Our Price

Offered here today is a beautiful, re-bodied and perfectly running example of the 1925 Rolls-Royce Phantom I.  As anyone interested in this car knows, these vehicles were produced by Rolls Royce as a running chassis with no coachwork.  The customer would select the coachbuilder and design and the chassis would be sent to the appropriate location so that the car could be completed.  Reading from the information found in the book "Rolls Royce - The Derby Phantoms" by Lawrence Dalton, he has this car listed as a Hooper Cabriolet that was re-bodied to an open two-seater - a York Roadster; as such, one would assume that “re-bodied” would best describe the car today.  However, there may indeed be a case made that the Hooper Cabriolet was the initially intended coachwork but that it was never actually sent to Hooper for completion.

There is a letter included in this listing (as a photograph) that was sent to the previous owner by the people at Wildae Restorations Ltd. of Braunton, Devon, England, the people who did the complete restoration of the car that began in 1981.  This letter provides a brief history of this car and to paraphrase, “it appears the chassis was built but never had any coachwork attached; a decision on what should be built was never made by the original owner.  The car was located on the Isle of Wight, England and the woman who owned it was said to be constructing the coachwork based on the choice of her Husband.  Apparently he died before a decision was made so the chassis was just left in her garage.  When the Lady died in 1965 or so, the chassis was sold and eventually made its way to the USA.  The chassis was acquired by Mr. Prestley Blake of Connecticut (co-founder of Friendly ice cream) who it is said attached a temporary seating arrangement and drove the car around his estate.  In 1981 he requested bids from multiple coachbuilders to create an exact copy of the Brewster York Roadster, the exact specifications of which were provided by 150 or so photographs of a true Brewster York Roadster, owned by a friend of Mr. Blake. Wildae Restoration Ltd., won the restoration bid and the chassis was shipped to the UK to have its first body attached; that of a Brewster York Roadster.”  There is more information in the letter which might be of interest.  We will gladly email copies of everything we have if requested. 

With the car back in the UK, a two (2) year process began to transform this beautiful vehicle from the ordinary to the extraordinary; the pictures tell it all. Everything about this car is perfect; inside and out as well as mechanically; you can step into this car and drive it immediately.  We welcome the opportunity to entertain your visit so that you can see for yourself how perfect this is.

The York Roadster was originally offered by the Brewster Coach building Company of Springfield Massachusetts where only five (5) originals were ever made; the whereabouts of only four (4) are known.  In addition, another two (2) cars were re-bodied to the York Roadster coachwork, and this is one of those two.  We do not know if any others were re-bodied such as ours but we do know that that there were only five (5) built by the Brewster works.  The car offered here is a truly amazing example of how a quality restoration and re-bodying should be done.  The wood is perfect everywhere, the car is as solid as a rock and the doors close better than those found on a late model Mercedes Benz.  The engine was also completely rebuilt at the time of restoration and runs purrfectly - yes, a deliberate spelling error!

We realize that this is not an original York Roadster; if it were, it would command in excess of 1 million dollars at auction (like the one offered by Gooding & Company at Pebble Beach in 2009).  Instead, we have a beautiful version of the York Roadster completed by Wildae Restorations Ltd., a company with the credentials necessary to command the respect of its peers.  We are open to including interesting trades as part consideration in a transaction and are ready to discuss the details of a deal that works for everyone, at your convenience.

We have priced this vehicle to provide you the best deal on a car of this caliber.  We can arrange for transportation anywhere worldwide; call for a quotation.

If you want to know more about the car - CALL ME - (978) 771-8375 

If you would like to talk about a purchase - CALL ME - (978) 771-8375 

My name is Paul please call me direct with any questions - my cell phone is always with me at (978) 771-8375 or you can email me anytime at paul@silverstonemotorcars.com

I promise you will enjoy your experience at Silverstone Motorcars.  We'll gladly pick you up at the airport or deliver this vehicle to your doorstep.

We look forward to this fabulous car finding a new home and encourage you to call Paul at (978) 771-8375 to discuss any questions and to arrange a showing.

***** THIS CAR IS LOCATED IN BROOKFIELD (CHICAGO) ILLINOIS *****

*** FINANCING AVAILABLE FOR THIS CAR ***