Rolls-Royce Dawn Black Badge

Scope of this guide

This guide is scoped to the Rolls-Royce Dawn Black Badge, the four-seat convertible with the tuned 6.6L twin-turbo V12 petrol engine, 593 bhp and 840 Nm, sent to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic gearbox, and sold from 2017 until Dawn production ended in 2023. It is not a guide to the standard Dawn, which has its own entry in our catalogue with 563 bhp and less torque, to the Wraith or Ghost Black Badge cars, or to the Spectre. Where the standard car differs we say so below, because a listing that says only "Dawn" or "Black Badge" can describe either car, and early advertisements sometimes mix the two.

We have not driven this model for this article. Everything here comes from three cited sources: the Rolls-Royce newsroom release that marked the end of Dawn production on 2 May 2023, PistonHeads' launch report of 28 June 2017, and the government recall checker. We also read the evo launch report of the same day, a OneShift article on the launch, two Carscoops articles, Wikipedia and a specification database, and we flag every point that rests on them. Where sources disagree we say so instead of quietly picking one. This guide gives no prices and is not a valuation.

The figures at a glance

• Engine: 6.6L twin-turbo V12 petrol, 6592 cc, mounted at the front. Wikipedia names the engine family as the BMW N74. The manufacturer pages we read do not, so treat that as unconfirmed by the maker.
• Power: 593 bhp. Rolls-Royce's own wording is that the engine was tuned to deliver an extra 30 bhp over the standard Dawn, and evo and OneShift both print 593 bhp. Carscoops and Wikipedia print 601 PS for the same output. Our check agrees: 593 x 1.01387 is about 601 PS. PistonHeads rounds it to 600 hp. The peak is quoted at 5,250 rpm by Wikipedia.
• Torque: 840 Nm, which Rolls-Royce's release states and which converts to about 620 lb ft (840 divided by 1.3558). Wikipedia prints 841 Nm and a specification database prints 840 Nm over a wider rev band, so quoted rpm figures vary by source.
• 0-100 km/h: 4.9 seconds, from Carscoops and a specification database. Carscoops also prints 4.8 seconds for 0-60 mph, while PistonHeads prints 4.9 seconds for 0-60 mph. The sources do not agree on which speed the 4.9 seconds belongs to, so treat it as a manufacturer claim rather than a tested figure. A true 0-62 mph time is a little longer than a 0-60 mph one.
• Top speed: 250 km/h, electronically limited. PistonHeads and Carscoops both give 155 mph, which is the same limit.
• Drive: rear-wheel drive. Rolls-Royce's release in our sources does not use the phrase, but a specification database and Wikipedia both describe a front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout. One site we saw lists a different drive layout, which we treat as an error.
• Gearbox: eight-speed ZF automatic, with revised shift mapping according to OneShift. Wikipedia names the unit as the ZF 8HP.
• Kerb weight: about 2,560 kg, from a specification database and Wikipedia for the Dawn generally, so it is not a Black Badge measurement.

What Black Badge changed

Rolls-Royce added the Black Badge to the Dawn range in 2017, after the Ghost and Wraith, and showed it at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. PistonHeads says it answers the needs of a younger, more dynamic patron. The changes go beyond paint. According to PistonHeads, evo and OneShift, the engine was tuned for the extra power, the transmission and throttle were remapped for a more urgent response, the steering rack was quickened with better feedback, the brakes were enlarged, and suspension settings and components were revised for flatter cornering. OneShift says the front discs are one inch larger in diameter. There is also a new exhaust with a low, bass-baritone note, and OneShift describes a button that makes it louder.

The visible changes are darker. The car has deep black paint finished by hand in multiple layers of lacquer, a black canvas roof (the only roof offered, according to a Gulf Times report of the press release), a black leather rear deck, and black chrome for the Spirit of Ecstasy, grille, exhaust tips and boot trim. Inside, evo describes black leather with Mandarin orange highlights and aluminium threads bonded in carbon fibre. None of these is a reason to buy or reject a car, but they tell you what a correct example should look like when you stand in front of it.

Body, roof and seating

The Dawn is a full four-seater. Rolls-Royce's release says it offered comfortable, individual seating for all four occupants, and it describes a fabric roof that works in what the company calls the Silent Ballet. The catalogue previously stored a "4/5 seater" body style, but our source says four seats, so we changed it to a four-seat convertible. Rolls-Royce also says about 80 per cent of the panels were unique to the Dawn, which suggests that body repairs may need Dawn-specific parts, although we found no source on parts supply.

The release calls the Dawn the quietest convertible in the world with its roof closed. We have not tested that claim, but a roof that has lost its seals or has a slow cycle is worth noticing on a viewing. Operate the roof several times, with the car stationary and the engine running, and listen for new noises.

How many were built and when it ended

We have no production figure for the Black Badge, so our catalogue leaves the count empty. The newsroom release says only that the Dawn was the best-selling drophead in the brand's history and that the very last Dawn was built at Goodwood. It was published on 2 May 2023, and it gives no total. The Black Badge entered the range in 2017 and Dawn production ended in 2023, which is how we arrive at 2017 to 2023. A specification database shows an open-ended 2017 start and lists model years into 2026, which we do not read as a production date.

Running costs and economy

We found no published servicing schedule or parts price list for this car, and we do not guess one. Rolls-Royce's release does give fuel and emissions figures for the Black Badge Dawn: 371 g/km of CO2 and 17.3 mpg (16.3 litres per 100 km) on the NEDC combined cycle, and about 380 to 382 g/km and 16.7 to 16.9 mpg on the WLTP combined cycle. We read that page through a summary and some of its ranges appear in reverse order, so check the printed figures. In practice, a 6.6 litre twin-turbo V12 in a car of about 2,560 kg uses a lot of fuel, and the larger brakes, tyres and wheels are consumables. Ask for evidence of tyre age and wear, and for any record of disc and pad replacement.

What to check before buying

• Confirm the car really is a Black Badge and not a standard Dawn dressed up. The Black Badge has 593 bhp and 840 Nm. A search result on PistonHeads showed a 2017 Dawn listing quoting 563 bhp, which is the standard figure, so check the specification against the chassis number with a Rolls-Royce dealer.
• Ask for the full service history, including any engine, transmission and exhaust work, since the car was tuned and remapped over the standard Dawn.
• Inspect the black paint for swirl marks and polishing damage, and the black chrome for flaking or discolouration. Black finishes are demanding to repair evenly.
• Operate the roof repeatedly, check the seals, the rear deck leather and the interior threads for wear.
• Check the front brakes, the enlarged discs and the wheels for kerb damage.
• Test the exhaust modes and listen for leaks or rattles.
• Get a specialist inspection from a Rolls-Royce dealer or an independent with V12 experience.
• Run the registration through the recall check described below.

Recalls and the DVSA check

We did not run the government checker, because it needs a registration number and we are not looking at a specific car. The page says the free service shows whether a manufacturer has recalled a vehicle for a serious safety problem, and that for cars it needs the registration number, or the manufacturer, model and year of manufacture if you do not have one. It says non-safety recalls are not shown and that the manufacturer will contact the owner directly. We found no recall notice for the Dawn Black Badge in any source we read, and absence from our sources is not a clean bill of health. Ask a dealer whether any open campaign applies to the chassis number.

About the photograph

The picture at the top of this page shows a black 2018 Dawn Black Badge with its roof closed, photographed at the Salon Prive show in 2020 and used under a free licence from Wikimedia Commons. We blurred the number plate and cropped and resized the image. Photographs do not prove specification, so use it only to see the shape and the black trim.

Verdict

The Dawn Black Badge in this guide is a four-seat convertible with 593 bhp, 840 Nm, a claimed 4.9 seconds to 100 km/h, a 250 km/h limiter and rear-wheel drive. It is a heavy, quiet, open V12 touring car with extra power, sharper steering and a darker look than the standard Dawn, built until 2023. Buy on condition, specification proof and history instead of headline numbers, treat the performance figures as claims, and use a Rolls-Royce dealer to confirm that the car is a genuine Black Badge. We have not driven it, so use the sources and a proper inspection to decide.