Innehållsförteckning för Issue 45 - Nov/Dec 2024 från Rolls-Royce & Bentley Driver

Although we still have another issue of Rolls-Royce & Bentley Driver set to be published before the end of the year, the one that you’re reading right now is dated November/December thanks to the quirks of the publishing industry – which means it’s the final one to feature a 2024 cover date. So, with that in mind, we thought we’d end this year with a bang, bringing you a 132-page special issue that’s a guaranteed treat for anyone with an interest in Rolls-Royce history. It's 120 years since the first meeting of the Honourable Charles Stewart Rolls and Frederick Henry Royce at the Midland Hotel, Manchester. It was a meeting that almost didn’t happen, yet it was one that would ultimately lead to the creation of the world’s best known…

A Bentley Continental GT race car has been unveiled by the Bentley Drivers Club with a view to launching a new affordable one-make race series specifically for these models. The 650bhp racer has been conceived by the BDC in conjunction with motorsport specialists M-Sport, and was officially unveiled at the club’s annual race meeting at Silverstone in August. Designed to be driven on both the road and the racetrack, the GT was developed over a two-year period and is said to offer enthusiasts “easy access to budget-level competition”. The racing special is based on a 2010 Continental GT Speed, and features lowered suspension, modified front cambers, a bespoke race exhaust, front/rear brake cooling ducts and a standard ECU unit. It runs on bespoke 20-inch Oz M-Sport race wheels with Pirelli…

UP FRONT NEWS AND VIEWS The 13th Concours of Elegance, held over three days at London’s Hampton Court Palace in September, saw success for a number of superb Rolls-Royce and Bentley gems. Over 14,000 guests enjoyed an incredible display of privately owned road and competition motor cars spanning over 100 years of automotive history. The Best in Show winner - uniquely chosen by the Concours car owners themselves - was a stunning 1937 RollsRoyce Phantom III Convertible (chassis number 3CP18) featuring American-built coachwork by JS Inskip. In the decades classes, a 1927 Bentley 3 Litre Boat Tail Speed Model - making its first public appearance in 60 years after undergoing a three-year painstaking restoration - took the 1920s trophy, while a ‘31 Bentley 8 Litre Saloon by Freestone & Webb…

Send an email to rrb.ed@kelsey.co.uk or write to: The Editor, Rolls-Royce & Bentley Driver, Kelsey Publishing Ltd, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Yalding, Kent, ME18 6AL CORNICHE AMBITIONS The 1982 Corniche that adorned the front cover of your last issue [Sept/Oct] was what prompted me to buy the magazine, as a soft-top Corniche from the early ‘80s is my idea of automotive heaven. I remember watching this particular car on TV, driven by Oz Clarke and James May, so it was a lovely surprise to see it in your magazine, with seven pages devoted to it. A Corniche of that age is my ultimate, as it’s ‘modern’ enough to have benefited from the various upgrades that occurred during the 1970s, but it’s old enough not to have become overly…

In the July/August issue of RR&BD (The Final Page), you pondered the question of which marque has the best custodian: Rolls-Royce with BMW or Bentley with VW. I have to say - and it pains me to do so - that the powers-that-be at BMW have consigned the book on style and elegance to the dustbin. I have tried to find some redeeming features with the new generation of Rolls-Royces, but I cannot… which is such a shame. However, to me the latest Bentleys do have a degree of style and elegance, contrasting with the harsh and almost brutish Rolls-Royce look. So, VW is the finest custodian in my humble opinion. Stephen Williams Croydon, Surrey What do other readers think? As ever, your letters and emails on this subject are…

A variety of magnificent Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars took prime position at Salon Privé on Saturday, August 31st, claiming the stunning and grandiose Great Court at Blenheim Palace as their home for the day. The Great Court is offered to one or two prestigious car clubs each year at Salon Privé, and for 2024 - which celebrates 120 years since Rolls and Royce first met - it was the RREC that had the privilege of parking in this glorious space to display no fewer than 76 club cars. Members travelled from near and far to attend, with participants representing 10 of the 18 UK sections, including Central Southern, Wales and East Anglian. The club cars on display were similarly varied, the oldest being a 1913 Silver Ghost, and the newest…

The Continentals use air suspension all round, and one thing we’d always noticed with our Flying Spur was that it seemed a little nose-down in attitude. Although this imparts a rakish stance, we’ve never been sure it’s quite right. Research reveals that the official ride height for the Flying Spur is 405mm front and 404mm rear (both +/- 3mm), measuring from the middle of the wheel centre cap to the centre of the wheelarch. This is measured with the engine running, nobody inside the car, and with doors, bonnet and bootlid all closed. As expected, our car turned out to be noticeably higher at the rear than the front, with the rear showing 420mm and the front 380mm. Levelling the car up can be done with the laptop, accessing the…

The world’s oldest Bentley T-series, a standard saloon in Shell Grey, has returned to Crewe after 59 years - fully restored as the latest addition to the Bentley Heritage Collection. Chassis number SBH1001 was used in early publicity and featured in many original press reports, following its launch - alongside the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow - at the 1965 Paris Salon de I’Auto. When found under a cover in storage, the car had not run for decades and was missing several key items, including its entire interior. Its significance as the first T-series prompted the decision to recommission it, preserving as much of the original car as possible. Mike Sayer, head of the Bentley Heritage Collection, explains: “The T-series is one of the final two pieces of the puzzle to complete…

Any example of HJ Mulliner’s S-series Flying Spur of the late 1950s and early ’60s is a desirable machine, these hand-built four-doors being as superbly crafted as they were stylish. They’re among the most sought after coachbuilt cars of their era, and usually attract plenty of interest when they come to market. The example shown here, however, is particularly fascinating. Chassis number BC109CZ was built in 1962 on the S2 Continental chassis, finished in special order (and very eye-catching) Light Green with Champagne hide upholstery. The original owner, a Mr H Green, then kept the car for the best part of 30 years, using it as his daily transport throughout that time – and covering almost 440,000 miles in the process! Mr Green was determined to keep his Bentley in…

I was saddened to read in the Sept/Oct issue of RR&BD of the passing of Ian Cameron. During his time as chief designer at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, he played such an important role in the future direction of the marque and particularly in its complete relaunch via the all-new Phantom of 2003. The quotes you included from motoring journalist Steve Cropley were particularly fascinating. How incredible that Mr Cameron managed to sneak him into the company’s top secret design studio at the end of 2000 - armed only with a notebook - to give him a glimpse of how the new Phantom would look, so far ahead of its official launch. I can’t think of a better example of trust between two real gentlemen. Donald Fox Via email…

The early years of motoring saw numerous trials and challenges to prove the durability of the motor car, one of the most torturous being the Alpine Trials of 1910-on. Rolls-Royce built upon its reputation in 1913 with three modified Silver Ghosts making up an official works team, plus a privately-entered example. The cars performed faultlessly over the 1820-mile course, a route that took in northern Italy and modern day Slovenia, as well as much of Austria. It was a severe test of engine, gearbox and brakes, with the competing cars tackling inclines in excess of 27 per cent. The exceptional performance of the Rolls-Royces drew universal praise, with observers amazed that a group of luxury tourers could climb such steep inclines at high speed.…

Trevor Kells’ superbly restored 1936 4½ Litre Tourer, clothed in eye-catching Vanden Plas bodywork, was named as the overall Concours winner at the BDC’s 76th Summer Concours at Walton Hall country estate, Warwickshire. A delighted Northern Ireland-based Trevor was presented with the prestigious WO Bentley Memorial Foundation Trophy by Kathy Warner, wife of club chairman Mike. The 1961 S2 of Trevor’s fellow club member, James Clough, won the coveted Bentley Motors Trophy as the overall Patina class winner. In all, 17 awards were presented in the various Concours and Patina classes. Past club president Jimmy Medcalf enjoyed the distinction of claiming three awards with his magnificent 1924 3/4½ Litre Vanden Plas: the P&A Wood Trophy (best amateur owner restored car) and the Daks Trophy (Master Class); Jimmy’s car was also…

As mentioned elsewhere, there’s a lot that can go wrong with these cars and some items can be unexpectedly costly. It therefore pays to deal with an expert who has in-depth knowledge of the Continental family, which in this instance was Jonny O’Neill - part of the team at marque specialist Nigel Sandell, based in Isleworth, London. Much of the work involves identifying fault codes and rectifying the relevant issues they bring up, which means finding a company with the necessary equipment as well as the expert knowledge.…

I very much enjoy reading Nigel Boothman’s Staff Cars reports on the ups and downs of recommissioning and running his 1972 Silvar Shadow. He and his partner in the project have undertaken much of the work themselves, referring to specialists as and when necessary, and I’m sure many RR&BD readers will do the same. However, there will be others – like me – who will regularly use the services of companies that are part of the Rolls-Royce and Bentley Specialists’ Association. And in my case, it’s A&S Engineering that I entrust with the servicing and maintenance of my motor car. When I booked the Bentley in, I asked the proprietor, Paul Brown, to carefully check the car over as well as conduct the service. Although I trained as an engineer…

As part of a dramatic overhaul of the BMW Group’s design operations, Anders Warming (pictured) has been replaced by Domagoj Dukec as director of design at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. The move will see Warming instead heading up BMW's global Designworks operation. Warming has steered Rolls-Royce’s design department for the last three years. Cars launched under his stewardship have included the electric Spectre, the refreshed Cullinan and Phantom, and the £20m Droptail. Rolls-Royce CEO, Chris Brownridge, has hailed the “substantial and lasting” impact that Warming has had on the brand, saying that “his wealth of experience and creativity have instructed our future aesthetic direction”.…

This edition’s Auction Tracker covers the full 12-month period from the beginning of September 2023 to the end of August 2024. Trends are assessed on a 12-month rolling basis versus the numbers published two months ago (2m trend) and year-on-year versus September 2022 to August 2023 (12m trend). REMARKABLE RESILIENCE Against the backdrop of a ‘soft’ classic car auction market, I am again delighted to report a stable Rolls-Royce and Bentley auction market, with most key indicators registering amber (±1.5%) or green (1.5%+). Overall spend is up to the second highest I’ve recorded, in spite of the number of motor cars offered for sale dropping (for the first time since I started this column). The number sold has slightly increased, which has resulted in a moderate but encouraging sales rate…

In 1914, Rolls-Royce’s legendary 40/50hp found itself facing its biggest challenge to date. August that year saw Britain becoming embroiled in the First World War, which meant the country was in urgent need of military machinery. The outcome was the Rolls-Royce Armoured Car, a fighting version of the Silver Ghost that easily equaled its civilian counterpart by being the best of its type on the planet. It proved so capable that examples even went on to serve in the Second World War. Along the way, these Silver Ghosts with attitude initially served in France, Germany’s African colonies, Gallipoli, Russia and India. They then excelled themselves in the Middle East, where they enhanced their reputation still further alongside Major Thomas Edward Lawrence - better known as Lawrence of Arabia - during…

Welcome to our eighth technical guide, brought to you via the experts at Flying Spares. Having looked at gas spring sphere replacement on a Rolls-Royce Flying Spur in our last issue, this time we’re back to Bentley. Here we have a rather tasty Continental GTC that’s in need of an all-too-common repair: fitting a new electronic parking brake (EPB) motor. Before we get started, there are a couple of important points to mention. First, as covered previously, whenever you’re working on a GT or GTC, it is vital to put it into ‘Jack Mode’ before lifting. If you don't, the self-levelling system will exhaust its air trying to maintain ride height, risking suspension collapse when lowered. You have been warned! Second, the final part of this job involves initialising the…

PROJECT CAR BENTLEY FLYING SPUR PROJECT CAR Anyone who reads Classics World magazine on a regular basis may already recognise the Bentley featured here; and if you’re an avid follower of the Classics World YouTube channel, you’ll no doubt recognise it as the star of numerous videos, put together by the team with support from our friends at IntroCar. So, as the project draws to a close with the sale of the 2008 Flying Spur project car in question, what’s the experience been like - and what are the conclusions that can be drawn? After an unfortunate experience with a Continental GT that we purchased via a non-specialist dealer, we decided to go the four-door route, with this particular Flying Spur attracting our attention. It had covered a chunky 143,000…

At the end of my previous report, I mentioned the disappointing appearance of the brake warning light for Circuit 1, and how it seemed just as likely to be a dicky switch as a genuine fault. And so it appears to be, because it’s been off more often than on since then, although summer holidays and other little failings have stopped me getting to bottom of it. The first of these failings was almost a scheduled repair, in that I’ve been trying to get around to it for months. But the key part, a new inlet hose, has been riding around Edinburgh and Midlothian in the boot of restoration partner Findlay’s car. When Fin dropped it off, I was keen to fit it as soon as possible and smarten up…

RETAINING THE QUALITY The front cover of this 1975 brochure for the Silver Shadow and Corniche model ranges announced that “a RollsRoyce is still a RollsRoyce”. A decade on from the original Silver Shadow’s introduction, the company insisted that its emphasis on quality and luxury was still very much intact: “The skill, patience and refinement that go into every Rolls-Royce motor car are unchanged”. The pages within the brochure went into great detail about the craftsmanship involved in the production of the Silver Shadow and Corniche, with the latter being “handbuilt by traditional English coachbuilders at Mulliner Park Ward”. Photographs of gleaming new models were included, alongside the assurance that “your Rolls-Royce, by the time you see it, will have the immaculate gleam of the Silver Shadow on the opposite…