1933 Rolls-Royce Phantom II
No not the new Phantom Series II, but the original
By Shahzad Sheikh
Whilst on the press trip for the new Rolls-Royce Phantom Series II – read the review here – we got an opportunity to get a close look at this beautiful 1933 Phantom II.
Like today’s Phantom Series II, the 1930-1935 car was an updated version of Phantom I of 1925. It got a new chassis – long wheelbase though – and revised engine and transmission. The cars all have majestic hand-built coachwork bodies, but you can certainly identify them as Phantom II cars from the size and sheer presence of the car, much like today’s version. Although there was a ‘Continental’ version with a shorter wheelbase and stiffer springs.
It was huge, heavy, with a hefty price tag, but was the last of Rolls-Royce’s 40/50 hp models. It used a 7.7-litre straight-six engine with a new crossflow cylinder head producing about 120bhp, and bolted directly to a four-speed manual transmission. It could get up to 148kph and do 0-92kph in 19.4 seconds.
They built about 1700 of these and the cars were known for its exquisite looks, over-engineered and reliable components and of course the sheer style and prestige of it.
The Phantom has appeared in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) and the 1964 movie, The Yellow Rolls-Royce – the story is like an automotive version of Black Beauty. Depending on condition, bodywork and provenance, Phantom IIs are worth between $300,000-400,000. Although in late 2010, a one-off 1934 edition with saffron ochre and polished aluminium bodywork by Thrupp and Maberley, ordered by the Maharaja of Rajkot, dubbed ‘Star of India,’ was sold for $850,000.