$1.2 Million Rolls-Royces are Hot Sellers in China

Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars sold like gangbusters in 2011. Each brand had exceedingly strong global sales, with Rolls-Royce reaching its highest numbers in the brand's history.

While Bentley already has plans to expand its lineup by adding a SUV, we're learning that Rolls-Royce is just trying to keep up with demand for one of its most expensive products: the Rolls-Royce Phantom Dragon Edition, according to Bloomberg News.

Sold in China, the Dragon Edition features gold dragons painted along the vehicle's sides, embroidered head restraints and hand-stitched cushions for rear passengers. The kicker is its whopping $1.2 million price tag. That's about $800,000 more than a standard Rolls-Royce Phantom in this country. If you think its price is a deterrent, Rolls-Royce sold out of the model in just two months; it went on sale in August.

Rolls-Royce is finding huge success in China. In fact, China, not the U.S., is now the automaker's largest market. China's number of millionaires jumped to 1.11 million in 2010, a 33% increase. In the future, the ultra-luxury brand will likely continue to focus on expanding in emerging markets like China. The brand is currently seeing much stronger growth there than in its traditional markets of the U.S. and Britain.

Rolls-Royce Sells Out Dragon Phantom in China (Bloomberg News)

Rolls-Royce President Talks Electrics, High-Tech

The Rolls-Royce Phantom sedan has enough room to cross your legs in the backseat without touching the front seats: one foot propped sideways and the other buried an inch deep in carpet. It’s not a shabby place to sit — and probably better than chatting outside, Rolls-Royce’s David Archibald tells me. He and I are at the jam-packed opening of a Rolls-Royce dealership in Chicago’s moneyed Gold Coast neighborhood. Archibald, 53, is a sum manifestation of today’s global auto industry: a Scotsman who’s president of the North American arm of a British carmaker owned by Germans. BMW has controlled Rolls-Royce since 1998, and Archibald has been with the brand since 2002.

Product changes come slow in the ultra-luxury business and the lengthy product cycles risk having cars with outdated technology. Take the Phantom. It dates back to late 2003 and still employs an early generation of BMW’s iDrive interface. The smaller Ghost, introduced for 2010, has BMW’s latest generation of iDrive, which is far more workable.

Then again, with 11 bull hides and 10 square meters of wood inside a Phantom’s cabin, it’s a long shot whether any Rolls-Royce customer gives a whit about outdated electronics. After all, most Patek Philippe timepieces don’t include a stopwatch.

Recall Alert: BMW 5, 6, 7 Series, Rolls-Royce Phantom

BMW is recalling 198,000 V-8- and V-12-powered models from the 2002 through 2010 model years for a defective power braking system.

A leak may develop in these cars’ braking systems potentially causing a loss of braking power. The company says there have been no accidents or injuries because of the problem. Models included in the recall are:

• 2002-08 BMW 745i/Li, 750i/Li and 760i/Li
• 2007-08 BMW Alpina B7
• 2004-10 BMW 645i and 650i
• 2004-10 BMW 545i and 550i
• 2003-2010 Rolls-Royce Phantom (does not include Rolls-Royce Ghost)

In the coming weeks, owners will receive a notification in the mail to have their cars serviced at the dealer. For more information, owners can call BMW at 800-525-7417.

2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Video

We won’t beat around the bush: Cars.com reviewer Mike Hanley gives the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom a rave review in this video. And it stands to reason that there would be something amiss if he hadn’t, seeing as Rolls wants nearly half a million dollars for this ultra-luxury vehicle. Check out some the Phantom’s bells and whistles in this video.