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Rolls-Royce 20HP chassis

Rolls-Royce 20HP chassis

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Rolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassis
Rolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassis
Rolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassis
Rolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassisRolls-Royce 20HP chassis
Lot number 96
Hammer value £4,700
Description Rolls-Royce 20HP chassis
Registration SG 9278
Year 1924
Colour Green
Engine size 3,127 cc
Chassis No. GF69
Engine No. G766

Built between 1922 and 1929, the Twenty was Rolls-Royce's 'small car' for the 1920s and was produced alongside the 40/50 Silver Ghost and the Phantom. 

The Twenty's introduction enabled the company to cater for the increasingly important owner-driver market that appreciated the quality of Rolls-Royce engineering but did not need a car as large as a Ghost or Phantom. The car proved eminently suited to town use, yet could cope admirably with Continental touring when called upon, with a top speed of 60mph.

An all new 3.1-litre in-line six-cylinder overhead valve engine was designed for the car, the cylinders being cast in one block with a detachable cylinder head. Both coil and magneto ignition were fitted. The early cars had three-speed gearboxes with the change lever in the centre, but in 1925 this was replaced by a four-speed unit with traditional right hand change. A torque tube was used to transmit the power to the rear axle.

The substantial chassis had rigid front and rear axles suspended by half elliptic springs, with braking initially only on the rear wheels. Four-wheel brakes with mechanical servo were introduced in 1925. The rolling chassis cost £1,100 to which the owner would fit a body of his choice from one of the many noted coachbuilders of the day.

According to copies of the original Edinburgh Borough Council registration records in the history file, SG 9278 was last on the road in June 1951 when it was owned by Dr Colin Fraser Brockington of Mabberley, Cheshire, with chassis number GF69 and engine number G766.

At some time after that it was transferred to the Huddersfield area. Then, in November 1959, the papers were returned to Edinburgh with the information that the car had been scrapped. Fortunately, that was not in fact the case and the car had actually been exported to America.

Chassis GF69 was supplied new to noted Edinburgh coachbuilders, John Croall & Sons, who were commissioned to build an open tourer body by first owner Mr R McCosh of the same city. First registered by McCosh in March 1924, he was to keep it for the next 13 years before it was returned to Rolls-Royce and was sold by them "as it stands, the whole in used condition" for just £25 - a considerable loss as the chassis alone had cost McCosh £1,100!

Presumably McCosh traded it in against a newer Rolls and GF69 ended up in the hands of George Newman & Co of Euston Road, a car dealer and Brooklands competitor who billed himself as "The largest automobile and tyre buyer in the United Kingdom". The car subsequently travelled north again to new owner, a Dr Brockington.

From 1959 there is a gap in its history but it somehow made its way to America (as did so many Vintage cars in the 1960s when the dollar was all-powerful) and it next turned up in a Bonhams & Butterfields auction in September 2006 as part of the collection of the late Frank Cooke. By then in derelict condition, it was purchased by the Real Car Company of Gwynedd and shipped back to Britain, the vendor acquiring it from them shortly thereafter.

A 20HP collector and historian, the vendor was intending to restore the car but an imminent house move and consequent loss of storage means that he must now reluctantly pass this challenge on to a new enthusiast. The chassis itself remains in remarkably sound condition and the original engine (G766) is still present in a dismantled state along with many other parts including the bulkhead and chassis plate, steering wheel and column plus many other items although the vendor does advise that the radiator is missing as, doubtless, are various other components. Front and rear axles and a set of four wheels of the correct type are also present, although these are not the originals.

The vendor has managed to recover the original registration number from the DVLA along with a current V5 document and he has also tracked down the family of the original owner, Mr R McCosh, who have supplied some wonderful period photographs of the car in the Scottish Highlands in the 1920s, showing the elegant Croall & Sons open tourer coachwork.

Being sold here strictly “as seen”, this is a major restoration project that is sure to keep the new owner happily employed for many months as they work out how to piece it all back together! The vendor hopes to draw up a list of all the items present in time for the sale and is more than happy to help source any parts that may be required.
 

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