Rolls-Royce Cullinan Shows Some Skin Before May 10 Reveal

The world’s most luxurious crossover will be unveiled on May 10th as Rolls-Royce has confirmed the Cullinan will celebrate its world debut this Thursday at 7:00 am EDT.

But before we see the first ever SUV from Rolls Royce in full, the British company will perform a strip-tease – or so to speak –  releasing undisguised details of the posh crossover over the next few days, starting with a glimpse of the taillights today.

The company is staying tight-lipped about specifics but the Cullinan will follow in the footsteps of the Phantom and adopt a familiar front fascia with a prominent grille that is flanked by rectangular headlights. The Cullinan also has strong shoulder lines, suicide rear doors and a dual exhaust system. Rounding out the exterior styling features are Phantom-like taillights and a tailgate-mounted spoiler.

While the model probably won’t be the most elegant looking crossover on the market, it should have an ultra-luxurious interior as previous spy photos have shown there will be premium leather upholstery, wood trim and metallic accents. The Cullinan will also have a digital instrument cluster as well as a unique center console with an iDrive-like controller.

One of the Cullinan’s more unique features is the so-called Viewing Suite. When owners push a button, two leather-wrapped chairs and a cocktail table will automatically be deployed from the lower section of the tailgate.

The Cullinan will ride on an aluminum spaceframe platform called the “Architecture of Luxury.” The platform originally debuted on the Phantom and will eventually underpin all Rolls-Royce models.

Performance specifications remain unconfirmed but the Cullinan is slated to use the same twin-turbo 6.75-liter V12 engine as the Phantom. As a result, we can expect the model to have 563 hp (420 kW / 570 PS) and 663 lb-ft (900 Nm) of torque. The engine will likely be paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission which sends power to a specially-developed all-wheel drive system.

Since the Cullinan will undoubtedly focus on comfortable instead of performance, we can expect a Phantom-like air suspension that makes millions of calculations every second and reacts to steering, acceleration, and camera inputs.

Article updated with the latest teaser from Rolls Royce