Rolls Royce SalesTake a Dive in China

Rolls-Royce， bought by Germanys BMW in 1998， like most car makers has been hit by a slowdown in the worlds largest market.

Its global sales have fallen 10% in the first seven months of 2015.

The company has conceded that sales of luxury vehicles have slowed in China due to falling demand amid the countrys economic turmoil.

It is feared that Rolls Royce sales in China could end the year down as much as 15 per cent – in stark contrast to the record 4，063 models delivered by the brand last year.

Rolls Royce chief executive Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes said the turnaround in the market had been unexpectedly fast.

Upmarket brands have suffered in recent months due to the slowdown in China， where the stock market has plunged， the Yuan currency has been devalued and the government has cracked down on conspicuous consumption.

“We have been surprised by the speed of development in the Chinese market in a completely different direction，” he said.

“The whole anti-corruption campaign is investigating where your money is from， whom you are related to and so on and so forth. That， of course， scares people who are quite affluent， and no one wants to be visible currently in that kind of environment. So people are shying away from obvious luxury goods， and that is not only true of cars but also true for jewelry and precious watches，”he further said.

However， he added， “I am not in any way scared about that. We may see a dent in our volume line due to China， but that is only a partial dent.

With the new car that we will be launching next year， the Rolls-Royce Thorn， I am very optimistic.”

Rolls-Royces new Dawn convertible is unlikely to appeal to a corruptionconscious Chinese market.

Professor David Bailey from Aston Business School in Birmingham said，“I do think that China is going to affect the high-end of the market. The stock market crash will have some effect.

He added， “But then again， the ultra-high end of the car market works in a way of its own， so who knows exactly how sales will be hit.”

Mueller-Oetvoes played down fears that recent events in China would last long， forecasting that sales there would recover in the next two years.

“China has never been our number one market. Our number one market is the United States and due to the fact that we are properly balanced， we can cope with some of the downturn in China，” he explained.

The New Model will Help Overcome the Decline

Rolls-Royce has spent several years trying to expand business from its core market， which currently consists of older men who traditionally buy 200，000 pound-plus （$305，080） cars to be driven by a chauffeur.

In September， the luxury car maker launched Dawn， its new ￡250，000， 155 mph convertible， which the company has described as “the sexiest RollsRoyce ever built.”

The company hopes the new model will help to overcome a decline in the popularity of existing models， which include the two-door coupe Wraith， after Rolls-Royce sales tumbled 10.3 percent to 2，035 cars in the year to July.

Director of Design Giles Taylor said the “Dawn” convertible would help to bring new customers to the 111-year old brand who have a more modern approach to car ownership.

“Its a drivers car and we believe that we are reaching out to customers that may have perceived a level of opulence and formality with previous RollsRoyces，” he said.

“It is about connecting to younger aspirations.”

Rolls-Royce is confident the new model， which is said to be the quietest convertible in the world， will appeal to Chinese buyers and draw in custom-ers from outside its core base of men， which is currently about 70% of buyers.

“I think the sensuality of the car will probably attract more women than the Wraith did， which hopefully puts us in good position，” Taylor said.

Recently， the firm also broke with tradition by launching the vehicle during an online event rather than at the formal setting of the Frankfurt Motor Show， where the model will be showcased.

Rolls-Royce also said that it had already received several hundred orders for the car but did not give details on the selling price.

Rolls-Royces new Dawn convertible is a sign that theres still a market for top-down driving among people with 300，000 euros （$335，000） to spend on a car.

Mass-market consumers who want something sporty may have switched to SUVs， but the ultra-wealthy can have both.

Once synonymous with freedom and rebellion and available in every price class， Convertible cars are becoming playthings almost exclusively for the rich. And theres enough money at the disposal of the worlds elite to prompt Rolls-Royce to develop the Dawn.

“The ultra-wealthy will buy this car，” said Tim Urquhart， a Londonbased analyst at market researcher IHS Automotive.

Sales of convertibles have plunged 51 percent from their 2004 peak to 409，770 cars last year， while sport utility vehicle deliveries increased nearly fourfold to 12.3 million according to data from IHS. Though new convertible versions of the Ford Mustang， Chevrolet Camaro and BMW 2-Series may help nudge those numbers up by 2020， sales wont return to the 2004 level， Urquhart said.

“We see very good potential” for four-seat convertibles， Rolls-Royce chief， Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes， said in the webcast. He stated， “Were convinced that companies need to offer more space in the back of the car.”

Affordable convertibles have become increasingly hard to find. Volkswagen AG is killing off the massmarket， Eos. Renault SA halted production of the Wind and the ragtop version of the Megane. Ford Motor Co. put the Thunderbird on ice in 2005 and today only sells convertibles as part of its Mustang range.

Part of the Decline Stems from the Focus on China

Part of the decline in convertible cars stems from automakers shifting focus to China， where high-end buyers wouldnt dream of driving through smog-polluted cities in a convertible car. With the Chinese car market declining， however， this might not be such a bad time to unveil a niche model thats not targeted at the country.

The Chinese market is currently seeing quite a contraction in the luxury goods business， and that isnt only true for cars.

The Dawn is the second convertible in the Rolls-Royce stable and will be both smaller and less expensive than the 390，000-euro drop head version of the Phantom.

Rolls-Royce declined to disclose the convertible Phantoms sales.

The car boasts a ride as silent as a sedan once the soft-top roof is up.

Theres a waterfall effect built into the grain of the wood between the rear seats， and like the Wraith， it also has a satellite-aided ability to anticipate the road ahead.

It will be available starting in the first quarter of next year.