Rolls-Royce CEO Tom Purves wants to build an electric-powered Phantom, CAR reports—and apparently he's serious. "Many of our customers do small mileages exclusively in the city," said Purves, who took control of BMW-owned Rolls-Royce in July 2008, in the article. "For these customers, an electric Rolls-Royce would be ideal."

He had this little epiphany after driving an example of the new electric MINI E, saying that he was was "bowled over by it. It is superb: quiet, fast and fantastic fun." In all seriousness, he laid out a good case for why Rolls should get into the EV business.

On the brand: "'We stand for unmatched refinement and you can't get a quieter and less intrusive engine than a well engineered electric motor. Truly, the loudest noise you would hear would be the tick of the clock... We also stand for strong and instant torque—and an electric motor delivers maximum torque instantly. The 'waftability' would be fantastic."

On regulations: "'I can imagine a time when city or state authorities may ban cars from towns that exceed a certain level of CO2," Purves said in the article. "We may need an electric car merely to sell in certain parts of the world."