New Rolls-Royce Cullinan 2025 review: the pinnacle of luxury

Verdict

If you’re after the Rolls-Royce of SUVs, the Cullinan hits that brief by name and by nature. Just like the British marque’s traditional saloons, the mildly updated Cullinan II is finely crafted, uncompromisingly luxurious and carries a grace that lifts it above being merely just an SUV. A Range Rover or Bentley Bentayga might call itself luxurious, but it takes all of 20 seconds to realise this is the real deal, even if it looks more like a London cab than would be considered ideal.

We can get into the argument over whether cars like a Rolls-Royce Cullinan should exist, but if we step back for a minute and consider it purely as an object, the recently updated Cullinan Series II is an incredible thing. Operating somewhere above a Range Rover or Bentley Bentayga in the automotive pecking order, the Cullinan is a car that its maker refuses to call an SUV. Instead, it’s a full-house Rolls-Royce experience with a higher driving position. 

The Cullinan was launched back in 2018, and this Series II model introduces changes that aren’t fundamental to its mechanics. Rather, it’s the styling, interior and tech that have been tweaked to keep the model fresh.

The changes are most obvious outside, where the controversial styling has been given a more distinctive face around the traditional pantheon grille. The headlights are slimmer and feature a much larger daytime running light signature that flows down the front of the car. The lower bumper is also new, and this is the first Rolls-Royce in a very long time to diverge from a ‘horizontal and vertical’ design language. Or in layman’s terms, there are now some diagonal lines where previously there weren’t. 

Used - available now

2024 Rolls-Royce

Cullinan

19,000 milesAutomaticPetrol6.8L

Cash £259,995

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2024 Rolls-Royce

Cullinan

14,000 milesAutomaticPetrol6.8L

Cash £350,000

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2024 Rolls-Royce

Cullinan

11,000 milesAutomaticPetrol6.8L

Cash £339,000

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Beyond this, the rear exhaust outlets are now bigger and surrounded in thicker brightwork, but a particularly dazzling new addition are the optional 23-inch wheels. These aren’t just big, but their intricate design with its highly polished tesselations also catches sunlight and literally makes the car sparkle as it drives along. Subtle it is not, but then introverts probably aren’t the usual Rolls-Royce customer. 

For owners, the changes inside will be more noticeable on a day-to-day basis. No one could have called the previous Cullinan interior underwhelming, but it didn’t quite live up to those in other models in the company’s range. To address this, Rolls-Royce has given it a gentle tweak, not so much in its layout, but in what materials are used where, and it’s made a considerable difference.

The top is now finished in a glass-like material that combines the centre touchscreen and digital dials into one seamless element. The passenger doesn’t get a separate screen, but the panel in front of them is subtly lit at night. In fact, a huge part of the modern Rolls-Royce experience is defined by lighting, starting with the ambient lighting – or a conscious lack of it. There is no rainbow of colours to choose from, or even any obvious LED strips or panels. Instead, you have the choice of warm or cool – that’s it. 

The lighting that is there, however, is as finely and thoughtfully applied as it would be in the lobby of a five-star hotel. It’s most beguiling when you look up to the stunning, and expensive, starlight headlining. This isn’t a new thing for Rolls-Royce, but it’s as spectacular as ever. 

A degree of restraint can also be seen in the cabin, though. The screen, though useful, is quite small and feels outsized by systems in modern city cars. But that’s okay. Consider it a digital detox – with serenity, rather than overloading the driver with largely useless information, the desired effect. 

All the heating and ventilation controls are physical and work flawlessly, there’s a huge volume knob in the middle of the dash and everything in the cabin feels bespoke to Rolls-Royce rather than borrowed from a lesser source. This is all part of the experience, of course. 

The compact drive selector sits up on the steering column, and to engage drive you must pull it towards you and then down. This is unlike any other new car in the UK, and immediately gives you a sense you’re driving something special. The V12 isn’t silent, as you might imagine, but the noise that does emanate is gentle and regal. Press the throttle pedal and the response is incredibly soft, but it makes pulling away smoothly easy.

When driving at low speed, it’s easy to think the Cullinan feels a little slow, but that’s nothing to do with the 563bhp twin-turbocharged V12 engine. Instead it’s about how the powertrain is calibrated, being designed for smoothness above all else. It makes for a totally serene experience in a way that no car, even a Bentley or a Range Rover, quite matches. 

The ride is exceptional, and while it still might not have quite the magic-carpet effect you get in the larger Phantom, it’s miles ahead of any other SUV. And this is with the huge 23-inch wheels; if you want the ultimate ride comfort, trading a little of their visual pizzazz for the smaller 22-inch wheels would likely fix this issue.

Wind noise is almost non-existent despite the monolith-spec aerodynamics and huge wing mirrors, and combined with the especially high-set driving position and large, thin-rimmed steering wheel, everything meshes together to create a truly joyful drive. It’s one of those experiences that seems to go beyond just being a car in the traditional sense. If driving a Ford, BMW and Bentley is like flying from London Heathrow to New York in Economy, Business and First Class respectively, driving the Cullinan is like taking a private jet from a private airfield.  

If you want to drive with a little more urgency, or come across a challenging road, the Cullinan has a simple solution for that, too. There’s no Sport button – of course – but instead the ‘low’ button on the column shifter completely changes the whole car’s character. New mapping for the transmission and throttle makes the Cullinan wake up and make full use of its powertrain. It’s no sports car, but this mode keeps it from feeling cumbersome or sloppy when you’d rather it not be. 

And that’s the magic of the Cullinan. It knows what it is, and to hell with the latest fad or trend. Yes, there’s an inherited assumption that a Rolls-Royce will be soft, comfortable and luxurious, but the unerring focus it has on meeting these requirements without compromise is the difference between it, and everything else some might consider a rival. And before you ask, it costs from around £350,000 before options. It’s worth every penny.