Description
West Coast Classics are proud to present an exceptionally exquisite and very rare example of this 1957 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud I 4. 9L 6 cyl 4 door saloon, with only 2, 238 of these hand built Cloud I cars ever built and with only very few remaining! This particular example is finished in its very striking original 'Shell Gray' with 'Single Deep Red Line' factory color paint with its original factory 'Red' color Connolly hides and which boasts its original Gray Mohair headliner and wood dashboard.
The car will be sold with copies of its original factory build sheets showing the following original factory options:
Left Hand Drive Saloon
Power Assisted Steering
Shell Grey with Single Deep Red Line
Red Hides with Red piping
Grey headcloth & carpet
Speedo in MPH
Dunlop White sided tires
Oil bath air cleaner
UD1782 Headlamps
Horns under the bonnet
Mirror to each front wing
Adaptor for engine heater
Summer thermostat
Winter thermostat
Coat hangers
Cold weather shields over door locks
Colonial springing
Originally exported to Canada and delivered to Rolls Royce of Canada Ltd on 11/ 14/ 1957 with a thick file of all service history back to 1957!
This particular example had the optional power steering and boasts its original spare wheel and tire and electric inspection lamp and charging plug, pressure gauge and tire pump!
The car drives phenomenally well and is a testament to how these extraordinary cars are capable of driving, an absolute pleasure to drive with the ultimate in both grace and power.
The car remains mostly original throughout including its original 'Smiths' radio, African burled walnut wood. An obviously always cherished and garaged example with no accidents and with the floor boards, trunk and all the typical rust-prone areas all rust free and its original rare still leather wrapped rear leaf springs!
The car has a beautiful and highly desirable color combination of seemingly mostly original 'Shell Gray' with 'Single Deep Red Line' exterior paint with matching Rolls Royce hubcaps and its reupholstered original 'Red' leather interior. All the chrome work including the front Rolls Royce grille and bumpers is absolutely and the door panels, dashboard and original mohair headliner remarkably show only very minimal signs of any wear. The car has it's original spare wheel with original jack and factory equipment still located in their rightful place of storage in the trunk compartment.
For those who are unfamiliar, the Bentley 'S' series and the Rolls Royce Silver Cloud series were absolutely identical, with both vehicles hand built at the Rolls Royce factory in Crewe, England from 1955-66, with the only differences being their nameplates, radiator and mascots. The Silver Cloud models were introduced in 1955 with a superbly crafted 'Rubenesque' body shell with the traditional Rolls Royce imposing high grille and headlights whilst hinting at the separate fenders seen on the previous coachbuilt models. The all new body was steel with a simple very rigid steel box section welded together with lightweight aluminum panels for the doors, hood and trunk lid. Equipped with a now legendary inline six cylinder engine, four speed automatic transmission, hydraulic brakes with twin brake master cylinders and independent front suspension, the car could reach 60mph in 13. 5 seconds and had a top speed of over 100mph. This 6 cylinder engine was ultimately considered both smoother and possibly more durable than the later V8 that followed it whilst being both quieter and easier to maintain and today is recognized as a virtually bullet proof engine built by the world's finest mechanical engineers. It remains the quintessential Rolls Royce with enough power to be used on modern roads with a degree of style that only this marque could offer.
Rolls Royce no longer exists as it had for over one hundred years - this is one of the last in the original line of cars built in the legendary Rolls Royce factory in Crewe, England with a quality and craftsmanship that far surpasses that of today's mass produced models with many BMW parts - this is a rare opportunity to own a piece of automobile history, from a time when Rolls Royce was truly building the world's finest motor cars. This increasingly desirable and collectible Silver Cloud I, one of the most desired of the Silver Clouds by enthusiasts with the virtually bullet proof all aluminum 4. 9L 6 cylinder engine and the single head lights - which of note, Rolls Royce purists were appalled with at the time when the later Silver Cloud III's transformation with the dubious redesigned front-end lower hood and radiator with quad front headlamps mounted in oval nacelles - considered a shocking violation of RR tradition - one magazine went so far as to refer to the quad lights as the equivalent to installing a jukebox in Winchester cathedral!
Along with it's tall grill and tall flying lady the Silver Cloud I is an absolute moving work of art from a time when Rolls-Royce and Bentley were arguably building the "Best Cars in the World" at the time of it's production; the craftsmanship and quality of these cars obviously speak for themselves and it is becoming increasingly hard to find any examples at all, let alone any such unabused and rust free examples - with only some 2, 238 Silver Cloud I's built and very few remaining or available for sale you will surely look long and hard to find another in such fine condition.
So buy with confidence, with original factory Silver Cloud drophead coupe convertibles now selling well in excess of $1M, this will no doubt prove a fabulous investment for the astute investor, Rolls Royce enthusiast or British Classic Car Collector or simply one of the finest examples available anywhere of a fully turn key ready example to simply just enjoy and drive for the discerning luxury classic car owner!
