Rolls-Royce’s new model Cullinan probably costs more than the real car on your driveway 

Rolls-Royce says this 1:8 scale replica of its latest Cullinan is an ‘astonishingly accurate’ version customers can buy alongside their real-life cars when they order the six-figure SUV.

And it comes with a Rolls-Royce price tag, too – reportedly costing from around £30,000 for each one.

That means owners will not only have a £264,000-plus car in their garage but one on their mantelpiece or office display cabinet that’s around the same prices as a new Audi A4, BMW 3 Series or VW Tiguan.

The British marque said that while ‘daily driving pleasures have been curtailed due to the Covid-19 pandemic’, this is one of ‘life’s little luxuries’ that has ‘come to the fore’ – for its custom base of footballers, business bosses and all-round billionaire types anyway. 

The authentic scale replica is built with absolute perfection and is more than a ‘mere model’.

Each miniature Cullinan is individually and painstakingly crafted by hand, to the client’s specification, from over 1,000 individual components. 

To make each one to the customer’s request takes a massive 450 hours.

That over half of the time required to build a full-sized Cullinan at the firm’s Goodwood factory in West Sussex.

To put that into perspective, Jaguar Land Rover’s Solihull plant reopened this week and despite reduced outputs due to coronavirus measures produced the an £85,000 Range Rover in just two days. 

Another reason for the model’s astonishing price tag is the fact the replica is hand-painted to colour-match paint the real car the customer has ordered.

It’s then hand-polished to the marque’s exacting specification.

The maker adds: ‘The coachline is even applied using a fine brush, just as it is on the original.’

Clients may choose from a palette of around 40,000 ‘standard’ colours, or replicate their own personal Bespoke finish. 

The fully-functioning exterior lights are operated by a Cullinan-branded remote control and under the bonnet is a perfect likeness of the ‎iconic 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 engine.

How detailed is it?

On opening the coach doors, illuminated treadplates are revealed, leading to an interior designed and executed with the materials, skill and attention to detail lavished on Cullinan itself. You even get teeny version of the the hidden in-door umbrellas you can order for any Roller.

‘From the headrest embroidery and wood finishes to seat piping and stitching, these Bespoke creations allow clients to recreate their full-size vehicle with astonishing accuracy, or even envision future Cullinans to add to their collection,’ the brand says.

Rolls-Royce won’t go into detail about how expensive the model really is, but prices – depending on spec – are likely to come in at around £30,000. The most customised it is, the higher the charge.

BMW’s latest 3 Series saloon is priced from £30,960 – we know which of the two we’d order. 

If you do buy one of the scaled-down replicas, it comes in a metre-long display case and is set on a gloss-black base mounted on a plinth – so you might have to take down your wedding certificate or law degree to make room for it on top of the fireplace.

Torsten Müller-Ötvös, chief executive at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said: ‘ It is not just about the big things: we seek and achieve greatness in everything we do, down to the smallest item and minutest detail.’

While £30,000 is enough to make most of us blush, it’s just a fraction of the price of the most expensive model car ever created.

The most extravagant model car in the world is a 1:18-scale Lamborghini Aventador costing – brace yourself – $7.5million.

That’s because it’s made from a 500kg block of solid gold and the finished item contains 25kg of the precious metal Gold edition.