1990 Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn Leather Interior Saloon DIESEL Manual

Description

A smart example, in Shell grey and Tudor grey, with excellent re-upholstered interior in blue/grey with blue piping. The car spent the first twenty plus years in the dry climate of Kenya. There has been a great deal of good quality expenditure on the car in recent times, including stainless steel exhaust, new fuel tank, brake drums, radiator, tyres, etc, etc, as well as the previously mentioned upholstery, all documented and amounting to £48,000 spent over the last five years. Also in the history file are a green logbook from the 1970s, a great deal of correspondence over several decades, photos of restoration work, a handbook, manuals, etc, etc. The car featured in Original Rolls-Royce & Bentley by James Taylor, as shown in the photos below. Driving very well, and offered newly serviced, prepared and freshly MoT tested.Chassis No. SDB134 Reg No. KBH 585 Snippets: The Almost Royal Car During the time the Silver Dawn was in Kenya it was an almost Royal car, it was available for use by Princess Elizabeth & Prince Philip whilst they were on their honeymoon but during the Royal couple had to cut short their visit due to the death of her father. The other members of the royal family that almost sat in the car included Princess Margaret & the Queen Mother but we do have a video in which SDB134 can be seen in the background when Prince Philip visited on his own, on this occasion he used a Phantom II (82OR) as the royal car! Other dignitaries who, we are told, used the car include Jomo Kenyatta & Haile Selassie! The first owner of SDB134 was Francis D H Welldon who was born in Sri Lanka and was first noted as being in Kenya in 1925 where his profession was given as a coffee planter in the Thika area. Later owners included W. H. Martin a successful business man and chairman of Raleigh Industries, he was well known in Nairobi and was regularly seen as at the New Stanley Hotel where he was known as Martini! He also, according to his niece, owned a parrot who could imitate the sound of the soda syphon which Martini used to calm his sundowner!! In 1970 SDB134 was bought by Dermot Kydd, who was awarded an OBE for his services to agriculture in Kenya, he used his knowledge of East Africa to write The Konisgberg Assignment which is set in the Rufiji delta on the Tanzania coastline. We have managed to find a copy of this rare book and it will be with the car.

Climate Control; Electronic Stability Program (ESP); Previously Registered Overseas; Safety Belt Pretensioners

About us:
The Real Car Company was established in 1987 by Ray Arnold & Ian Johnstone. It was a hobby that 'Got out of hand'. Our interest in cars of the type that we now sell goes back to our childhoods, and ownership back to the 1970's. Gradually more cars started passing through our hands, and by 1986 we had decided to make a full time occupation of buying and selling the cars that we love.

We started with a single car (all we could afford) which we sold quickly, and before we knew it we had 4 or 5 on our hands! This was alongside another business that we were involved in at the time. In the Spring of 1988 we gave up the other business, (exhaust systems), rented part of the premises that we still operate from now, and went full time.

We had a good start in the boom years of the late eighties, which set us up well enough for us to ride the storm of recession in the years that followed. As the years went on the number of cars going through our hands increased gradually, we built up a workforce, and we now carry a stock of around 40 to 50 vehicles and there are nine of us here. In 1999 we were awarded 'International Classic Car Dealer of the Year' by Classic Cars Magazine. The market for 'our' kind of cars is nicely stable, generally prices are creeping upwards all the time, and we feel that investing in a car - or cars - of the type that we sell is generally a great place to put your money. Don't do it just for investment, but you can get a great deal of pleasure from these vehicles, prices are - in our opinion - unlikely to drop, and you can't drive a share certificate! Some prices in the last three or four years have moved up considerably, and these cases have shown a tremendous return on investment.

Over the last fifteen years or so we have brought home several hundred cars from the USA, and we are always looking for more. If you know of a Rolls-Royce or Bentley anywhere in the world, in absolutely any condition, please let us know. Distance no object, commissions happily paid. We always particularly enjoy the 'barn finds'.



Opening Hours:
Mo: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Tu: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
We: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Th: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Fr: 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
Sa: Closed
Su: Closed

Why buy from us?
* Classic Cars
* Over 30 years in business
* Cars are physically at our premises
* Lovely roads to test drive on
* Our reputation

Ad ID: 1501874976

Exact specification may vary from the details on this page. Please contact the seller to reconfirm any details before purchasing. See Terms & Conditions for further information.