Rolls-Royce P.L.C. has the right to block the transfer of the Rolls-Royce name to any non-British company.

Beginning in 2003, BMW will get rights to the Rolls-Royce name and its icons.

The right buyer will "license out the Rolls-Royce name, symbol and grille design to more products than Ralph Lauren ever thought of."

After extensive wrangling, Mr. Piech agreed to settle the fight by giving up the Rolls-Royce name after five years.

From 1998 to 2002, BMW would continue to supply engines for the cars and would allow Volkswagen use of the Rolls-Royce name and logo.

BMW, which will get the rights to the Rolls-Royce name starting in January, has developed a muscular new Rolls from scratch.

But when the deal was announced in May, one key element was absent: Vickers did not own the rights to the Rolls-Royce name.

Although the car cannot be judged a success, lessons were learned from the engine design that were later used on the six-cylinder models which helped establish the Rolls-Royce name.

The Rolls-Royce name, which has entered the language as a symbol of uncompromised elegance, is almost as old as the century.

Thereafter, the Rolls-Royce name would be BMW's property and Bentley would belong to Volkswagen.