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Rolls-Royce's Arnage-bashing small saloon is entering development stages

More details have emerged relating to Rolls-Royce new smaller saloon, its first all-new model since the Phantom and answer to the Bentley Arnage. Interviewed at the Shanghai motor show last week, Rolls boss Ian Robertson told journalists that design work on the forthcoming smaller saloon is entering a new phase, and also gave the first indication on price and positioning of the new baby Roller."The design is finished," said Robertson, "and the first prototypes should be running very shortly.""It will cost roughly two thirds as much as a Phantom," or somewhere between £150,000 and £175,000, "and we'll aim to produce around 800 of them a year. That should more than double our overall sales." Although Robertson wouldn't be drawn on speculation that the new Roller would share mechanicals with the next BMW 7-series (which are also likely to have formed the basis of the BMW CS Concept, also on display at Shanghai), he did feel the need to point out that the car "will be unmistakably a Rolls-Royce."The new Rolls-Royce is expected to be shown in 2009 before going on sale in early 2010.

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