The Maharaja's Lime & Cream Wheels
The 1935 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Gurney Nutting Streamline Coupé, flown from India to Monterey California just for the Concours.
Rolls-Royce had, at the time, developed a reputation as the makers of what was supposedly the ‘World’s Best Car’. However, after Bentley won the 24 Hours of Le Mans five times between 1924 and 1930, Sir Henry Royce was charged up enough to decide on developing a ‘sporty’ car to rival the Bentleys. So after absorbing the financially bankrupt, but engineering rich firm, including WO himself (until he fled several years later to Lagonda to produce their amazing V-12). Henry Royce made his first foray into actual sporting models, the 'Continental' Phantom II. Keeping the Bentleys as the 'cheaper' Rolls, The Phantom II 'Continental' was designed to be self-driven over long distances at considerable speed, by a more sporting owner, the Phantom II Continentals were shorter, lighter and markedly quicker than the ‘full size’ Rolls-Royce Phantom IIs that were built to be chauffeur driven. Only 279 of these ‘sporty’ Rolls-Royces found buyers who were willing to pay a hefty premium over the already expensive Phantom IIs. Just six of the Phantom II Continentals found customers in India and only one still remains in the country.
Of the six, two were ordered by the Maharaja of Jodhpur, Umaid Singh, who seemed to have had a penchant for Rolls-Royces, given that he ordered 18 over two decades. The last of the Phantom II Continentals to come to India though, was this Streamline coupe that you see here. Also from 1935, this car was in fact, the very last of the Continentals built. Chassis # 62UK features sublimely beautiful coachwork from J Gurney Nutting, the most flamboyant amongst the classically staid British coachbuilders of the era. Acknowledged as one of the best of the English stylists during the 1930s, J Gurney Nutting’s chief designer A E ‘Mac’ Macneil drew out a perfectly proportioned coupe that embodied the delightful leitmotif of the coachbuilder’s house style, with superb two-toning that amplified the flowing lines of this gorgeous automobile. And this is the original color combo! it was delivered to Bombay, India on the 18th of October 1935.
For the Rolls-Royce enthusiast, the Phantom II Continental is regarded as the finest from the pre-war era, and this car is easily one of the finest of the finest, and the unique colors always draw a large crowd.
AS ALWAYS....COMMENTS & INVITATIONS with AWARD BANNERS will be respectfully DELETED!
The Maharaja's Lime & Cream Wheels
The 1935 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Gurney Nutting Streamline Coupé, flown from India to Monterey California just for the Concours.
Rolls-Royce had, at the time, developed a reputation as the makers of what was supposedly the ‘World’s Best Car’. However, after Bentley won the 24 Hours of Le Mans five times between 1924 and 1930, Sir Henry Royce was charged up enough to decide on developing a ‘sporty’ car to rival the Bentleys. So after absorbing the financially bankrupt, but engineering rich firm, including WO himself (until he fled several years later to Lagonda to produce their amazing V-12). Henry Royce made his first foray into actual sporting models, the 'Continental' Phantom II. Keeping the Bentleys as the 'cheaper' Rolls, The Phantom II 'Continental' was designed to be self-driven over long distances at considerable speed, by a more sporting owner, the Phantom II Continentals were shorter, lighter and markedly quicker than the ‘full size’ Rolls-Royce Phantom IIs that were built to be chauffeur driven. Only 279 of these ‘sporty’ Rolls-Royces found buyers who were willing to pay a hefty premium over the already expensive Phantom IIs. Just six of the Phantom II Continentals found customers in India and only one still remains in the country.
Of the six, two were ordered by the Maharaja of Jodhpur, Umaid Singh, who seemed to have had a penchant for Rolls-Royces, given that he ordered 18 over two decades. The last of the Phantom II Continentals to come to India though, was this Streamline coupe that you see here. Also from 1935, this car was in fact, the very last of the Continentals built. Chassis # 62UK features sublimely beautiful coachwork from J Gurney Nutting, the most flamboyant amongst the classically staid British coachbuilders of the era. Acknowledged as one of the best of the English stylists during the 1930s, J Gurney Nutting’s chief designer A E ‘Mac’ Macneil drew out a perfectly proportioned coupe that embodied the delightful leitmotif of the coachbuilder’s house style, with superb two-toning that amplified the flowing lines of this gorgeous automobile. And this is the original color combo! it was delivered to Bombay, India on the 18th of October 1935.
For the Rolls-Royce enthusiast, the Phantom II Continental is regarded as the finest from the pre-war era, and this car is easily one of the finest of the finest, and the unique colors always draw a large crowd.
AS ALWAYS....COMMENTS & INVITATIONS with AWARD BANNERS will be respectfully DELETED!