Driving the best car in the world on the best road in Africa

A silent Rolls-Royce Spectre gives Sudhir ‘Banzai’ Matai a different perspective on his favourite Franschhoek Pass.

It’s the finest road in South Africa, quite possibly in the world. Every time I experience a new piece of tar in some far flung corner of Planet Earth I always compare it to the Franschhoek Pass.

I have, before sunrise on countless mornings, driven an hour there, just for the thrill of enjoying the 14 kilometres of snaking road with as little traffic as possible. Usually, I’d be tearing up and down in a car with racy letters in its name, such as RS, M or AMG, with a sports button for added volume from multiple tailpipes, but today is an altogether different prospect.

There is no sporty nomenclature, no sports button, there aren’t even any tailpipes. And I am wafting, rather than racing around the pass. You see, the car I am driving happens to be a near priceless pre-production prototype Rolls-Royce Spectre. And seated alongside me is the man who is leading the car’s development, Dr Joerg Wunder (what an excellent name).

The luxury British marque has, for the very first time, invited about a dozen motor noters from around the world to drive its very first all-electric model, the Spectre, as it undergoes final phases of testing. And yours truly is on the list.

Rolls’ engineers arrived in SA a few days earlier and spent some days testing in the Northern Cape in order to expose the battery powered ‘super coupe’ to temperatures approaching 50 degrees centigrade.

I rendezvous with the team in the more Mediterranean-like climes of Cape Town and the surrounding winelands. From the little town of Franschhoek we form a three-car convoy (security ahead and behind) with the near undisguised Spectre the star of the show.

We waft silently through the town, most pedestrians unaware of our approach, and head for the pass. As the road ahead is smooth and windy I enquire about a ‘sport’ button, though I may as well have insulted Dr Wunder’s family. “Nooooooo, there is no such thing. We have to make the car perfect. Our buyers don’t want to fiddle with these things.” Noted sir.

I do, however, take the opportunity to press on a bit. Dr Wunder doesn’t protest, so I lift the pace. Although the Spectre weighs the better part of three tons, you’d be hard pressed to tell from the captain’s chair. All-wheel-drive, rear-wheel-steering, a power output of 585 bhp and 900 Nm of torque really help bend physics to hide the mass and sheer size of the eighteen foot-long, six foot-wide coupe.

There is a great deal going on in terms of dynamics and computing power below the surface, but we are oblivious to all of it. The loudest noises entering the cabin are from the low-profile tyres mounted on 23-inch alloys. There’s no noise from the ‘engine room’ and almost nothing in terms of ambient intrusion.

The electric drivetrain brings with it a few unexpected side effects while driving this road I know so well. Gear selection, a fun guessing game in an unknown car, is not an issue with no gears to choose. The near silence and serenity also means that I spend more time enjoying the scenery, ogling at the sights of steep slopes and the wine terraces below.

We traverse the mountain at a serene but, admittedly, quicker pace than most owners would. The Spectre hardly seems flustered, and neither are its occupants (thankfully).

I’ve lost count of the number of times I have driven the Franschhoek Pass, but never has it been such comprehensively luxurious experience. The best car in the world on the best road in Africa? I would say so.

Words Sudhir “Banzai” Matai Twitter | Instagram
Photography Rolls-Royce

---