Driving the 2015 Rolls-Royce Wraith, $328,000 of Tailored Excess

There’s a certain seductive, prodigious draw to the bespoke. Take, for example, John Neeman’s Damascus steel knives: it’s mesmerizing to watch a master craftsman painstakingly fold, hammer and twist red-hot chunks of metal into a mottled work of art, but handcrafted blades come at a hefty premium; whereas a forged Wusthof kitchen knife sells for about $125, a similar John Neeman blade costs about $800, and takes months to deliver. As a testament to their craft, top chefs and craftsmen around the world use their wares.

Similarly, Rolls-Royce’s draws on that same custom-tailored, ultra-luxe ethos in the 2015 Rolls-Royce Wraith, which I drove for the better half of the week. You immediately notice it when opening the suicide doors fitting for a bank vault hatch, and the polished sills greeting you with “hand built in Goodwood, England.” But what you get — and don’t get — for splurging $328,000 can be a surprise.

Unlike a made-to-order Brioni, some facets aren’t quite one-off due to the company being owned by BMW. It starts with the chassis, which is based on the 7 Series like its four-door sibling, the Rolls-Royce Ghost. Some visible Bimmer bits creep in, too, like the key fob that looks almost identical to a 3 Series, but with a Rolls-Royce logo affixed. There’s a tasteful splash of chrome trim and off-white art deco dials in the sumptuous cabin, but a BMW iDrive UI and knob quietly speaks of its Bavarian heritage.

The resemblance to Bavarian luxury ends there, as the Wraith drives like an imposing yacht as opposed to an ultimate driving machine. Its 624-hp V-12 accelerates with deliberate reticence that still hustles to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, in spite of its curb weight of 5,380 lbs. Fluidic gear changes from the eight-speed ZF are only noticeable when seeing the RPM needle lazily dip down when cruising. There’s surprisingly some feedback in the bus-sized steering wheel, though its slow steering ratio means you’d never fancy taking it to a weekend autocross. While sportier than the rest of the lineup, it’s an autobahn bruiser at heart—take a sweeper beyond the speed limit and it glides rather than claws at the tarmac. But the Wraith is too dignified for hooning, and it cruises even at triple-digit speeds with a hushed serenity befitting its stately character.

While Rolls-Royces have never been short on personality, recently it’s been a stretch to call the cars beautiful with their decadent, ostentatious styling devoid of subtlety.  Fortunately the slab-sided design of its siblings has been partially reconciled with softer lines and a raked C-pillar in the Wraith, and it’s aesthetically more sensible than the Phantom Drophead–though you might run down Jeeves without the backup sensors due to limited rear visibility. It still commands a presence unmatched by most luxury coupes, to the point where it feels completely out of place in plebian joints like your local McDonalds.

Unlike other luxury automakers that are quick to jump on new technology, there’s also still an old analog British flair, like pulling knobs for closing AC vents, or macaron-shaped climate dials. Coupled with the satin wood trim, and a fastback profile reminiscent of the streamliners from the 1930s, they offer a timeless aesthetic and ambiance to the car.

One of the biggest limitations to driving a Rolls-Royce press car is you miss out of the bespoke buying experience, and all the lavish and sometimes outlandish customization options at your disposal — it’s like wearing a stranger’s tailored suit. Safety and imagination are the only limits, and some of the exorbitant features you can order include:

• Starry night headliner, which integrates 1,400 LEDs to mimic a star-lit sky, and can specified to specific constellation arrangements.

• Built-in thermos in the suicide doors (which the company crash tested.)

• Picnic set, for a more traditional flair.

• Custom-sourced trim–one buyer even had wood used from his own land. Ours had Macassar Ebony canadel trim, which costs $12,500.

For a base price of $284,900, there are a few surprising things that don’t come standard, like adaptive headlights ($1,300) or comfort entry system (part of the $38,825 Wraith Package), whereas some frills—like an electronically retracting Spirit of Ecstasy grill ornament—do. Spring for the $1,225 lambswool floormats and it feels like your feet are resting on tufts of clouds.

Yes, as a value proposition, the Warret Buffets of the economic elite will wince. But for the Floyd Mayweathers of the world, the price for a peerlessly bespoke ride will be worth it—just like a Neeman knife or Holland & Holland rifle.