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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  Collectors’ Cars, Motorcycles & Automobilia
• Sale Date:
  30 Apr 2017 ~ 2.30pm
• Lot #:
  30
• Lot Description:
  1921 ROLLS-ROYCE 40/50HP SILVER GHOST TOURER
  Coachwork by Bradbury of SydneyChassis no: 25JGEngine no: O456L. This vehicle will be sold unregistered.
• Notes:
  The most famous of all motor car marques is most likely that of Rolls-Royce; and the most famous of all cars built by Rolls-Royce is the Silver Ghost. The large six-cylinder Silver Ghost made its first appearance at the 1907 Motor Show and continued in production, with minor changes and improvements until 1925. The Silver Ghost, therefore, encompassed the Edwardian motoring period when designers endeavoured to create a new ‘shape’ for the motor vehicle away from the horseless carriage and on into the first half of the Vintage period. After faultlessly completing the 1913 Alpine Trial – a 14,371-mile drive through some of the toughest mountain terrain – the Silver Ghost had demonstrated such a level of comfort and reliability that critics named it ‘The Best Car in the World’. Its 7,434cc engine featured six cylinders in line, cast in two blocks of three; Bore was 114.3 mm; Stroke 120.7 mm. The gearbox was originally of three forward speeds and reverse, whilst up until 1924, when four-wheel brakes were fitted, brakes were transmission and rear wheels only. Silver Ghosts of this period could be purchased in two wheelbase lengths, standard - 12ft, and long - 12ft 6 ins. Just 6,173 40/50 hp British Rolls-Royce Silver Ghosts were built between 1907 and 1925, though a further 1,703 Silver Ghosts were built between 1921 – 26 in the USA at Springfield, before being replaced by the Phantom I. The tremendous build quality and all round excellence of the Silver Ghost means that they last a long time, yet at the same time the quality of the material used in construction means that they were also attractive to others with vested interests. Whilst it is still possible to find Silver Ghosts it is hard to find examples that have not undergone changes to the original over the intervening years. This standard 12ft wheelbase Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, Chassis 25JG, engine O456L, came off test at Goodwood in early October 1921. It was shipped on the SS Karamea on 22nd October 1921 from London to Dalgety of Melbourne where it was fitted with a touring body by the renowned coachbuilders Waring Brothers, for Mr William Raper, of Melbourne. In 1929, registered as VIC-188-638 it passed from Eric Raper to Mrs E Boyd of ‘Wuurung’ in Camperdown Vic. Around 1934 it had a fabric saloon fitted by another notable Melbourne coachbuilder, Martin & King. At the same time twin carburetors and a column gear-change were fitted. Registration changed several times, VIC-GX-895; VIC or NSW-EY-018; VIC-UC-364 as did its owners and usage: Thorold Gunnerson, Melbourne; as a utility vehicle for W. Campbell of Swan Hill, Vic; in the 1960s as a truck for P.Johnston, Vic; then in the late 1970s/early 1980s re-bodied for Gerald G. McKenna of ‘Annek’, Baynton Vic. as a Bradbury replica of a Smith & Waddington of Sydney tourer, registered VIC-1-058. In the 1990s 25JG was in the hands of Gordon Cooper of Victoria, who sold the car to Peter Crauford c1988/9. Indeed, it was Peter Crauford the President of the Australian chapter of the 20-Ghost Club (the oldest Rolls-Royce club in the world, and dedicated to pre-1940 Rolls-Royce cars) who arranged for the re-bodying of the car on behalf of McKenna by the Sydney coachbuilder Bob Bradbury. Bradbury had built a somewhat similar body for Crauford’s previous Silver Ghost 8CE. Payment for the body was made in the form of McKenna’s 1913 Hotchkiss chassis and a 1913 Sunbeam. The current owner purchased 25JG from Peter Crauford, in whose possession the car had been for nigh-on 15 years, though he had known about it for far longer. Whilst under Crauford’s ownership much work was carried out in as an authentic manner as possible. It was rewired, repainted, the hood bows and hood sorted out, mudguards corrected and correct scuttle-mounted side lights very similar to its originals fitted, along with authentic and correct instruments and much more. Whilst its current look is very much like its original Waring body, one significant difference is that originally the hand brake was on the outside of the car, whereas now it is positioned inside indicating that its current body is possibly several inches wider than the original “body between”. Since then it has been regularly maintained by the highly reputable Simon Elliott at The Derby Works in Melbourne, where the only modification has been the re-siting of the oil gauge. The car had some major work carried out on the engine by Robert McDermott of Melbourne whilst it was owned by Gordon Cooper, and high-compression pistons were fitted by Gerald McKenna when he carried out the restoration. Apart from club runs etc it has not done a lot of mileage but it is said to be one of the fastest and best running Ghosts on the road. 25JG has of course its factory build data sheets, whilst a set of authentic wind-screens for the rear seats are a feature of the car. It is recorded in the definitive text, “Rolls-Royce and Bentley in the Sunburnt Country; The First Fifty Years in Australia” by Neely, Brooks and Clarke first published in 1999 by the Sir Henry Royce Foundation.
• Estimate:
  A$320,000 - 350,000
• Realised Price:
  *****
  

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• Category:
  Automobiles & Accessories

This Sale has been held and this item is no longer available. Details are provided for information purposes only.