Rolls Royce Cullinan 2018 first drive

Both front and rear differentials are open, not locking, but there’s torque vectoring via braking to stop an individual wheel spinning, and in off-road mode, if you also switch the stability control off, it locks the car in 50:50 all-wheel drive. Unlike with, say, a Bentley Bentayga or Range Rover, there’s only one off-road mode, rather than options such as rock, crawl, sand and so on, because Rolls-Royce says it wants its cars to be easier of use. There’s no low-ratio transfer case for the gearbox, either. But there is that 627lb ft from 1600rpm, which should help. 

The towing limit is around 2600kg because that’s the limit of the optional deployable towbar; work is afoot to make it the 3500kg the chassis can already handle. 

There’s a two-piece electric tailgate, opening onto a 560-litre boot, and if you specify the standard three-person bench rear seat (as 70% of customers are), it splits and folds, though because rear-seat passengers sit higher than those in the front, and because the seats are opulent, when folded they don’t leave the boot floor totally flat. Instead there’s an electrically operated ramp between boot floor and folded seat, or you can leave a step if you want to prevent luggage sliding forwards (which begs the question as to why you’d have bothered dropping the seats).

Alternatively, you can select two individual rear chairs, with a fridge/humidor/whatever else you want between them. Those seats recline, and are backed by a glass partition to the luggage bay, to reduce noise emanating from the rear wheelarches. It’s most popular in markets where owners have a driver. Either way, the rear-hinged back doors give great access to the rear cabin. All doors, big and heavy as they are, can be closed electrically, quickly and with a wicked thud.

It’s a fair bit heavier than one, too, at 2730kg at the kerb. Which, combined with little engine braking, means you’re deeper into the brake pedal than you might be in a rival. It also contributes for a fairly breath-taking fuel economy of 18.8mpg, with a CO2 output of 341g/km. Neither is the kind of thing that troubles owners.

Just how good the car is off-road depends on what you’re asking of it. The size and weight mean that it wouldn’t thank you for taking it into soft mud and tight gaps, but the 627lb ft is apparently pretty handy on dunes, and the wade depth is 540mm. In off-road mode, although you can’t select gears yourself, if you then ping the ‘low’ button on the column-mounted gearlever, it’ll effectively hold second-gear if it can, which is good from about 5mph to 55mph, and gives stronger engine braking. The big, heavy doors have a lower edge which wraps around the sills, as on some rivals, to help stop dirt getting on your legs.