AN EXPERIMENTAL HISTORY

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has used the EX name for its experimental cars for more than 100 years. Because innovations from EX cars filter into production models, all new lines include the cumulative knowledge that comes from exploring the future in pursuit of perfection.

All modern Rolls-Royce EX models carry the special red RR badge. Only used for these experimental cars, the red badge represents the cutting edge in automotive innovation.

Unlike a concept car, each EX model is a finished, drivable vehicle. As well as newly developed materials, such as carbon fibre, each uses production materials such as leather and wood, rather than clay and foam or other prototypical materials.

Rolls-Royce founders Charles Rolls and Henry Royce were committed to pushing the boundaries of technology and quality, so they created the concept of EX to investigate the realms of what was possible. Not all prototypes or innovations result in production cars, but all remain fuelled by Henry and Charles’ vision and ethos.

EX is an essential part of the Rolls-Royce DNA. Each car is an expression of a deep-rooted fascination with the future. From Rolls-Royce’s founders to the current team, it’s not only about: ‘What’s next?’, but: ‘How can we create what’s next?’

Rolls-Royce motor cars are like storybooks of science fiction and history: it is hard to remember how the advances of decades past seemed so impressively futuristic, yet the promise of tomorrow’s innovations still excite. 

Today, many car manufacturers are developing electric alternatives to the combustion engine. But Rolls-Royce’s exploration started 100 years ago.

Both Charles and Henry had already worked with emerging electric technologies, many of which we now take for granted. Henry Royce began his career experimenting with electric cranes, and went on to be the inventor of the bayonet light bulb. Charles could also see the benefits of electric vehicles: “They are perfectly noiseless and clean… there is no smell or vibration.” 

It is no surprise then that Rolls-Royce created the 102EX, the Phantom Experimental Electric. This 2011 EX model was a one-off electric-powered Phantom that saw the 6.75-litre V12 engine replaced by a huge lithium ion battery pack and twin-electric motors driving the rear wheels. There were no gearshifts - just power, instantly, whenever you wanted it.

102EX also featured newly developed surface finish technology. Rolls-Royce created a highly reflective paint using ceramic nano particles. Under a microscope, these particles mimic those of silver metal, but are between 8,000 and 80,000 times smaller than the thickness of a hair. The result is a texture that grows in character as light conditions change.  

The interior showcased Seton Corinova, an experimental vegetable-tanned leather that allowed more of the natural curves, creases and other features of the animal’s hide to show.

103EX follows in this tradition of exploration and experimentation. History has proved that, like its 100-year-old antecedents, this EX is a genuine glimpse of the future.