1935 | Rolls-Royce Phantom II

1935 Rolls Royce Phantom 2 Brewster dual cowl tourer
Chassis Number: 111TA
Regitration Number: BXR2
Off test in March of 1935. This Phantom originally wore a sports Saloon body by Hooper. After being shipped to the USA the current Brewster dual cowl body was installed upon the car which it has now worn for decades. After retuning from the USA the car was for some years in Switzerland in the Rothschild collection prior to being repatriated to the UK in 1996. At this time the car had a massive mechanical restoration to prepare it for an extensive tour of New Zealand & Australia which unfortunately never happened. The car had its odometer zeroed during restoration & now reads just 7163 miles.
It is always a pleasure to handle a car that runs as well as this one. The car starts instantly as indeed it did after a 6 month lay up when we photographed it. The engine runs silently with 25lbs oil pressure at anything over idle. Running it on a the hottest summers day of the year it never went over 70 degrees of temperature, the re-cored radiator being responsible for the excellent cool running. A Tim Payne overdrive is installed giving a 28% reduction in gearing making the car very very long legged indeed & completely at home in modern traffic conditions; indeed this has to be one of the faster Phantoms I have driven with 70MPH easily attainable for cruising.
The Brown exterior paint over black wings is in good order & polishes up well. To the interior is mellow red leather with just the right patina & a set of red carpets. The dash is a beautiful item of highly figured walnut & contains the correct quota of original instrumentation. A large luggage trunk is mounted to the rear of the car containing two fitted suitcases. Rear passengers are protected by a fold out Auster screen. Although no tonneu covers come with the car there are naps already in place for them so a pair of new ones could easily be fabricated.
The Black hood is easily ereceted & has a pleasing rakish line to it when up. Twin side mount spare tyres sit on the running boards. The front of the car is adorned with twin horns, a spotlight & assorted badges to the badge bar. Bumpers are fitted to the front & rear and there is also a rear reversing light.
The best bit about this car it the actual driving experince. The steering is direct & play free. The engine is smooth silent & powerful providing real urge from its just under 8 litre capacity. The overdrive engages from a pull out switch that falls easily to hand on the dash board. This is a big powerful car with a go anywhere feel to it & is in really fine mechanical order having been fully rebuilt. The brakes are pin sharp either the gear box driven servo having been relined & correctly adjusted. Mechanically it wants for nothing & drives superbly.