Rolls-Royce delivers 6,000 cars in '23, the most ever in one year

It’s good to be Rolls-Royce: In the year just passed, the British automaker sold more cars than ever.

Rolls delivered 6,032 cars around the world — the most in its 119-year history — “despite continuing economic uncertainties and market volatility,” the company said in a statement.

The manufacturer’s largest market last year was the United States, followed by China. The biggest-selling model was the Cullinan SUV, followed by the Ghost, the smaller of Rolls-Royce’s two saloons.

In 2023, affluent buyers began taking possession of Rolls’ first all-electric Spectre model in the autumn. Production of Spectre followed the expected demise of the brand’s Wraith and Dawn models.

Rolls-Royce cars are produced in Goodwood, southern England. The high-level brand became part of BMW in 1998.

It has lately been emphasizing its custom Bespoke division, which generally accounts for higher profits builds. Treatments offered at extra cost to dress up a Rolls include special paint, styling cues and interior “scents.”

Current Chief Executive Chris Brownridge, who took on the role last autumn, said: ‘It’s especially encouraging to see the enormous interest in and demand for Spectre, supporting the decision to adopt a bold, all-electric strategy for future model development and production. The record level of Bespoke commissions, both by volume and value, also underlines our position within the luxury sector.” His predecessor, Torsten Muller-Otvos, departed the company in November, having led the group since 2010 and overseen record-setting performances.

Rolls’s North American division recently announced that it would drop the prices of some “aging” units in dealer inventories by $15,000 for cars sold by the end of March. The deal, unusual for Rolls-Royce, stipulates that the models that could benefit are the $375,000 Cullinan and Black Badge Cullinan, as well as the $350,000 Ghost, Ghost Extended and Black Badge Ghost. Every little bit helps, we suppose.