100 Rolls Royces Take to the Streets of London to Celebrate Centenary of 'Spirit of Ecstasy'

A selection of one hundred Rolls Royce cars from all eras and generations including examples of Silver Ghosts, Silver Clouds, Silver Shadows and Silver Spurs, took to the streets of London on Sunday, February 6, to celebrate the centenary of the brand's famous hood mascot, the Spirit of Ecstasy. The hood ornament, also called "Flying Lady", was first fitted to Rolls-Royce models in 1911. It was designed by Charles Sykes and legend has it that the figurine was inspired by Eleanor Thornton, a co-worker of Sykes at the time.

“The Spirit of Ecstasy is a genuine icon, a graceful goddess who has adorned the prow of Rolls-Royce cars past and present,” said Rolls-Royce Motor Cars CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös. “She is recognized the world over as a symbol for the pinnacle of automotive aspiration and is an inspiration to those of us working for the company today. The centenary drive was a fitting tribute to such an important figure for our company.”

The Rolls Royce drive started in Belgravia and ended at the Great Conservatory at Syon House in West London, making its way pass significant locations for the British brand including the birthplace of one of the founders of the automaker, Charles Rolls in Hill Street, Mayfair, the site of the studio where Charles Sykes is believed to have created the design of the Spirit of Ecstasy on Brompton Road and Berkeley Square, and the 21st century home of Rolls-Royce in London.

Forbes' Top 10 List of the Most Expensive Cars in the World

For most people a $50,000 car is well out of reach, while others happily spend double or triple of that amount on a ride. However, even those enthusiasts might not be so keen to whip out their checkbooks when confronted with the price tag of these vehicles featured in a special list compiled by Forbes.

These are the most expensive cars in the world, usually bought by the kind of people who don’t even break a sweat amidst the worst economic crisis. Forbes' list in not without its flaws as the publication added two vehicles (the Enzo's successor and the upcoming Pagani Zonda C9) that have yet to be revealed, let alone be priced. Nevertheless, you can check out the complete list of exclusive toys for the real tycoons after the jump.

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1939 Rolls Royce Phantom III Labourdette Vutotal

Rebodied in 1947 by Labourdette of Paris, this Phantom III was the designer's last and arguably most daring work. It was commissioned by the flamboyant Louis Ritter who let Labourdette go all out, so much so, the body alone cost $44 000 which made it one of the most expensive of its time- equal to around $375 000 in 2003

After it was transformed into Labourdette’s creation, the car was sold off to different owners, including a New York plastic surgeon, a drug dealer who ended up in a Cuban prison and even S. Mars, possibly of the candy empire. In the winter of 2005 John W. Rich of Pottsville, Pennsylvania purchased the car for his extensive collection.

this car was at the 2007 Pebble Beach Concours

read about http://www.supercars.net/cars/3606.html

photos from http://www.tuningforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=112&t=78130 via http://stipistop.com/

Rolls Royce for everyday use

Last week Rolls Royce launched the much talked about ‘Ghost’ super-luxury car, through its Mumbai dealership – Navnit Motors. The ‘Rolls Royce for everyday use’ is what the carmaker defines the Ghost as (sure!), is priced at Rs. 2.5-crore – quite economical, should you compare it to its elder sibling, the Phantom, which itself attracts a price tag of Rs. 5-crore. The launch comes in after almost a week of the Ghost’s launch in Delhi. And guess what, as the launch function was underway in Mumbai, the Delhi showroom had already accepted as many as 60 bookings for the Ghost – that’s the exact number of this model that Rolls Royce had allocated for India! Is our country progressing or what!?

A testimony to this fact comes straight from Collin Kelly’s (Asia Pacific Regional Director, Rolls Royce) mouth, as he was quotes “India will become one of the most important markets for the Ghost, as it is for Phantom in the Asia Pacific region. Rolls-Royce’s rich history in India, the brand’s return to the country in 2005 and strong economic growth has ensured that our business here has developed steadily.” The car, like most other Rolls Royce models will be made to order and for India the deliveries will commence by Q2 2010. With the allocated number of Ghosts for India already exhausted, Rolls Royce may soon need to jack up the production to meet the increasing demand in our progressing country!