From 1906 to 2003, motor cars were manufactured and marketed under the Rolls-Royce brand by Rolls-Royce Limited and Rolls-Royce Motors. The Rolls-Royce Motor Cars subsidiary of BMW AG has no direct relationship to Rolls-Royce-branded vehicles produced before 2003, other than having briefly supplied components and engines. The Bentley Motors Limited subsidiary of Volkswagen AG is the direct successor to Rolls-Royce Motors and various other predecessor entities that produced Rolls-Royce and Bentley branded cars between the foundation of each company and 2003, when the BMW-controlled entity started producing cars under the Rolls-Royce brand.
The BBC called Rolls-Royce "probably one of the most recognised icons in the world", and that "the name Rolls-Royce entered the English language as a superlative."[4]
The company's line of vehicles includes the Phantom, the top-of-the-line four-door saloon first offered in 2003 - as of January 2025, it is offered in two lengths; the smaller Ghost four-door saloon - also offered in two lengths; the Cullinan SUV, and the Spectre coupé. The last being Rolls-Royce's first electric car.[5]
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited was created as a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW in 1998 after BMW licensed the rights to the Rolls-Royce brand name and logo from Rolls-Royce Holdings plc,[6] and acquired the rights to the Spirit of Ecstasy and Rolls-Royce grille shape trademarks from Volkswagen AG. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited has been manufacturing Rolls-Royce branded cars since 2003.
Although the Rolls-Royce brand has been in use since 1906, the fate of the brand diverged between 1998 and 2003. In 2003, the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars subsidiary of BMW AG, which had been a major supplier to the brand up to 2003, began manufacturing vehicles with the Rolls-Royce name. Volkswagen AG took ownership of the Bentley name as well as previous Rolls-Royce production facilities and previous Rolls-Royce designs.
Former chief executive Torsten Müller-Ötvös joined the company in January 2010, with a pledge to regain the quality standards that made Rolls-Royce famous. That year sales in China increased by 600%, making it the company's second largest market after the US.[7]
On October 5, 2023, Rolls-Royce announced that Müller-Ötvös will be retiring as CEO on November 30 after 14 years. He is succeeded by Chris Brownridge, the former CEO of BMW UK, who became the company's new CEO on December 1, 2023.[8][9] Müller-Ötvös was the company's longest serving CEO to date.