Written by Keith WR Jones Published: 6 June 2019

• Not independently tested by Euro NCAP
• Bristling with BMW safety technology
• Retractable grille mascot a safety feature

Scour the Euro NCAP website for crash test data on the Rolls-Royce Wraith and it’ll be a futile search – its safety levels haven’t been independently assessed by the body as it’s such a specialised car.

However, this is a safe car in which to travel and it benefits from a number of BMW’s passive and active safety systems fitted as standard.

Airbags, anti-lock brakes, traction and electronic stability control are all present and correct, as you would expect. These are complemented by adaptive cruise control – a system that worked very effectively – and a night vision front camera system.

While the images it produced are very clear, displaying them on the central screen forces you to divert your gaze away from the straight-ahead position.

Much better is the head-up display system, with superbly clear full-colour graphics. It’s so effective it almost renders the conventional analogue instrumentation redundant.

The Wraith’s an enormous car, but the lightness of its controls is amplified by a 360-degree parking camera package.

How pedestrians would fare in a collision is less clear cut, but compliance with legislation means that the Spirit of Ecstasy grille mascot retracts automatically when pressure is applied to it. You can also retract it electrically to prevent it becoming a focal point for destructive oiks.

How many Isofix points does the Rolls-Royce Wraith have?

If, in the unlikely event, you intend to carry youngsters in your Wraith, each of the rear seats comes complete with Isofix mounting points for child seats.

• Generous space inside for four adults…
• But then the Wraith’s an enormous car
• Merest of nods to practicality

No other sports coupe feels as palatial inside as the Rolls-Royce Wraith, with ample seating for four – it doesn’t even feel cosy with all the chairs occupied, either.

Trimmed like a luxurious drawing room, it feels light and airy, amplified by the optionally glazed roof.

Access is via the two rear-hinged coach doors, permitting remarkably easy access to the rear pair of pews, as well as the front seats.

Being able to position the doors at any given point makes them easier to use – and less prone to expensive dinks against other vehicles and car park furniture.

That they close – rather suddenly – at the touch of a button means you don’t have to unbuckle your seatbelt to lean forward to pull them shut, either.

Storage space for paraphilia isn’t the most generous with a handful of lidded cubbies and similarly disguised cupholders. Although, could you imagine something so ghastly as a corrugated paper coffee cup sullying a Rolls-Royce interior..?

Still, at least the in-built umbrellas continue to feature, here nacelled into the front wings and accessible when the doors are open.

Stem to stern the Wraith measures just shy of 5.3m – suddenly its capacious cabin seems less impressive. Certainly, it’s not the high point in automotive packaging terms.

For all the lightness of its controls, the Wraith feels large – yet easy to position thanks to the tall front wings and grille mascot signposting its frontal extremities. Its tapered tail is less easy to judge, but 360-degree parking cameras help here.

Most parking spaces will be too short for the Rolls-Royce, but it’s likely your property will be sizeable enough for a garage large enough to accommodate it.

Raise the Wraith’s electric bootlid and you’re greeted with rich, deep-pile carpet lining the 470-litre space. It’s trimmed better than some mid-sized hatchbacks, but given the Rolls’ price, you’d expect it to be.

As far as practicality goes the automated lid is about all you’ll get – nothing as blue collar as folding rear seats here. Surely if you purchased something so large you would arrange to have a man deliver it, anyway.

Still, the soft carpet will ensure that your luggage – whether or not its custom-made to fit the Wraith’s cargo hold – won’t be blemished by unsightly scratches and scrapes.