For those who think Yang

Rolls Royce unveils the (anti) Mao-mobile;

To underscore the importance of the Chinese market to Rolls-Royce, the company unveiled the Pinnacle Travel Phantom from its Bespoke Collection at the China motor show in Beijing last week. Meant to showcase Rolls-Royce’s popular Bespoke program in this rapidly emerging market, the Pinnacle Travel Phantom takes its cues from the heyday of luxury travel. No, not the era of $39 flights from Vegas to Reno in a Carter-vintage 737, but the era of travel by luxurious cross-continental trains.

This special Phantom features a two-tone color scheme of Madeira red over silver sand. On the inside, Morello red and seashell-colored leather has been used for the seats, roofliner, pillars, door cards, and lambs’ wool rugs. Smoke gray stitching serves as a contrast on the seats, meant to evoke the exquisite details of luxury trains. The centerpiece of the Pinnacle Travel Phantom is arguably the marquetry created via 230 individual pieces of wood, using both traditional craftsmanship and laser woodcutting techniques.

The marquetry displays a stylized image of a cross-continental train speeding across a landscape, with plumes of steam billowing in its wake. This wood veneer motif has been applied to a number of surfaces in the cabin, from the glove box all the way to the rear picnic tables and doors.

Rolls has 15 dealerships in China with plans for eight more. A great leap forward, indeed.