The very first Rolls-Royce motor cars to visit the future home of the world's most prestigious car brand, currently under construction at Goodwood, near Chichester - less than ten miles from West Wittering, where Sir F Henry Royce used to live and work. The all new Manufacturing Plant and Head Office for Rolls-Royce motor cars will start operations officially on 1 January 2003. It has been designed by one of Britain's most prominent architects, Nicolas Grimshaw & Partners, who became famous with their futuristic design of the 'Eden Project' in Cornwall. The new enterprise will be a stand-alone British subsidiary of the BMW Group who acquired the rights to the Rolls-Royce brand for automotive business. It will continue to design and produce in England authentic Rolls-Royce motor cars with a modern interpretation of all the marque's traditional values.

The cars and their proud owners, 'spirited with ecstasy' by this historic moment, are (from left to right):

1987 RR Silver Spirit Saloon 818ROD owned by Rod Goodall
1930 RR 20/25 Mulliner Weymann Saloon OG8143 owned by Doug Groves
1969 RR Phantom Six Limousine KRX599H owned by Paul Capper
1933 RR 20/25 T&M Limousine BPB937 owned by Ted Meachem
1974 RR Silver Shadow Saloon NPO653R owned by Ian Burt

Fred Fruth, General Manager, Public Affairs, BMW Group, Project Rolls-Royce