Rolls-Royce appears to have another one-off model in its sights after parent company BMW filed a trademark for the name “Boat Tail” with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). Rolls-Royce’s long history of building coach-built models is well-established. It hasn’t done a lot of it in recent years, but it did drop quite the surprise last year when it unveiled the Sweptail, a one-off creation that took four years to create. Don’t look now because It’s unclear what Bimmer’s reasons are for filing the trademark, but it likely has something to do with Rolls-Royce.

It’s entirely possible that BMW filed the “Boat Tail” trademark for itself. But the name itself doesn’t really relate to anything the German automaker is doing. It doesn’t even have any connection to anything in its current lineup. It’s also not obviously for MINI because, well, when has MINI ever associated itself with a boat? The most plausible answer is Rolls-Royce, which has a history with the name, most notably the 1929 Phantom VII, a car that was also referred to in that era as the “II Boat-Tail.”

Given that bit of information, I’m willing to bet that BMW filed the “Boat Tail” trademark specifically for Rolls-Royce’s use. Now, I don’t know for certain what Rolls plans to do with the name, but again, there’s a bread trail that leads to the possibility that it could be tied to a new one-off bespoke creation that the British automaker is developing. Rolls doesn’t do one-off builds as often as it used to, but we got a good idea of what it’s still capable of when the automaker unveiled the $12.8-million Sweptail at the 2017 Concorso d’Eleganza in May last year.

The one-off Sweptail was a masterclass in bespoke one-off creations. Not only was it inspired by luxury motoring and racing yachts, but it was also expressed in a way elevated it to the top of its own social sphere. It was the epitome of Rolls-Royce at the highest of levels. Rolls-Royce even priced it to reflect its exclusivity. After the Sweptail’s debut, Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Müller-Otvös even expressed interest in building more one-off models like the Sweptail, saying that one of the company’s future goals, in the long run, is “to go even more bespoke.”

Well, if Rolls-Royce is going to start anywhere, it might as well be the name of its next one-off creation. It just so happens that parent company BMW may have already covered that base. If the Boat Tail is, in fact, the next one-off creation to come out of Goodwood, there’s no telling what kind of lavishness Rolls-Royce has up its sleeve. I am confident, though, that whatever Rolls is planning, it’s going to be a long time before we get to see the Boat Tail in the flesh. Then again, some of the best things in life are worth waiting for.

Here’s to hoping the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail is one of them.

References

Read more BMW news.

Read more Rolls Royce news.

Read our full review on the 2018 Rolls-Royce Sweptail.