There’s a super rare Rolls-Royce coupe called the Camargue that you’ve probably never heard of

This Rolls-Royce Camargue in California is a super-rare coupé that you likely never heard of, but it has a wild history attached to it.

It’s a two-door luxury coupé that was somewhat of an experiment, but if anything, it shook the industry when it came out.

Some of those who do remember it might even say it was a ‘failure launch’.

But the Camargue was an essential step towards what Rolls-Royce stands for today.

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The rare Rolls-Royce Camargue you’ve never heard of

In a video on the Jay Leno’s Garage YouTube channel, the owner of a 1983 Rolls-Royce Camargue shared how he got into daily driving the luxury coupé.

Of course, Jay Leno was there talking about it — but so was his expert appraiser, Donald Osborne.

Essentially, all three of them agreed that nobody liked the Camargue when it came out — mostly because of how it looked.

While this model shared some similarities with the Silver Shadow back then, it was a step away from all other Rolls-Royce launches that came before it.

The Silver Shadow is obviously a more popular car, and enthusiasts love restoring it.

The Camargue had a rather divergent design from any other car the automaker had launched.

That’s precisely why loyal fans didn’t appreciate it, but then again, that boils down to personal preference.

The British automaker enlisted designer Paolo Martin from Pininfarina at the time to curate the Rolls-Royce Camargue.

Say what you will about the car, but there’s no doubt that this luxury coupé marked a turning point for the brand as a whole.

Why this luxury coupé was so special

Appearances aside, it was a machine of excellence in every other way.

For instance, the Camargue was the first-ever Rolls-Royce to feature a dual-zone climate control system.

More importantly, as Osborne pointed out, it was a return to British craftsmanship for the automaker.

The very intricate details you see on a modern Rolls somewhat began from the Camargue and transitioned into what something like a more recent Spectre has to offer.

Speaking of the Spectre, it’s the quietest car in the world for good reason, so it’s obviously not an apples-to-apples comparison.

All Camargues were also hand-built, with two leaving the factory per week.

Speaking of painting, each Rolls-Royce is hand painted, and they’ve all been hand-painted by the same expertly trained person.

Only 531 examples exist since its launch in 1975, and you may even find some for sale today.

That will cost you a good chunk of money, though — because even a not-so-liked piece of history gets points for rarity.

Granted, the rarest Rolls-Royce ever is the Celestial Phantom, but who’s comparing?