Is a Rolls-Royce Phantom the Best Luxury Sedan Money Can Buy?

More than a decade later, the first German Rolls-Royce still packs plenty of luxury.

Between The Smoking Tire and all the other stuff he does, Matt Farah has driven just about anything you can think of. But this video represents his first time in this 21st-century, BMW engineered, ultimate being driven machine, because RR doesn’t offer many press fleet loaners. Lucky for everyone, Matt knows Dylan the exotic car groupie from Luxury Lives On, and Dylan’s wealthy father thinks nothing of lending his son this one of 35 made, special 100th-anniversary edition, 2004 Rolls-Royce Phantom.

To quote Sixteen Candles “…the grille alone costs five grand on this. Five grand! Do you have five grand? I don’t have five grand.”

Lucky for them, they don’t hit anything, but they do drive some canyon roads at speeds you wouldn’t think a land yacht like the Rolls would be comfortable at. BMW, long the masters of luxury ride with confidence-inspiring handling, work their magic on this 5,600 pound rolling private lounge. Watch all the way to the end, because while Matt relaxes in the boss position out back, chauffeur Dylan shows off what 531 lb-ft of torque can manage with a proper launch in low gear.

According to Matt, these days you can pick up a used 12-year-old Rolls-Royce for close to one-tenth of the original MSRP, though that is still more than $60,000. And before you consider buying one with your Powerball winnings, know that according to Dylan, insurance is expensive, and the only tires that fit are $12,000 a set and require a special Rolls-Royce machine to install them on the rims.

Check back in with Matt and Dylan for another Smoking Tire “One Take” all about Dylan’s own personal car, which you all are going to love.