Rolls-Royce Phantom III Mulliner Sport Saloon, 1937
Rolls-Royce Phantom III
Rolls-Royce Phantom III•
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Chassis No.: 3BT155
Auction: Monterey 2019
Auction date: August 17, 2019
Lot No.: S147
$60,000 | High bid
- Exterior: Brown
- Interior: Brown
- Body: Mulliner Sport Saloon
- AACA National First Prize, 1976
- CCCA National First Prize winner
- Desirable H.J. Mulliner Saloon Coachwork
- 7,338cc/165 HP OHV V-12 engine
- One-piece aluminum alloy crankcase and cylinder block
- Aluminum cylinder heads
- Cast-iron wet cylinder liners
- Dual ignition with dual coils and distributors
- Synchromesh 4-speed manual gearbox
- Independent front suspension with coil springs
- Live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs
- Hydraulic self-adjusting valve tappets and driver-controlled shock absorbers
- 4-wheel servo-assisted drum brakes
- 142 inch wheelbase
- Right hand drive
- Same owner since 1991
- Known ownership history
- Featured in ‘The Classic Car’ by Beverly Rae Kimes and ‘The Derby Phantoms’ by Lawrence Dalton
While evolution rather than revolution had long been the custom at Rolls-Royce, that changed with the all-new Phantom III of 1935. And it needed to, for the Derby company had been losing ground as the old 6-cylinder models reached the end of their development path. The Phantom III featured an immensely strong chassis with the company’s first deployment of independent front suspension, along with a prodigious V-12 to reassert its position in the territory it considered its birthright. Henry Royce’s last automotive design was hailed by the British magazine “The Autocar” as “road travel in its most advanced and refined form,” a true challenger to the mighty V-16 Cadillac and V-12 Hispano-Suiza.
Rolls-Royce had been producing V-12 aero engines since 1915, most notably with the record-breaking 400 MPH Supermarine S6B that won the 1931 Schneider Trophy and evolved into the Merlin that powered the Spitfire and made the Mustang P51 a master of the skies. Back on earth, the state-of-the art and exceptionally smooth twin-spark-plug 7338cc/165 HP alloy V-12 with hydraulic self-adjusting tappets could serenely propel the 142-inch wheelbase Phantom III to 90 MPH. The 4-speed manual gearbox featured synchromesh on the upper three ratios; brakes were servo-assisted.
While some coachbuilders took the Phantom III as a challenge to see how much they could encumber it with performance-sapping bulk and weight, the sports saloon fashioned by the renowned British firm of H.J. Mulliner took a completely different approach. This 1937 Phantom III is graced with the desirable H.J. Mulliner sport saloon body. Significantly lighter than many, it exploited the Phantom III’s potential rather than stifling it. Yet, the sporting Mulliner still delivered limousine accommodation and amenities such as a wind-down glass division. Crisply styled, the two-tone livery of this award-winning automobile is set off with whitewall tires, twin side-mounts and horns.
Part of the same collection since 1991, this majestic motorcar is a National AACA and CCCA First Prize winner.
https://www.mecum.com/lots/381064/1937-rolls-royce-phantom-iii-mulliner-sport-saloon/
