Rolls-Royce Muse

Problem / Brief

Developed as the central project of my Master's degree — a study in how autonomy reshapes the driven experience, and whether Rolls-Royce's answer to that question looks like liberation or loss.

Research

The Muse's exterior form was developed from the inside out — the interior floor plan logic drove every proportion decision. References ranged from Rolls-Royce's own coachbuilding heritage to contemporary autonomous vehicle research, tracing the brand's evolution across the pre-war, post-war, BMW and electric eras to ask how the driven experience changes with autonomy.

Iterations

The central design provocation was spatial: in a Level 4 autonomous vehicle, the front passenger seat is an inherited convention, not a necessity. Relocating the driver to a centrally-positioned, forward-facing command position liberates the entire floor plan — achieving 100% usable interior volume versus the 75% efficiency of a conventional luxury saloon layout. Freed from the constraints of combustion, the Muse redefines what a driver's seat can be and what a cabin can become.

Outcome

Specs: 6000mm length, 2000mm width, 1500mm height, 4000mm wheelbase. The Muse is designed for a future where the car is a social statement as much as a transport device — extending the Rolls-Royce customer's existence outside of ordinary time into 2050. Freed from the mass of combustion, the reclaimed front volume becomes a graceful, ceremonial entry point for the centrally positioned driver.

Reflection

Developed across a full academic year at the Royal College of Art, moving from initial concept sketching through to a 1:8 scale physical model exhibited at the RCA's end-of-year show — involving iterative rapid prototyping, digital surface development in Alias and Blender, and final visualisation in VRED and Blender.