Rolls Royce....too much?

Minimoke

Minimoke

Minimoke

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27 Feb 2009
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317
Hi all,
I'm on the market for a new car, and I'll tell you now, I adore classics.
Has to be a classic for me. I've been looking at Triumph Spitfires, MGB GT's
And a few others, but then something really caught my eye. A Rolls Royce Silver Shadow.
I love their styling and looks, and when they're on an LPG conversion they're pretty cheap to run. There's just one thing holding me back though....would I look a Pratt driving a Rolls? I'm pretty young, I just love classics, and wouldn't want to buy a Rolls and look a bit silly....

Sorry for the weird post, just want an opinion.

Thanks,
Chris.
 
If you think they are cheap to run think again.
The tinyist little thing on these cars costs a ****** fortune if they go wrong.
 
If you've been looking at lightweight sports cars the Rolls would instantly become boring after the very brief 'wow' factor.

That and the fact that they are expensive, at best, to keep running.

And it'll only do about 10-15 to the gallon, on gas.

So no......
 
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How handy are you with the old spanners?

Awesome cars in the "charming" sort of way. I mean, they are by no means "fast" and not strictly speaking really that comfortable (Fatties like me struggle to get comfortable). They are also a little bit finicky.

I reckon one could be ran on a budget, but you'd really need to know what you were doing, had a few contacts for parts and most importantly don't expect to ever get the car to be absoultely perfect. The fact is they didn't leave the factory perfect - Put it this way when I started at my place I'd always point out oil leaks on older stuff like Shadows. Eventually one of the old boys who used to work at the factory told me a saying that they had on the production line - "If It ain't leaking, it hasn't got any oil it it!" :D

But to answer your question - I don't think anyone can look a prat driving an old Roller :cool:.
 
On side note, may be an urban myth but RR never published official figures for power/torque etc and if ever a customer asked how powerful their prospective purchase was the answer was always "Sufficiant sir."

Like it :D
 
The Edge said:
On side note, may be an urban myth but RR never published official figures for power/torque etc and if ever a customer asked how powerful their prospective purchase was the answer was always "Sufficiant sir."

Like it :D
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I'm not sure it's a myth! As a member of the motoring press I once asked for the power output of the Rolls-Royce 100EX 8.0L V16 engine. The answer was, indeed, "sufficient", delivered in person, by a Rolls-Royce employee.
 
You wont look a pratt driving a shadow but heres a couple of things.

Get a Shadow 2 if you can and spending anything less than 10k on the starter vehicle will end in tears.
 
For the record, though:

The Shadow featured a 172 hp (128 kW) 6.2 L V8 from 1965 to 1969, and a 189 hp (141 kW) 6.75 L V8 from 1970 to 1980. Both powerplants were coupled to a General Motors-sourced Turbo Hydramatic 400 transmission, except on pre-1970 right-hand-drive models, which used the same 4-speed automatic gearbox as the Silver Cloud (also sourced from GM).
 
Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I'd never get one without an LPG conversion, and even then it's still not the cheapest thing to own. Only started looking at them a few days ago so I never really thought about the running costs other than putting juice in the tank.

I reckon I might stick to getting a smaller car like the MGB GT for a year or so then, then think about getting something bigger. Just wanted to know whether an 18 year old would look an idiot in a Rolls. Yes, I said 18, I've got....slightly different taste to other kids my age I suppose! I just think a classic has so much more character than the new stuff of today. And the styling was so individual too. Nothing like it these days. What kind of common things go wrong with these old beasts then?

Chris.
 
Minimoke said:
Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I'd never get one without an LPG conversion, and even then it's still not the cheapest thing to own. Only started looking at them a few days ago so I never really thought about the running costs other than putting juice in the tank.

I reckon I might stick to getting a smaller car like the MGB GT for a year or so then, then think about getting something bigger. Just wanted to know whether an 18 year old would look an idiot in a Rolls. Yes, I said 18, I've got....slightly different taste to other kids my age I suppose! I just think a classic has so much more character than the new stuff of today. And the styling was so individual too. Nothing like it these days. What kind of common things go wrong with these old beasts then?

Chris.
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I was 21 when i had my first Shadow, its all good driving them :)
 
What year was that if you don't mind me asking? How did you find the overall experience? I'd love one I think, they look bloody comfortable.
 
Minimoke said:
What kind of common things go wrong with these old beasts then?
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They're cars that are quite possibly be older than your parents - There isn't really a "common faults" list, you've just got to expect that any and everything will go wrong :p.

And don't think that you're quite so special. I'm 19 and would adore an old Turbo R... I just haven't worked up the courage to ring up for insurance quotes yet!
 
- Do you have lots of money?
- Do you have any intention of using it at all?
- Do you have any mechanical skill?
- Do you have space to store it?
- Have you considered insurance?

Answers on a postcard :p
 
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Peerzy said:
Can't these easily throw up 4 figure bills for even the simplest things? Not low 4 figures either?
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If you're expecting someone to fix it with brand new genuine parts from Crewe, then yeah, not cheap. But doing stuff yourself with parts from dismantlers? Perhaps not as cheap as a "normal" classic car, but I'm not convinced that it'd be financially crippling. JRS is doing rather well helping to run that Mulsanne.

Peerzy said:
Joshy your only 19?
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Yeah. How old did you think I was?
 
Power steering is a common thing that dies on older Rollers and apparently it's eye-wateringly expensive to replace. I've also heard that everything is electric and also prone to breaking.
 
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