1985 Rolls-Royce Corniche Convertible

• The ultimate in open-top luxury
• Built to US specification
• Present ownership since 2015
• Most recent service December 2024
• Registered in Germany

Recalling the firm's glamorous Grandes Routières of pre-war days such as the Phantom II Continental, the coachbuilt variants of the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow and T-Series Bentley were limited to just two: a two-door coupé or similar convertible, the former arriving in March 1966 and the latter in September the following year. Some of the frontal panels were shared with the standard four-door saloon but otherwise the new bodyshells were unique, featuring a distinctive dipping upper wing line with parallel crease, and a revised, more rounded posterior. Construction involved shuttling the bodyshells between the Crewe factory and H J Mulliner Park Ward's Willesden plant, a necessarily lengthy process that took all of 20 weeks for the saloon and slightly longer for the more complex convertible.

These exclusive cars were hand built in the best traditions of British coachbuilding using only materials of the finest quality including Wilton carpeting, Connolly hide and burr walnut veneers, such painstaking attention to detail resulting in a price some 50% higher than that of the standard Silver Shadow. Nevertheless, demand for these more glamorous alternatives to the much more numerous four-door model was strong right from the start, a state of affairs that resulted in them being given their own model name - 'Corniche' - in March 1971. In Corniche form Rolls-Royce's well-tried 6.7-litre V8 produced around 10% more power than standard and proved capable of propelling the car to a top speed in excess of 120mph (193km/h) with sports car-beating acceleration to match. Despite its sky-high asking price, the model proved a major success for Rolls-Royce; periodically revised and up dated, it remained in production well into the 1990s, the last (Convertible) examples being delivered in 1995.

Attractively finished in two-tone blue with blue leather interior, this US specification left-hand drive Corniche was purchased by the current custodian in 2015. A Classic Data report on file rated its condition at that time as '1-'. Reportedly, the car was previously imported into Germany via Switzerland. While in the vendor's care the Corniche has undergone routine maintenance, while the hood cover was replaced circa four years ago.

A recent service at Emila Auto Service near Hamburg remedied an oil leak from the sump and a timing issue and included a change of oil and spark plugs (see invoice dated December 2024 for more than €8,000 on file. The car is offered with the aforementioned documentation and German registration papers. Luxurious open-top motoring for the whole family!