The new Rolls-Royce Cullinan

9 November, 2018

Hitherto the only item known as the Cullinan was a massive diamond that makes up part of the British Crown Jewels. But now there’ll be another Cullinan, as in, “Jeeves, bring the Cullinan around, I want to go shooting.” Although more than likely it’ll just be be, “Jeeves, bring the Cullinan around, I want to go for a coffee.”

This new tourer from Rolls-Royce is as grand as the diamond it’s named after is hard. The truth is that the Cullinan will probably spend most of its time pottering around the trendier shopping streets of our main centres, but this doesn’t detract from the fact that Rolls-Royce have hit the nail on the head.

The new SUV is driven by 6.75l of twin-turbo V12, over 550bhp, and masses of twisting power. From the inside, the only thing you need to do with the outside world is watch it go by, and there’s really no better place to do that from. Rolls-Royce’s new platform has been developed especially for the new generation of their vehicles. Four-wheel steering, air suspension, and a host of new innovations maintain the famous Roller ride quality. The interior is sumptuous, and well, what else would you expect from a vehicle that has the option of 44,000 exterior colours.

Take a look at some images from the launch event below.

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A second dose of Dash

24 April, 2025

When the car arrived in Wellington in December 2018 it was duly taken along for entry certification. Vehicle Inspection NZ (VINZ) found some wrongly wired lamps and switches — not too bad — but, much more significantly, some poor welding repairs. As the structural problems were probed more thoroughly, we realized the previous owner’s restoration would not do and we needed an upgrade. Dash had made it into the country but it would take some time and money before he would be free to explore any of New Zealand’s scenic highways.
We took the car to our new home in Johnsonville in the northern suburbs of Wellington and I pored over the car in detail to figure out what was next. There were lots of new parts on the car and a very perky reconditioned drivetrain but the chassis needed serious work.

Lunch with… Jim Palmer

16 April, 2025

In the 1960s, Hamilton’s Jim Palmer won the prestigious ‘Gold Star’ four times and was the first resident New Zealander home in the New Zealand Grand Prix on five consecutive occasions. He shared the podium with Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Bruce McLaren, Graham Hill, Jim Clark, Denny Hulme, Jackie Stewart, and Chris Amon. The extent of his domination of the open-wheeler scene in New Zealand will probably never be matched or exceeded. Yet he’s always been modest about his achievements.

The new Rolls-Royce Cullinan

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