Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow marks last hurrah for V12 power

The coupe will be the last of the manufacturer's beefiest petrol offerings as it looks to an all-electric future

The Rolls-Royce Wraith Black Arrow is a luxury coupe. Photo: Rolls-Royce Wraith Black Arrow

Rolls-Royce has unveiled a vehicle that will be the last of its offerings to ever be powered by a V12 engine.

Limited to only a dozen units, the Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow marks the brand’s cut-off point before it moves into a fully charged, all-electric future.

Billed as the sportier, more powerful sibling to its Ghost and Phantom stablemates, the Wraith would seem to be the obvious recipient of this honour.

The stylings of the car are perfectly in tune with its position as a model marking the end of an era.

The manufacturer says the shape of the Wraith Black Arrow was inspired by the Thunderbolt, a vehicle from the 1930s designed solely for land-speed-record attempts, which was powered by a pair of Rolls-Royce’s V12 engines.

The similarity in looks doesn’t extend too far, though, as the new car is every bit the luxury coupe, while the Thunderbolt resembles something you might want to try and shoot into space.

The Wraith Black Arrow has been decked out in what Rolls-Royce calls "gradient paint", which gives the impression of dark and silver hues.

Scroll through the gallery below for more pictures of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow

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  The design of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow has been inspired by a 1930s land-speed-record holder, but this one looks a little nicer. All photos: Rolls-Royce

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  The two-tone stylings of the Rolls-Royce Black Badge Wraith Black Arrow are also a feature on the exterior

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  The yellow-and-black stylings give the Wraith an extra buzz

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  The Black Arrow's starlight headliner in all its glory

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  The Black Arrow badge

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  The Black Arrow's fascia features an intricate design that replicates its V12 engine

What the brand calls the starlight headliner, which is the celestial roof design that lights up the cabin on all models, is made up of 2,117 fibre-optic points.

Each interior door panel contains 320 marquetry pieces, designed to give a tactile quality to the final product, and the seats have been decked out in what Rolls-Royce refers to as Club Leather.

The most notable feature inside, though, is the fascia, which depicts the V12 engine in intricate detail.

Torsten Muller-Otvos, Rolls-Royce’s chief executive, calls the Black Arrow “one of the most significant and influential cars” the manufacturer has ever created.

“Its extraordinary power, performance and presence opened the Rolls-Royce brand to an entirely new group of clients,” he said.

“It created its own following within contemporary culture and then expanded that further in its alternative Black Badge guise.”

There is no word on what each Black Arrow Wraith would cost to buy, but that would be academic even if the information were available — all 12 have already been sold.