you'll look to your right at the person in the Nissan Altima, knowing that you made better life choices. While we appreciate the dynamic mode, we don't see the owner of a Ghost ever using it. If you have $300k plus to drop on a sedan, there's a good chance you have several other cars, including a 911 GT3, parked in the garage.

The Ghost is a magnificent sedan. The attention to detail is astounding, making the Ghost hard to critique. The only glaring flaw we managed to find was the small gas tank. When you pay more than $300,000 for a car, you expect perfection, which is what Rolls-Royce delivers.

In isolation, the Rolls-Royce is a stunning feat of engineering. Unfortunately, we don't review cars in isolation. The Bentley Flying Spur delivers a similar experience for $100,000 less. That means you can save that cash or spend it on several bespoke items for the Bentley. That doesn't take away from the fact that being driven in the Ghost is an otherworldly experience. It is astonishingly quiet, powerful, and serene.

But that's us with our thinking caps on. To the people that can afford these kinds of cars, $100,000 is as insignificant as a dollar is to the average person. No other badge in the automotive industry has as much appeal as Rolls-Royce. Don't even come at us with Ferrari or Lamborghini. Using a Rolls-Royce as a daily says that you have an extensive collection of those cars tucked away in a garage somewhere.

The car is worth no more than $200k, but the badge adds another $100,000 to the price.

There is only one model, but you can choose the wheelbase. If you will be driven around, go for the Ghost Extended. If you're doing the driving, go for the normal Ghost.

If you want to make a statement, you might as well go the whole nine yards. The Ghost and the Phantom are based on the same platform and use the same twin-turbo V12 engine. The Phantom is only available with rear-wheel drive, which is worth keeping in mind if you live in a cold-weather state.

The Phantom is obviously more expensive, but what's a few hundred thousand dollars if you're shopping around in this category? It starts at $465,000, but, realistically, it's a $550,000 car.

We prefer the Phantom because of its interior. It uses the same basic layout as the Ghost, which means you get a screen and an offset clock, but that magical one button is still there. The main difference between these two cars is where you'll be seated. A Ghost still caters to the driver, while the Phantom is unashamedly about rear-seat comfort.

The current Flying Spur is one of the best-looking sedans in the world right now. Best of all, the most affordable model is by far the best. Avoid the W12 and go for the more engaging twin-turbo V8. The V8 produces 542 hp and 568 lb-ft, which isn't far off the Ghost's outputs.

The Flying Spur's interior is more of a success to our eyes. We love the chunky shifter and the rotating infotainment screen. If you're tired of looking at the display, you can instantly change it for something more old-school. Bentley also gives you more standard equipment, like massaging front and rear seats. The standard sound system is a bit poor, but if you go the Bentley route you have around $100,000 left to spend on optional extras.

我们更喜欢宾利,但我们正在考虑这一点from a logical point of view, which may not matter to the average Rolls-Royce buyer.