| Production | 1955-1958 |
|---|---|
| Body style | 4-door saloon variations provided by coachbuilders were: 2-door convertible 2-door coupé |
| Engine | 4.9 L I6 |
| Transmission | Four-speed automatic |
| Wheelbase | 123 in (3,124 mm) (short-wheelbase) 127 in (3,226 mm) (long wheelbase, offered for 1957 and 1958 cars) |
| Length | 212 in (5,385 mm) |
| Width | 74.75 in (1,899 mm) |
| Height | 64 in (1,626 mm) |
| Related | Bentley S1 |
The chassis was a simple steel box section, welded together and very rigid. Construction retained the traditional split between chassis and body, which facilitated the provision of special bodied versions though in practice the overwhelming majority of cars were delivered with the standard steel body shell, produced by Pressed Steel, and employing light weight aluminium based alloy for the doors, bonnet/hood and boot/trunk lid. The car was 5.38 m (212 in) long, 1.90 m (75 in) wide, and massed 1.95 tonnes. The engine was a 155 hp / 4000 rpm 4.9 L six-cylinder unit with inlet over exhaust valves: twin SU carburettors were added in September 1957. The standard transmission was a four-speed automatic. The turning circle was 41 feet 8 inches (12.70 m).
Brakes were hydraulic and assisted by the Rolls-Royce mechanical servo with 11 in (279 mm) drums and suspension was independent coils at the front and semi-elliptic springs at the rear. Twin brake master cylinders were incorporated from April 1956.
Power steering became an option in 1956 along with air conditioning.
A long-wheelbase version, lengthened by 4 in (102 mm), was also made available in September 1957, outwardly very similar to the existing car, but offering improved leg space for rear-seat passengers.
The British Motor magazine tested a standard-wheelbase factory-bodied Series I in 1956 recording a top speed of 102.9 mph (165.6 km/h) and acceleration from 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in 13.5 seconds and a fuel consumption of 14.5 miles per imperial gallon (19.5 L/100 km; 12.1 mpg). The test car cost £5078 including taxes.
Read more about this topic: Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud
Famous quotes containing the words cloud i, silver and/or cloud:
“On a cloud I saw a child,
And he laughing said to me,
Pipe a song about a Lamb;
So I piped with merry chear.
Piper pipe that song again
So I piped, he wept to hear.
Drop thy pipe thy happy pipe
Sing thy songs of happy chear;
So I sung the same again
While he wept with joy to hear.”
—William Blake (17571827)
“While this magnetic,
Peripatetic
Lover he lived to learn,
By no endeavor
Can a magnet ever
Attract a Silver Churn!”
—Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18361911)
“Follow your saint, follow with accents sweet;
Haste you, sad notes, fall at her flying feet.
There, wrapped in cloud of sorrow, pity move,
And tell the ravisher of my soul I perish for her love.”
—Thomas Campion (15671620)