We all know how meticulously each Rolls-Royce luxury car is produced. The company utilizes the highest quality materials, and its craftsmanship is unmatched. Speaking of craftsmanship, did you know that the coachlines on the exterior of all Rolls-Royce cars are done by a single person at the company’s Goodwood factory in England? Well, reportedly, this particular man is paid approximately Rs 70 lakh for each 5m coachline that he hand-paints.
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Recently, a video showed how this Rolls-Royce craftsman is paid more than a majority of employees for drawing a single line. This video comes courtesy of Ironwill on their page. It starts by introducing the Rolls-Royce employee, Mike Court, who is the man responsible for hand-painting each coachline optioned by buyers of these luxury cars.
It explains that he gets around Rs 70 lakh (approximately) for drawing these lines. The video also goes on to explain that even a tiny mistake by Mike can cause the company to fully repaint the vehicle. This is because the coachline is painted onto the vehicle after the entire car is painted.
Mike Court: The man behind iconic Rolls-Royce coachlines
As surprising as it may be, Mike Court is currently the only person in the world who can paint these coachlines on Rolls-Royce cars. He joined the company back in 2003 when the Rolls-Royce manufacturing facility at the Goodwood plant was inaugurated.
Since then, he has been solely responsible for painting the pinstripes on the exterior of the cars from the brand. Now, you may be wondering: why is this man’s job so important that he is the only one in the world to do it? Also, can’t his work be replicated by a machine?
Well, the answer to this is that his work is entirely freehand, and he has spent years perfecting his craft. Also, there is no machine that can achieve the effect of hand-painting, and because of this, it is very hard for any person or machine to replace him.
These coachlines are painted onto a Rolls-Royce after the buyer asks for this option. Court starts these coachlines from just behind the headlights on either side and then continuously paints till the taillights in a single stroke. Generally, these lines are 5m long.
However, in cars like the Phantom VIII EWB, these lines extend to 6m. Also, Mike Court can custom paint flowers, horse heads, and initials requested by owners. For each of these additions, buyers have to pay extra, and the cost depends upon the complexity of the job.
What tools does he use?
To hand-paint the coachline on each vehicle, Mike Court uses very fine brushes made out of a squirrel’s hair. This is because squirrel hair brushes do not fray and are very precise. As stated, these lines are drawn in a single stroke. To achieve this feat, he sometimes adds a thin line of tape over the car and wears a fingertip glove to slide it easily.
Are these coachlines worth it?
Well, the answer to this is very subjective. For some people, spending such huge amounts on painting a thin line on the exterior of a vehicle will not make sense. However, for the people who buy a Rolls-Royce and want to set their cars apart from the rest, paying such high prices is not a big deal.
The post This Man Gets Paid 70 Lakh For Every Rolls Royce Car He Hand Paints first appeared on Cartoq.
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