In photographs, Amethyst Droptail looks almost restrained: a long, low roadster in muted purple, with two seats and a wooden deck behind the cabin. Yet the paint, the wood and even the metalwork around the grille were developed for one commissioning client. It is one of four distinct Droptail commissions announced by Rolls-Royce in 2023. Each car was given its own identity. [1][2]
A colour with a family story
Amethyst is the birthstone of the client's son. Rolls-Royce used it as a starting point, but did not settle on a single shade of purple. The lighter body colour has a silver undertone and is named after the Globe Amaranth flower; the upper surfaces use a deeper finish with red, blue and violet mica flakes. The marque also describes a faint purple tint inside the 22-inch wheels. These are details that emerge as you walk around the car. [1]
The front receives the same careful treatment. The grille surround and vanes alternate between brushed and polished metal, with a crisp line between the finishes. The idea came from the client's son, a collector of fine watches, and Rolls-Royce says the execution took more than 50 hours. The lower air intake contains 202 hand-polished steel pieces. Around the Spirit of Ecstasy, amethysts are cut as rounded cabochons rather than sparkling facets. [1]
Wood that works at speed
The curved deck behind the seats is the car's most striking material feature. It uses Calamander Light wood, which continues into the cabin across the fascia and doors. The client began with a wood sample; the warm Sand Dunes leather was then developed to complement its grain. Rolls-Royce examined more than 100 logs to find a match. On the rear deck, the wood also had to perform an aerodynamic job. Rolls-Royce describes it as a wooden surface that helps produce downforce and developed a special protective coating for it. [1]