Rolls-Royce

1931 marked a watershed year for Rolls-Royce. Sales of Springfield Phantoms fell so precipitously that production of Phantoms at the factory in Springfield, MA ceased. Consequently, the chassis for the Phantom II on display was manufactured in England and exported to the United States were it was fit with a Brewster Savoy Town Car body.
The Phantom II was a completely redesigned vehicle and had very little in common with its predecessor, the Phantom I. 

The vehicle on display was originally delivered to Mr. John Weiz of Brooklyn, NY  on 9/29/29. Originally fit with a Brewster, Lonsdale limousine body, Mr. Weiz had the Phantom I re-bodied in 1930 with its current Fleetwood drophead coupe coach that had been removed from a Cadillac. The Fleetwood coach was a rarity because this coachbuilder had been acquired by General Motors in 1925 for the purpose of building coaches for Cadillac and LaSalle motorcars.

The Silver Ghost is considered by many automobile aficionados as the holy grail of motor cars. The early 1900’s was to the automobile industry what the 1990’s was to dot.com companies. The number of new automobile manufacturers that were incorporated during the early 1900’s was as stunning as the number that filed for bankruptcy. In 1904, Rolls-Royce was a new entrant to the automobile industry.