Lot 317: 1928 Rolls-Royce Phantom I Regent Faux Cabriolet by Brewster & Co.

The new Rolls-Royce Phantom took over from the Silver Ghost in 1925, though the latter continued to survive as an alternative for some while. There was no great difference in the two cars other than the engine; the new chassis followed the lines of the old. The Phantom I was the shortest lived of all Rolls-Royce models, but was very well received at the time. The new 7,668cc engine led The Autocar to report in May 1925 "that the much improved acceleration and maximum speed of 80mph has not been brought about at the expense of the traditional Rolls-Royce silence and smoothness". Braking, steering and suspension were described as being above reproach. A complete car weighed just under three tons unladen, despite which the top speed was not exceeded by many luxury cars of the day. Some 2,200 chassis were built in this country between 1925 and 1929 with the top coachbuilders taking a great fancy to this chassis with some really spectacular cars being the result, such as this particular example, chassis 32 CL. This right-hand drive Derby built chassis was manufactured in England in 1928 and shipped on White Star Lines' SS Celtic on August 25th with the final destination of Brewster & Co of New York. The car was delivered to J J Gray Junior. of 856 Beach Drive North, St. Petersburg, Florida. 32 CL then remained in America until 10 years ago when it was returned to Great Britain and restored by marque specialist Ristes Motor Company with bills totalling £40,000, including, amongst other items, a new cylinder head. As one would expect, the car is presented in very good condition cosmetically as well as mechanically and the current owner drove the car 100 miles non stop on a recent run when it performed faultlessly and the six cylinder engine did not miss a beat. Chassis 32 CL is bodied with the elegant Regent faux cabriolet style coupe bodywork and finished in burgundy with yellow coach stripes and black wings and running boards; it also boasts a Dickie seat accessed by a small door on the off-side enabling four-up motoring with space for luggage on the rear-mounted rack while the interior is very comfortable and finished in tan leather and is in very good order. This car is in excellent condition and is supplied with all relevant paper work including a V5 registration document, a MoT test certificate valid until May 2008 and a large history file detailing work carried out by Ristes.