We expect Rolls Royces to be expensive. But in the year 2021, the qualifications for what we call expensive has moved up quite a bit. In an era when most people are content with a Toyota Corolla, Nissan Sentra, or (insert the name of cheap econobox car here), the new Rolls Royce Wraith can be had for the cost of 50 to 100 used Corollas give or take.

In the past, it was easy to pin the price of a Rolls Royce down to things like acres upon acres of wood and the leather from several different cows. While that's still true, it's a bit more complicated than that nowadays. Now that BMW owns Rolls Royce, their model range has access to BMW's own proprietary technologies. How they make the new Wraith cost as much as a sizable mansion is what we're here to share today.

Tell your butler to retire for the evening and summon your favorite chauffeur, because we're riding in the back seat of one of the most expensive new cars money can buy.

German Parents, English Sensibilities

a parked Rolls-Royce Wraith
Via autoexpress.co.uk

It's no big secret that BMW's owned Rolls-Royce since the late 90s, but even stuffy German engineers understand that taking a BMW 7 Series Sedan and sticking some wood and a chrome ornament on the front was bound to enrage more Rolls Royce buyers than it attracted. That said, there was another more subtle approach that was taken instead.

2012 BMW 7 Series
Via: Atlanta Autos

Indeed, the Wraith's chassis and engine are both borrowed from the F-01 BMW 7 Series, but everything that one can see, touch, and even smell is still quintessentially Rolls Royce. With supple English leather, wood, and chrome accenting every conceivable part of the car all assembles by hand, it's no wonder why the car costs as much as it does.

All Wraiths come with BMW's six and three-quarter liter twin-turbo V12 engine designed to have the same old school feel as classic Rolls-Royce engines with all the modern throttle response and refinement the modern business tycoon demands and expects.

Via: Rolls Royce

With over 620 horsepower on tap, this style of engine which takes inspiration from engines made over 60 years ago is due to be axed in 2023. But for now, the engine that powers this Rolls Royce will feel and sound just as genuine as a mid-50s Silver Shadow, albeit with the addition of twin turbos this time around.

Via Youtube.com/Anna Olivia

The Black Badge edition Wraith unveiled in 2016 takes all this chrome and blacks it out. Making for a menacing yet still completely dignified set of wheels which we recon makes anyone inside it seem like a Bond villain. With all this hand-stitched leather and beautifully polished and hand-cut wood, it's incredible that the Wraith isn't even more expensive than it already is. Of course, though, there are always other means to push the envelope.

Related: 2021 Rolls Royce Dawn: Costs, Facts, And Figures

Mansory: When Insanely Expensive Still Isn't Expensive Enough

Via: Mansory

Let's just ponder the thought for the moment that one of us is an enterprising business tycoon who just unloaded all their stock and now has more money to blow than most people will see in several lifetimes.

If you're that lucky duck, Mansory of Bavaria, Germany is the place to go to make your exotic car even more exotic, and even more expensive. It might have been blasphemous to suggest modifying an older style Rolls Royce in any fashion not bespoke from the factory. But with this modern Roller on a BMW chassis and a twin-turbo V12 under the hood, this time it makes perfect sense.

Via: siamagazin.com

There was a time when fitting 22-inch rims to a passenger car would've gotten you laughed at wherever you drove for looking silly. Try looking at the 22's on the Mansory tuned Rolls Royce Wraith and call them silly looking, you'll just look like an absolute buzzkill. Speaking of rims, Mansories website sites over 30 different styles of rims as officially compatible with the Wraith. We're sure any old 22 would fit just fine, but who in their right mind would want any old set of wheels on a car like this?

Related: BSTN GT XI By Mansory: A Lawnmower Inspired By The Legendary Air Jordan XI Shoes

Via: Mansory

Even the hyper-exclusive world of Mansory cars has room for higher-end trim packages. The Mansory Wraith Bleurion Edition takes the standard cars' paint job and turns it up to 11. With a stunning combination of two-tone bare black carbon fiber on the bonnet, roof, and rear with brilliant royal blue along the sides shining like a piece of fine jewelry on four wheels. So at the end of the day, what's a car like this going to cost you?

Via: Mansory

Well, with options, the standard Wraith can run as high as $350 to $400 thousand dollars brand new. To have the car completely sorted out by Mansory will add at least $100 thousand dollars to the cost of that and likely far more.

More than likely meaning the apex version of this car could fetch a price of a staggering half a million dollars.  If you're a successful business tycoon, celebrity, or athlete, we can think of far sillier ways of spending your money.

Sources: Rolls Royce, BMW, Mansory

Next: 2021 Rolls Royce Cullinan: Here's What We Expect From The SUV