1936 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Sport Saloon

Gurney Nutting Coachwork At its Finest
Frederick Henry Royce made his first car, a 'Royce,' in his Manchester factory in 1904. He met Charles Stewart Rolls on May 4th of that year, and the pair agreed to a deal where Royce would manufacture cars, to be sold exclusively by Rolls. A clause was added to the contract stipulating the cars would be called 'Rolls-Royce.' The company, formed in 1906, moved to Derby in 1908. The Silver Ghost (1906-1925) established the company's early reputation. It had a six-cylinder engine; 6173 cars were built. In 1931, the company acquired rival car maker Bentley, which could not weather the Great Depression.

The Phantom III was the final large early Rolls-Royce. Introduced in 1936, it replaced the Phantom II. The III was distinguished by its unique all-aluminum V12 engine. The new 7.3-liter twelve was a pushrod engine with overhead valves, hydraulic lifters and a single camshaft. Another major feature was an independent suspension in front, based on a General Motors design. This coil spring-based suspension with adjustable ride control was complemented by a carryover semi-elliptical spring unit in the rear. A four-speed manual transmission with synchromesh on gears 2,3, and 4 was used. A 4-wheel servo-assisted brake system was also specified. In total, there were 710 of these great 7,338cc V12's built by 1939. As was the company's tradition, only the engine and chassis were produced by Rolls-Royce. Coachwork of this beautiful Phantom III is by Gurney Nutting Ltd, which also built the famous 1931 land speed record car for Sir Malcolm Campbell, the 'Bluebird.'