1957 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud LWB

Lot details
Registration No: VAS 465
Chassis No: ALC8
Mot Expiry: July 2006

There was a small but select group of owners who found the standard wheelbase Silver Cloud I chassis (be it in Standard Steel Saloon or coachbuilt guise) somewhat lacking in space and presence, Crewe introduced a lengthened variant in Autumn 1957. Given that their 'Bentley 9' chassis had been conceived as a modular design (and indeed would underpin everything from the Cloud / S-series to the Phantom V / VI), the four and a half inch stretch that this entailed was easily accommodated. Equipped with the same coil-sprung independent front suspension, live rear axle and hydraulic drum brakes as its lesser siblings, the LWB chassis also shared their 4.9 litre straight six engine and four-speed hydramatic automatic gearbox. Available exclusively to coachbuilt special order, just 122 of the 2,360 Cloud 1s made were LWB cars. Of these 122, 86 were bodied as elongated facsimiles of the Standard Steel Saloon by Park Ward, leaving just 36 to receive truly individualistic coachwork courtesy of Hooper and James Young. Styled by AF McNeill, the ten James Young LWB aluminium-bodied cars were noted for their understated elegance and purity of line. Blessed with a far lighter / airier glasshouse, shallower swage line and less bulbous wings, the James Young LWB Touring Limousine conspired to look both lower slung and more imposing than the factory offerings. Finished in Royal Garnet with beige leather upholstery, this particular right-hand drive example is stated to have had just two owners from new. First supplied to Swiss industrialist Hugo Frey, it remained in his possession until 1993 when it was bought by a well-known Swiss collector. Reported to have covered just 67,000 documented kilometres (41,000 miles) in the last 48 years, it was apparently treated to a "bare metal repaint in 2004" but is otherwise described by the vendor as being " totally original, never deteriorated, never restored". Benefiting from factory power assisted steering, electric division and picnic tables, it is currently UK registered. Undoubtedly a "rare and special" Rolls-Royce, it is offered for sale with MOT certificate valid until July 7th 2006, historic class (free) road tax until July 2006 and "full toolkit" (including "unused small tools").