Rolls-Royce Phantom I Brewster Trouville Town Car, 1929
Chassis No.: S187FR $79,200 | Sold • Odometer: 8,712 miles • Engine: Inline 6-cylinder • Transmission: Manual • Exterior: Maroon/Black • Interior: Tan • Body: Town Car • Left-hand drive example designed for the U.S. Market and built in Springfield, Massachusetts • Rolls-Royce built approximately 1,250 cars in America in the late 1920s, but this example is 1 of 14 known American-built Brewster-bodied Town Cars • The engines and drivetrains were shipped from England to Springfield, but the bodies were built in New York where Brewster was headquartered • 7668cc inline 6-cylinder engine • Pushrod-operated overhead valves • 3-speed manual transmission • Hand-applied pinstriping • Original interior wood accents • Polished nickel trim • Best Brace award at the 2013 Rolls-Royce Owner’s Club Lake Michigan Region Concours d’Elegance • Copies of owner and delivery cards • Please note: The motor on this vehicle is currently unable to turn over, and additional service will be required. Established as the American subsidiary of Rolls-Royce in December 1919, Rolls-Royce of America Incorporated began production with the Silver Ghost, progressing to its New Phantom (retrospectively named Phantom I) derivative in 1926. Catering to the fabulously wealthy carriage trade in America’s northeastern corridor, Springfield-built Rolls-Royce motorcars were held with the same esteem as the Derby-built cars from Rolls-Royce’s home works in England. Crucially, the Springfield, Massachusetts, operation avoided stiff duties on imported motorcars and helped bring Rolls-Royce to prominence in America. Despite early success, the operation ultimately fell victim by 1929 to the high retooling costs for the Phantom II and the near-collapse of the elite, custom-coachbuilt automobile market during the early 1930s. During Springfield’s active years, an American-built Rolls-Royce could be ordered with “factory” coachwork, unlike its British-built counterparts. A multitude of custom-coachbuilt bodies were available from New York’s Brewster, which was the usual body supplier for Springfield-built Rolls-Royce motorcars, a logical choice given the coachbuilding firm’s takeover by Rolls-Royce in December 1925. Uniquely, Rolls-Royce of America named each of its Brewster body styles after towns in the United Kingdom. The Newmarket was a prime example as an exquisitely proportioned and outfitted convertible sedan with simple, yet highly effective, trim and details. Most of the cars were bodied in the United States, either with cataloged Rolls-Royce Custom Coachwork, which was built by several coachbuilders under contract, or sent out for bespoke bodies. By 1923, Rolls-Royce had established an in-house coachworks on Waltham Avenue in Springfield, and then it purchased New York coachbuilder Brewster & Co. in 1925. From that time, Brewster supplied the bulk of bodies to Rolls-Royce of America, among them the Trouville Town Car, originally a Hibbard & Darrin design, with a unique rendition of the style including handsome wooden cabinetry in the division partition. Numbered S187FR, this 1929 Rolls-Royce Phantom I Trouville Town Car by Brewster is a wonderful example of the brief but glorious Springfield Rolls-Royce era. A left-hand drive example, it is one of approximately 1,250 Rolls-Royce cars built in America and one of just 14 known American-built, Brewster-bodied Town Cars. Engines and drivetrains were shipped from England to Springfield, Massachusetts, but the bodies were built in New York, where Brewster was headquartered. The 7668cc inline 6-cylinder engine features pushrod-operated overhead valves and is mated to a 3-speed manual transmission. Among the Trouville Town Car’s many fine details are the hand-applied pinstriping, the original interior wood accents and the polished nickel trim. Also worthy of note are the raked one-piece windshield and unique division window, luxurious Mohair cloth upholstery in the rear passenger compartment, and collapsible folding rear jump seats. Dual side-mounted spares, spoked wheels and wide whitewall tires provide the finishing touches. The holder of the 2013 Best Brace award at the 2013 Rolls-Royce Owner’s Club Lake Michigan Region Concours d’Elegance, this CCCA Full Classic offers a chance to claim ownership of a truly rare American-built, Brewster-bodied Rolls-Royce. https://www.mecum.com/lots/1151407/1929-rolls-royce-phantom-i-brewster-trouville-town-car/
