On January 1, 2003, Rolls-Royce opened the doors to its all-new Goodwood manufacturing facility in southeast England. Set on 42 acres, the limestone and cedar buildings housed an Assembly Hall with floor-to-ceiling windows that provided generous views of Phantom VIIs being made by hand, a Surface Finishing Centre, Bespoke services, and other operations. In January of this year, Rolls-Royce announced it would be allocating £300+ million ($390+ million) to a substantial extension of its Goodwood plant, the biggest investment in the site since it opened. To commemorate the occasion, the ultra-luxury automaker had employees from various departments choose items to put inside a time capsule that will be opened on Rolls-Royce’s 150th anniversary in 2054.
“The capsule’s contents were collated by representatives from each of Rolls-Royce’s Future Talent programmes, including Interns, Graduates and Apprentices,” according to Rolls-Royce. The company has not disclosed what was put inside, only stating that some of the items will be obsolete in 2054 and serve as reminders of the time from which they came while others will still be relevant the day the capsule is opened.
Nobody will have to dig the container up when the big day comes, though. Instead of burying the time capsule, Rolls-Royce put it on display in Goodwood’s reception area. Once the 40,000 square-meter (430,556 square-foot) extension is complete, it will become the new home of the commemorative container of memories and tactile connections to times past.
The Goodwood addition will also enclose a new Exterior Surface Centre (Paint Shop) and provide more room for Bespoke builds, which were at an all-time high in 2024, and the even more challenging and complex Coachbuild projects. Overall, Rolls-Royce did incredibly well last year, delivering 5,712 vehicles (primarily to clients in North America and Europe) and making 2024 its third-best sales year ever.
This news has us wondering what exactly made the cut for the time capsule. Perhaps a jar of Gray Poupon got approval because people still associate it with Rolls-Royce 40 years after the commercials were relevant. Hopefully, traditional buttons and knobs did as well. Why get rid of something that still works? As for items that will be obsolete in 2054, perhaps a key fob is in that group. Or a miniaturized side mirror because external mirrors will probably be replaced by small cameras within the next three decades.
What do you think is inside the Rolls-Royce time capsule? Write your estimations in the comments section below.
