Rolls Royce Hire

Rolls Royce hire does not get any better than the Rolls Royce Silver Cloud of the sixties, combined with Rolls Royce's traditionally elegant and flowing lines and the company's powerful and smooth engine, it is a car that turns heads and causes all eyes to follow it as it glides past.

The Rolls Royce Silver Cloud first appeared in 1955, and was a successful restyling exercise of the Silver Dawn which, back in 1949, had been Rolls-Royce's first model to be bodied by the factory. Prior to that, the cars from Crewe had been coachbuilt exclusively to customers' individual tastes.

After the Second World War, Rolls-Royce recognised that a more modern approach was needed, providing completed cars for a new clientele who might very well be owner/drivers who did not wish to leave all the driving to a chauffeur.

The Rolls Royce Silver Cloud is powered by an enlarged 4.9-litre version of the Rolls-Royce straight six engine, making it the largest petrol engine of that kind in any car in the world at the time. Luxuriously equipped, and with a rear seat that was 54in wide, this was splendid transport for up to five persons. It was roomier, quieter and faster than the model it replaced. All Silver Clouds had the General Motors-type Hydramatic automatic gearbox with powered-assisted steering.

Although on paper there is nothing that remarkable in the specification of the Silver Cloud which might set it apart from several other vehicles of the mid-1950s, this car was designed, built and fitted out to the highest quality attainable at the time. It may not be the cheapest car to run but it has a certain timeless dignity.

With Rolls Royce hire there is a special feeling of pampered comfort and all-round wellbeing, this was a car of the highest quality in its day. While some models from the 1930s, usually designed for chauffeurs to drive, can be hard work for the owner/driver today, the Silver Cloud offers the driver, as well as the passengers, that sense of effortless superiority expected of a Rolls-Royce. Despite being a very large car that is 50 years old, the Silver Cloud is comfortable cruising at a little over 80mph, and will exceed 100mph.

The power-assisted drum brakes, considered outstanding in the 1950s, are sufficiently confidence-inspiring even now. On rough roads, the occupants will be aware of the traditional live axle arrangement at the rear, but this is a quiet, dignified machine which handles safely. Modern cars obviously outperform a Silver Cloud in every way, but there is a certain sense of majesty which the Silver Cloud shares with its driver.

The Rolls Royce Silver Cloud remains an epitome of elegance and smartness, one of the greatest and most timeless of all Rolls Royce's, it pampers its occupants while broadcasting to the world outside that they are people of status, style, affluence and influence.

Gavin Burnham has been involved in Rolls Royce hire for a number of years and offers further information articles, pictures & wedding advice at Cars 4 Weddings http://www.cars4weddings.co.uk. Cars 4 Weddings have a unique selection of 15 family owned wedding cars for the bride and groom.