Rolls Royce vintage cars
Rolls-Royce Bentley S3
The interaction of discreet luxury and mechanical perfection,
which characterize the post-war models of Rolls-Royce and Bentley, can only be fully understood if we look at the history of this outstanding enterprise and the personages which dominated its first 28 years.
The development of the Rolls Royce under Ernest Hive as plant manager
On 22 April 1933, a Saturday, Sir Frederick Henry Royce died at an age of 70 years. Before his death he had supervised the making of a Phantom III with a V12 engine – the last Rolls-Royce which had been developed without consideration of the costs. The influence of the company founder was so overwhelming that it took 4 years until the company began to think how the automobiles were actually developed and produced. Fortunately the company’s philosophy changed with the employment of Ernest Hives as plant manager in 1936, but the full effect was only felt when production was taken up again after World War II in 1946.
During the 30 years between the work on his first car in 1903 in Manchester and his death 1933, the former electrical engineer left his imprint of perfection on every model, from the first 10hp Royce built 1904 to the Phantom III.
Henry Royce inspects the work on a 10hp
die Arbeit an einem 10hp
When Royce, whose father had a mill in the country, and the Hon. Charles Stewart Rolls, third son of Lord Llangattock, met each other probably on 4 May 1904, the meeting was concluded with the setting-up of the enterprise Rolls-Royce. The car salesman with the best contacts sold the models built by Royce in Hulme, a district of Manchester. In that year, Claude Johnson, who had been employed by Rolls, joined the two founders and became the „hyphen“ between Rolls and Royce.
Johnson had a cultural and artistic vein, combined with a talent for organisation and administration. He would lay the foundation for the brand’s myth, which mostly based on the 40/50 hp with its seven-litres-six-cylinders which has been built from 1906 onward. The car is known today as Silver Ghost. The “Ghost”, built until 1922 as the only model, rose, with its aura of culture, calmness, reliability and beauty, far above all other models of its time. Its impact was so strong that Alfred Harmsworth, owner of a Rolls-Royce and founder of the Daily Mail, could describe it without any doubt as „the world’s best car“.
Like almost all companies at that time, Rolls-Royce produced only the chassis, which were completed by renowned body builders like Barker, Hooper or H.J. Mulliner according to the individual requirements of the customers. These companies produced bodyworks, whose quality complied with the mechanical guidelines. This tradition was maintained until the years between the two wars, so that in 1939 Rolls-Royce was one of the few companies who could afford this costly procedure.
The overwhelming demand of the 40/50hp meant that the company soon had to leave the plant in Manchester which had become too small, and moved into a newly built production site in the Nightingale Road in Derby. This remained the company’s home till 1939. Here they have been building the aircraft engines since 1915.
Charles Rolls at the wheel
of a 30hp from 1906
In the early 20s, the aircraft sector decreased, but the demand for aircraft engines made by Rolls-Royce increased continuously, so that their commercial importance began to surpass the automobiles in the early 30s. The bigger the demand for Kestrel-, Buzzard- and first of all Merlin-engines became, the smaller was the part of the chassis production. 1939, the cars achieved only 6 percent of the company’s profit of £ 1.2 mill.
It is ironic that Charles Rolls, who was an aircraft enthusiast, was killed 1910 in an aircraft accident as the first Englishman. Royce had a severe health problem in 1911 and had to undergo difficult surgery. 1912 he became seriously ill again, but fortunately recovered soon. Nevertheless his health was far from good in the years that followed. However, he reached the age of 70, only due to the care of his nurse Ethel Aubin.
He left Derby and returned only once. After that, he continued his development work in Crowborough, Sussex and settled down in St. Margaret’s Bay in Kent due to the mild climate. Finally 1917, Royce and his team found a new home in West Wittering, 150 miles from the plant, where he resided till his death. From 1912 on – except the war years – Royce and his team consisting of 6 engineers spent the winter months in his villa in Le Canadel on the French Riviera.
The 20hp with Royce as a difficult chief engineer
This development was a hidden blessing, because the perfectionist Royce was a difficult and demanding chief engineer, who could not face the fact that many of his team were unable to comply with his own unattainable standards.
Nevertheless he succeeded to put developments on the road which even equalled the Silver Ghost. 1922 he came out with the 20hp with a 3.1 litre OHV-engine, substantially smaller and cheaper than its predecessor which had to be moved by a driver. The new model was ideal for the not so well-off customers who sat behind the wheel themselves.
The „Twenty“
The „Twenty“ prepared the way for the even more successful 3.6 litre 20/25hp, which came on the market in 1929 and would be the most successful Rolls-Royce in the years between the wars. 1936 followed the 4.2 litre 25/30hp. At that time Rolls-Royce already owned a second brand, having acquired Bentley in 1931. This enterprise had produced a series of impressive sports cars and won the 24 hours of Le Mans not less than five times. The excellent 8 litres, having been put on the market in 1930, however represented a threat for the just introduced Phantom II, and when Napier showed interest in Bentley, Rolls-Royce relentlessly eliminated the potential competitor by buying it.
Silent Sports Car and the range of the great Rolls-Royces
The production was moved to Derby. The 3 ½ litre „Silent Sports Car“ of the year 1933 was a civilised, excellently developed product, which derived from the 20/25hp. Like the 4 ½ litre of the year 1936 based on the 25/30hp.
In the meantime, the range of the big Rolls-Royces had grown steadily, though the demand for these costly automobiles decreased. In 1925, the 7.3 litre „New Phantom“ replaced the Silver Ghost, which was called Phantom I from 1929 retrospectively. 1935, finally, the Phantom III appeared with a 7.3 litre twelve-cylinder engine, which reflected the popularity of such aggregates with the producers of luxury models this side and beyond the Atlantic. As the first product of the Derby plant, the car had an independent front wheel suspension, which, however, could not obscure the fact that there were a lot of technical deficits caused by the hasty start of the series production.
After Royce’s death, the development of the automobiles was moved to Derby in 1933 for the first time after 1911. There it was integrated into the aircraft engine production, so that the engineer could alternate between the projects as required.
