Lights out for Rolls' Spirit Of Ecstasy in EU

LONDON: Rolls-Royces car owners in the European Union are barred from having an illuminated Spirit Of Ecstasy on their bonnets.

New EU light pollution regulations state they contribute to "light pollution."

The owners would have to remove the optional accessory and replaced it with an unlit version.

"In February 2019, we sent our dealers a bulletin saying we were removing the option of an unlit Spirit of Ecstasy. It was no longer to be sold to customers. It came off the options list," a Rolls-Royce spokesman told The Daily Mail.

"Sadly, we are telling our customers that we will by law have to disconnect their Spirit of Ecstasy."

Rolls-Royce said owners would be refunded the price of the option, which would then be replaced with a silver-plated Spirit of Ecstasy.

Rolls-Royce owners outside EU countries need not take down their illuminated mascot if they have it.

The latest model change is the new Ghost Extended announced last month. It is based on Rolls-Royce’s proprietary all-aluminium spaceframe that underpins every new Rolls-Royce model.