Description
By the time Rolls-Royce was thinking about replacing the ageing Silver Dawn, still partially based on prewar technology, it was of some importance not to irritate the usually rather conservative clientele nor the dozen or so independent coachworks which relied on cars with a separate and sturdy chassis. So, in April 1955, the Silver Cloud, masterly designed by John Blatchley, was presented, still built in the traditional way with separate chassis and coachwork. Of course, there had to be some sort of improvement compared to the Dawn and the new car was not only considerably larger but used a massive box profile frame in place of the U-profiles used previously. Suspension and brakes were brought up to current standards but power still came courtesy of the well-proven inline 6 with 4. 9 litres displacement. Towards the end of 1959, the engine, which had reached its development limit, was replaced by the newly designed V8 with 6. 23 litres displacement and around 200 (non-disclosed!) horsepower, leading to the new designation Silver Cloud II. This model could still be ordered with, - besides the factory saloon coachwork - a number of special designs, one of them being the so-called drophead coupé conversion which, like the standard saloon, was built by H. J. Mulliner. The Silver Cloud II, in this most elegant drophead variant offered here, was ordered on the 31st of January 1961 through Garage de l’Athenée in Geneva for a British gentleman living in Lausanne. Initially planned as a right-hand drive version, it was decided, even before delivery, to fit the car with left hand drive more suitable for use in Switzerland. The coachwork was painted in “steel blue” over “midnight blue”, combined with a blue leather interior. The early history of the noble cabriolet is not known, except that the car was sold to Germany at one stage. There the drophead had seven owners, the last of them commissioning a restoration to original specification in 2008/ 2009. In 2013 the Silver Cloud was acquired by a Swiss enthusiast and brought back to its country of first registration. On the 17th of June 2013, the car received its first Veteran MOT and since then has only been driven around 7’000 kilometres. As can be seen in the documentation available, meticulous care and maintenance was always lavished on the car and therefore the cabriolet currently presents itself in very good overall condition. As one of only 52 H. J. Mulliner-built Silver Cloud II dropheads, this is a very rare occasion indeed to enrich any respectable Rolls-Royce collection. The last Veteran MOT was completed in September 2024.
