When Vickers sold the Rolls-Royce car division in 1998, Volkswagen outbid BMW, £430 million to £340 million, and got the factory, designs, grille and the Spirit of Ecstasy mascot. But the Rolls-Royce name and logo belonged to the separate aero engine company, which licensed them to BMW for £40 million. BMW also supplied the engines for the existing cars under a contract it could end on 12 months’ notice. The two sides settled: Volkswagen handed over the grille and mascot trademarks and could keep building Rolls-Royce badged cars until 2003, giving BMW five years to create a new car company from nothing.

BMW built a headquarters and plant on a 42 acre site on the Goodwood estate in West Sussex and launched the Phantom VII in 2003 with a 6.75 liter V12. Under CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös from 2010 to late 2023, the range grew with the Ghost, the 623 brake horsepower Wraith coupe, the Dawn convertible, the Cullinan SUV on an all aluminum “Architecture of Luxury” spaceframe, and the electric Spectre revealed in October 2022. Sales rose from 796 cars in 2005 to over 6,000 in 2023 before Chris Brownridge took over.

• The extended wheelbase Phantom added 200 millimeters, all given to rear passenger space.
• For the Spectre the Spirit of Ecstasy was lowered and reshaped to help reach a drag coefficient of 0.25.
• The coachbuilt Sweptail took four years to make with one client and sold for a reported $12.8 million in 2017.
• Boat Tail in 2021 and Droptail in 2023 followed as near one off commissions.
• In 2014 the company made a silver Rolls-Royce themed Paddington Bear statue and auctioned it for the NSPCC.