7/31/2019 Cars by Rolls Royce: Ghost in Silver Dress
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1906 Silver Ghost (Rolls Royce 40/50 hp)
In 1906, the chasis of 40/50 hp
was produced first at Royce's
Manchester works.
In 1908, production moved to
Derby.
Between 1921 and 1926, the
production was shifted to
Springfield, Massachusetts.
The name Silver Ghostwas given
to the car bearing chassis no.
60551 (registered as AX 201.
After that other 40/50 hp cars
were called by the name. In 1906, Rolls-Royce produced four
chassis for exhibition at the Olympia car show (a
four-cylinder20 hp, a six-cylinder 30 hp, and two examples of a
new car designated the 40/50 hp).
The 40/50 hp was very new, therefore the show cars were not
fully finished, and examples were not provided
to the press for testing until March 1907.
In 1907, Claude Johnson, the Commercial Managing Director of
Rolls-
Royce, ordered a car to be used as a demonstrator by the
company. Itwas the 12
th40/50 hp car, bearing chassis no. 60551 and registered
AX 201 and was painted in aluminium paint with silver-plated
fittings.
The car was named the Silver Ghost to emphasise its
ghost-like
quietness, and a sign bearing this name adorned the
bulkhead.
AX201 was sold in 1908 to a private customer who used it for
his
annual vacation to Italy and recovered by the company in 1948.
Since
then, it has been used as a publicity car and travelled
worldwide.
In 1989, the car was restored by SC Gordon Coachbuilders Luton,
and P&A Wood, London, UK. It is now owned
by Bentley Motors.
During World War I, development of the Silver Ghost was
suspended, but the chassis and engine were supplied
for use in a range ofRolls-Royce Armoured Cars.
Despite improvements brought in the performance of the 40/50 hp,
by the early 1920s, it got strong
competition. Its previous superiority vanished. The decline in
sales made the company decide to launch its
replacement in 1925 as the New Phantom.After this, older 40/50
hp models were called Silver Ghosts to avoid
confusion.
AX201 at Cat and Fiddle Hill during the
Scottish Reliability Trial 1907
