Lot 056: 1927 ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM I OPEN TOURER

By 1925, the Rolls Royce Silver Ghost had been upstaged by a younger generation of more technically advanced luxury cars. The glory days of the 1913 Alpine Trials had long passed and both F. Henry Royce and RR sales manager Claude Johnson felt the need to produce a new claimant to the title 'best car in the world'. Just as the competition between car manufacturers was becoming increasingly fierce so that between rival coachbuilders had intensified correspondingly. With the arrival of each faster, more powerful chassis came the opportunity to construct ever more lavish, sophisticated coachwork. To ensure that their cars could be fitted with the finest bodies in the world, Rolls Royce introduced the 'New Phantom'. While, its tapered channel-section chassis, four-speed manual transmission, supple springing (semi-elliptic front, cantilever rear) and ingenious gearbox driven servo assisted four wheel brakes owed much to its predecessor, the Phantom's 7668cc engine was all new. Quoted as being an impressive thirty three per cent more powerful than the Ghost's unit, it featured overhead valves set in a detachable cylinder head, two cylinder blocks with three cylinders each, aluminium alloy crankcase and a massive seven bearing crankshaft. Bore and stroke dimensions of 108 x 139.7mm resulted in abundant torque enabling the Phantom to accelerate from walking speed to approximately 80mph in top gear. According to its accompanying RREC copy chassis cards, 70EF began life as a "London Trials" car. Clad with "Open Touring" coachwork by Hooper & Co, it made the first of many trips to the "Test Department" on 3rd August 1927. Upgraded with a "new type Gear Box G74167" two months later, it appears to have acted as something of a mobile test-bed until it was "sold as it stands, the whole in second hand condition" to James C. Tate of Rye, Sussex on 7th December 1928. Issued with a Works guarantee that same day, it was rebodied many years later as a Fair Weather Tourer by Jacobs. Purchased by Mr Brotherton from renowned Rolls-Royce specialists P. & A. Wood of Great Easton, Essex (its previous registered keepers) in 1997, 70EF has apparently covered little more than a thousand miles during the intervening eight years. Finished in light grey with red leather upholstery, it sports dual side mounted spare wheels, wooden running boards, rear luggage trunk and a split windscreen. Said to be in very good overall condition, this nicely proportioned Phantom is offered for sale with assorted MOT certificates (the last of which expired on March 17th 2005), V5C registration document, RREC copy chassis cards and sundry maintenance invoices from P. Sadlow etc. PLEASE NOTE: This vehicle does not have an MOT.