Rolls-Royce celebrates its recent history with the RR_02 soapbox – World Motors

Born 120 years ago with the first race in Oberursel near Frankfurt, soap box racers (i.e. racing cars built from soap boxes and which run on downhill tracks) have recently become common in Brittany following a series of races held between 2000 and 2004 at the Festival of Speed ​​at Goodwood.
To rightfully commemorate Rolls-Royce’s participation in this first ‘gravity’ competition (i.e. cars propelled by gravity) as part of the Soapbox Challenge, the iconic luxury brand is now presenting updates to its previous range of special seats .
The new soapbox car, called RR_02, is inspired by the Silver Ghost, winner of the 1911 London to Edinburgh Trial and the 1913 Alpine Trial, which at the beginning of the last century consolidated Rolls-Royce’s position as a manufacturer of. ‘the best cars in the world’.
Like its two predecessors – the RR-0.01 and RR-0.02 single-seaters built in carbon fiber with honeycomb composite plates and precision aluminum components – the RR_02 was also built with the most advanced high-tech solutions and with speed in mind . This is accentuated by racing-style pinion steering and soft tubular tires to reduce rolling resistance.
It should be noted that this special activity within the scope of Rolls-Royce production, carried out by apprentices, is a ‘historic’ step in the recent era of the brand, which is under the ownership of the BMW Group.
With the Rolls-Royce project still in its infancy – planning permission had only just been granted – the company decided to enter the Soapbox Challenges at the 2001 and 2002 Goodwood Festival of Speed, ahead of the launch of the first RR of the modern era, the Phantom. which was delivered to its owner at 00:01 on January 1, 2003.

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