The estate car, which looked to be a dying breed just a few years ago, is staging something of a comeback. There are Touring versions of the BMW M3 (which we’ve never officially had before) and new M5 (which is making a comeback), while VW continues to offer a Golf R Estate into the new Mk8.5 generation (which you can read about in our review here). Then there’s a barmy Audi RS GT, the RS4 Competition and various offerings from Mercedes-AMG to scratch that hot wagon itch.
Manufacturers will have you believe that estate cars sell in minuscule numbers, comparatively speaking (and that’s probably true in the UK), but shooting brakes look to be back on trend for those with access to trust funds. Just look at the Brabus Rocket GTS announced a few weeks ago, which adds a clown shoe-like rear and a €1m (or £830k) to the AMG GT. And remember the Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato from a few years ago? The V12 wagon was such a show stopper that it completely overshadowed the three other uber-expensive versions Zagato built. Or how about this: the one-off Rolls-Royce Wraith Silver Spectre Shooting Brake, which happens to be for sale on PH.
If you ever need proof that every car looks better as a shooting brake, you’re looking right at it. The Wraith was an elegant-looking thing when it launched in 2013, serving as a sleek, two-door version of the ‘baby’ Ghost saloon. But a Dutch designer called Niels van Roij, who’d go on to make the Tesla Model S shooting brake and two-door Range Rover, wondered what a Wraith might look like if it were a bread van, and began sketching an all-new rear section.
The resulting look was sympathetic to the original’s design, with the front end, suicide doors and lower rear section all carried over. And though the roofline is clearly a lot longer, it slopes downwards and tapers inwards towards the rear in a way that follows the shoulder lines. Just how much was changed over the original isn’t known, but there’s obviously a completely new roof (made by hand from carbon fibre), new tailgate, redesigned silver shroud around the windows and a much larger, leather-lined boot. The conversion was carried out by Belgian coachbuilder Carat Duchatelet between 2018 and 2020, taking over 2,500 hours to complete.
Then there are all the small touches. The headliner, for instance, mimics Rolls-Royce’s starlight liner with thousands of LEDs to give the effect of a twinkling night’s sky, and extends all the way to the back of the car. There are a smattering of small plaques, including on the door sills and in the boot, featuring the ‘Silver Spectre’ name in, er, Gold, along with Niels van Roij's company logo. Otherwise it's a standard Wraith inside and (mostly) out, which is why it looks as though it came from Goodwood’s Bespoke division.
If it had, you’d be looking at a price somewhere in the tens of millions for the Silver Spectre, especially as this is the only one in existence. That said, we don’t know how much this costs, as the seller wants you to give them a ring before it spills the beans, although going off Niels van Roij’s previous work, you’re probably looking a six-to-seven figures as opposed to eight. Which, admittedly, does make this Vanquish Zagato a highly tempting alternative…
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