In 2008, Rolls-Royce collector Roland Hall asked Pininfarina to build him something special from a Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe. The end result was a spare-no-expenses creation, penned by none other than Jason Castriota, called the Pininfarina Hyperion.
After dropping out of sight in 2009, the Hyperion has again surfaced, this time at luxury car dealer Prestige Cars in Abu Dhabi. As Carscoops explains, the asking price is undisclosed, but it’s probably safe to assume that “reasonable offers” would need to be in the mid-seven-figure range.
When Hall originally commissioned the car, he requested some rather odd bespoke options, including a compartment for hunting rifles in the front of the windscreen. When built, the car included a specially designed Girard-Perregaux watch, which could either be dash-mounted or worn on a custom bracelet.
Castriota’s design was meant to honor the long-hood, short rear overhang styling of the 1930s. To achieve this, the front seats were repositioned nearly 16-inches rearward, and all-new bodywork was crafted, primarily from carbon fiber. Doors, however, were made of solid wood, and the car retained the running gear of a stock Phantom.
Hall originally offered the car for sale just one year later, in 2009, at a price of 4.5 million euros, which equates to some $5.89 million at today’s exchange rates. It’s unknown if the car sold at the time, since the Hyperion has been out of the spotlight until now.