Five of the eight historic Rolls-Royces offered at auction by Bentley Motors (as previewed in our September/ October issue) found willing buyers at Bonhams’ Goodwood Revival sale in September – with the head-line-grabbing Phantom IV State Landaulette (originally estimated at between £1m and £2m) selling for £710,000. The car had been used extensively by the Royal Family before spending the last few years on display at the RREC’s Hunt House headquarters.
The last Corniche IV ever built achieved mid-estimate at £222,000, while a 2002 Corniche (the final Crewe-assembled Rolls-Royce of all) ended up attracting a top bid of £165,000 –£15,000 below its low-end estimate. The last ever Silver Seraph produced (with a mere 128 miles recorded) smashed its top estimate with a final sale price of £120,000, while the final Silver Seraph Park Ward long-wheelbase came in mid-estimate at £85,000.
A 1985 Silver Spur Centenary (said to be the 100,000th Rolls-Royce built) didn’t sell at £80,000-100,000, while the 1979 Phantom VI (a car used by the Royal Household on numerous occasions, estimated at £400,000- 600,000) also failed to attract a buyer.
Finally, the Phantom V ‘High Roof’ State Limousine that was expected to sell for between £1m and £1.5m was withdrawn prior to the sale, as a Bonham’s spokesperson explained to Rolls-Royce & Bentley Driver: “The Phantom V is currently on Royal Yacht Britannia, and contractually has to remain there for a year.”
