Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost (United Kingdom, 1906-1926)

British carmaker Rolls-Royce launched the Type 40/50 hp, later renamed Silver Ghost, in 1907 and produced it until 1926. Rolls-Royce intentionally conceived the Silver Ghost in an effort to compete with the best passenger vehicles that the other car brands were offering at that time. Since then, Rolls-Royce built a long-lasting reputation for its tremendously luxurious models, a tradition that the brand has kept until nowadays.

The production run of the Silver Ghost lasted for about two decades, having been completely suspended in 1926 with 7874 copies built.

Rolls-Royce launched this model in 1907 as the “Type 40/50 hp” and only the first example of that series was originally nicknamed “Silver Ghost” for its silver-coloured paint. Just soon after the car was seen, the press and the public popularized the name and generally called Silver Ghost to all Type 40/50 cars. The first of these cars, however, had been exposed for the first time in 1906 at the London Motor Show.

The Silver Ghost was produced at Rolls-Royce’s new factory in Derby, England, and for at least a few years it held the title of best touring car in the world. The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost was particularly well succeeded amongst the richest and more famous personalities of the society. When the company stopped producing the Silver Ghost, there had been 7874 units made, from which 1701 had been built in the United States (between 1921 and 1926).

The Silver Ghost was released with a front-mounted 7-liter engine, which was replaced in 1910 by a new 7.4-liter unit. This car has its driven wheels placed at the rear and has a 4-speed manual transmission with overdrive on the top gear.

With 48 hp, the Silver Ghost can accelerate up to 50 mi/h (80 km/h).

Body on ladder frame.

Platform

Suspension
Front live axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and rigid rear axle with leaf springs.

Steering

Brakes
The braking system on earlier Silver Ghosts consists on a food pedal connected to a transmission brake. In 1913, two drums were placed on the rear axle, being operated by a hand brake. Then, in 1923, servo-assisted four-wheel brakes became optional.

The couchbuilder Barker designed the Silver Ghost’s open-top body. During the model’s 20-year lifetime, there were four body style editions: Roi-des-Belges Tourer, Wilkinson Tourer, Shapiro Schebera Skiff and Labourdette Skiff.