Although Rolls-Royce is, at this very moment, in the midst of launching its all-new Phantom flagship sedan, there's already discussions taking place regarding its eventual replacement. Speaking to Autocar, RR CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos said the next Phantom, whenever it may arrive, "will go full electric, we don't do any interim steps. Emissions-free is emissions-free." The "interim steps" he was referring to are, of course, hybrids and plug-in hybrids.

But why has RR already decided that the next Phantom will be a pure EV despite Muller-Otvos admitting he hasn't "seen a single check landing on my desk saying 'build me one (an EV)?'" Because upcoming governmental legislation changes will very likely force the issue anyway. This is especially true in Asia where it's widely expected that internal combustion, in many cities, will be banned outright. Rolls-Royce, of course, has many customers in Asia and it can't afford to lose them. Muller-Otvos also explained to the media that Rolls-Royce is not planning to offer parent company BMW's semi-autonomous CoPilot system because, in his opinion, it's not advanced enough.

Also looking ahead, Rolls-Royce wants to offer more bespoke content for customers who are more than willing to pay for it. One example is to offer the ability to customize digital screen displays and even offer unique 3D printed bodywork.