Vehicle Description
West Coast Classics are proud to present an absolutely stunning and
extraordinarily rare 1963 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III Drophead
Coupe factory LHD amp; coachbuilt by H.J. Mulliner - a very rare
original southern California 'Black License Plate ' car and the
very collectible LHD model with factory coachwork by H.J Mulliner -
1 of only 27 true Mulliner's ever built!The car will be sold with
its certified factory copies of RR construction and test records
from the factory showing an original sales date of 11/5/1963 for
delivery to J.S. Inskip Inc Rolls Royce of New York..In a striking
'Regal Royal Burgundy' color with all new reupholstered leather
interior - 32K original miles amp; equipped with factory power
windows amp; original air conditioning equipment amp; rare
altimeter amp; dashboard mounted tachometer by Mulliner to replace
the left side cubby box, original AM radio, rear folding picnic
tables, white wall tires and rare 'Kneeling Lady' mascot.The car
had one southern California owner from 1968-2010 - original sales
amp; delivery documents, handbooks, boot cover, spare wheel amp;
heavy tools amp; small toolbox. Unique opportunity for Rolls
collector/enthusiast to purchase not only 1 of the 27 factory LHD
true coachbuilt H.J. Mulliner cars, but also a superb southern
California car since new that still drives as good as when new and
boasting only 32K original miles! This is an absolutely stunning
and exceptionally rare example in truly remarkable condition, both
mechanically and cosmetically, a true 1963 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud
III V8 Drophead Coupe by Mulliner. Only 27 of these original left
hand drive coachbuilt cars were ever built by H.J Mulliner of
Willesden, London, with very few of any of these cars now known to
still exist today. These completely hand built, factory left hand
drive Mulliner's are not to be confused with one of the RHD Silver
Cloud non-factory or later Silver Cloud conversions by a multitude
of entities!The third and final Silver Cloud was introduced in 1962
and a precious few of these cars were chosen by Rolls to be taken
from the standard steel production line and sent to the renown
Rolls Royce appointed coachworks of H.J Mulliner of Willesden,
London to be adapted by hand into drophead coupes. These were to be
the iconic 27 Mulliner Drophead coupes, by far the most expensive
and exclusive car of it's day.In the years to come, seeing the
desirability and demand of these few Mulliner's, other
coachbuilders were to try and emulate what Mulliner had originally
achieved with the Silver Cloud, but as any enthusiast will attest,
although there are some very fine Silver Cloud non-factory
conversions out there, none of these will ever prove as desirable
or as well built as an original hand built Mulliner, and all fall
short of these original 27 cars in terms of value, prestige and
historic importance.This particular example was owned by it's long
time southern California owner from 1968-2010 and is an original
'Black Plate' California car since new. It was purchased by only
its second owner on 6/3/1968 from 'Peter Satori Co Ltd' of
Pasadena, CA with documentation available, and owned until sold by
his estate to only it's third southern California owner in 2010. It
was serviced and maintained throughout the years at the renown
independent Rolls Royce specialists 'Vanderploeg Motors' and later
at 'Scott Motors' of West Los Angeles.It has rare options of the
altimeter and tachometer, air conditioning, 'Sundym' reflective
tinted glass, White sided tubeless tires, power brakes and power
windows. Finished in an exceptionally striking color of 'Regal
Burgundy' with a newly upholstered 'Tan' color Connolly hides
interior. The original seats are truly still as comfortable as the
day they were new, firm and supportive and recently reupholstered.
The carpeting and the car's original convertible top and mohair
headliner have also been restored with no expense spared and the
car show superb maintenance and care from its three long time
owners.For those who are unfamiliar, the Bentley S3 and the Silver
Cloud III were absolutely identical with both vehicles hand built
at the Rolls Royce factory in Crewe, England with the only
differences being their nameplates, radiator and mascots. The
Silver Cloud III was introduced in 1962 and lasted until 1965.
Little changed externally from the Silver Cloud II with the same
improved 6.2 L V8 Series II engine from the original Series I but
performance was greatly improved though in the new upgraded Series
III models with the top speed raised to 183 km/h (114 mph), with
the main improvements being in acceleration and torque and the
inclusion of larger SU carburetors. Separate front seats now
replaced the bench seat and there was more legroom in the rear.
Power steering had already become standard with the Series II but
electrically operated windows and air conditioning were now
available as an option.In autumn 1962 the Series II production cars
were given a facelift and the Silver Cloud III and Bentley S3 were
introduced. The most obvious visual feature was the twin headlamp
arrangement in what was virtually an unchanged body style. Four
headlamps provided more illumination and made it easier for
Rolls-Royce to pass the latest North American lighting regulations.
Also this layout had been chosen for the next generation Silver
Shadow and this provided a convenient way of bridging the visual
gap between the old and the new. The side lamps and flashers were
combined and mounted in the noses of the front mudguards: the
earlier cars had separate side lamps on the top of the mudguards
and used the fog lamps also as flashers. Internally, individual
front seats became standard and there was some reshaping of the
rear seats. The heating/ ventilation system was upgraded, there
were extra radio controls and a number of other such details were
improved. The engine had a new compression ratio of 9.0:1; the
crankshaft was hardened and there was extra power assistance for
the steering.This car boasts many surprisingly still all original
components which are a testament to its low mileage and
fastidiously kept and obviously climate controlled storage and
garaging. The features still intact include its original leather
wrapped rear leaf springs, small tool box and spare wheel with all
it's original heavy tools; inspection lamp, spare wheel inflation
trap amp; clamp, tire pump, wheel brace amp; jack, still unused and
in their rightful place in the trunk.The car has been maintained in
recent years at the renown independent Rolls Royce amp; Bentley
specialists 'Independent Rolls Royce' of Beverly Hills, California,
where the car received a recent full service and this long time
southern California family owned and cherished and always garaged
car has obviously had no accidents and is a completely rust free
example - the floor boards, trunk and all the typical rust-prone
areas are completely solid and rust free having always been kept in
climate controlled southern California storage!The beautiful and
highly striking paint color of 'Regal Burgundy' exterior paint is
in exceptional condition and extraordinarily striking with only
very minor imperfections only noticeable upon very close
inspection! The car has matching Rolls Royce hubcaps and as
previously stated all new leather hides, top and carpeting.
Connolly leather is legendary for being exclusively used in Rolls
Royce and other high end British cars and came from unfenced cows
which produced unblemished hides. All the chrome work including the
front Rolls Royce grille and bumpers is absolutely outstanding. The
original burlwood dashboard and the original mohair headliner have
also been restored.Obviously always garaged with no accidents or
damage history and o...for more information please contact the
seller.
