Rolls-Royce begins 350-week testing program for electric Project Nightingale

Rolls-Royce has announced the launch of an extensive testing program for its new exclusive electric car, Project Nightingale. The model is a two-seat open-top electric Gran Turismo, which will become the first vehicle in the Rolls-Royce Coachbuild Collection. Production of the newcomer will be strictly limited to just 100 units.

The exterior styling of the electric car features a distinctive torpedo shape, referencing the British brand's historic experimental models from the 1920s—the 16EX and 17EX. The foundation of the design is the proprietary aluminum Architecture of Luxury platform, used across all of the brand's contemporary vehicles, including the electric Spectre fastback.

The road test program is scheduled to span 350 weeks, during which prototypes will undergo testing in the most extreme climatic conditions. The vehicles will be sent for evaluation beyond the Arctic Circle and into the scorching deserts of the Arabian Peninsula under severe temperature variations and at altitudes of up to 3,000 meters above sea level.

The project's name references the home of the designers and engineers at the winter estate of company co-founder Henry Royce, located on the French Riviera.

In addition to road trials, Rolls-Royce is conducting a series of static tests on individual components and assemblies. Prototype examples of Project Nightingale have already completed 1,430 hours of computational fluid dynamics modeling and wind tunnel testing. The vehicle is fitted with 24-inch wheels—the largest in the brand's history. Special attention is being given to the new side-opening Piano Boot lid, used on the brand's cars for the first time. The durability of its mechanism will be validated through more than 15,000 duty cycles.

Placing a standard pre-order for Project Nightingale is not possible: the car will be sold exclusively via personal invitations from Rolls-Royce. The expected price for the luxury electric coupe will range from $9.5 million to $10 million (approximately 800–840 million rubles at the exchange rate for September 2026).