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Ordinarily, automakers use the word “diamond” to denote an extra-sparkly paint or a wheel with sharply cut spokes. But when Rolls-Royce describes the exterior finish on this custom Ghost as “diamond,” assume these Brits mean exactly what they say.
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While the black upper portion on this two-tone Ghost may sparkle like a Cadillac in the sun, it’s mixed with 1000 crushed diamonds instead of silica, glass, or the other low-rent particles that go into just any metallic paint. Rolls-Royce says this is the first time real diamonds have been swirled in car paint and that Diamond Stardust—that’s the paint’s name, not the employee at your local gentlemen’s club—is now the company’s most expensive coating.
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Rolls-Royce took two months to develop the paint so that the diamonds would reflect light properly without making the car feel like sandpaper to the touch. The paint shop applies a third clear coat for that purpose. Doing so adds three more days, creating what is inarguably the most arduous, time-consuming coating process in the modern automotive industry, all of it by hand.
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The rest of the dusty Roller carries the normal customization options for a long-wheelbase Ghost, such as the hand-painted red-and-black coach lines along the lower gray flanks and the red outlines on the wheel hubs. (That kind of job requires a brush made with hairs plucked from a squirrel, not a precious metal.)
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Inside, the red, black, and white tartan behind the wood tray tables on the front seatbacks suggests the owner is a Scot, or at least someone in love with plaid pajama pants and place mats. Red stitching complements the seats and doors throughout the car, which, as in the Zenith drophead coupe from last year, splits the cabin between black leather in front and white in back.
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- Dark Shadows: Rolls-Royce Black Badge Ghost and Wraith Invoke Restless Spirits
- Instrumented Test: 2016 Rolls-Royce Dawn
- First Drive: 2015 Rolls-Royce Ghost Series II
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The Stardust Ghost makes its debut on what should be a very brightly lit show stand in Geneva.
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