The Early Days of the V8 — Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II and Bentley S 2

by Davide Bassoli

This two-volume book describes the full history of the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II and the Bentley S 2, including the long wheelbase and Continental versions.

The first volume ‘The Early Days of the V8’ is based on newly unearthed material and period photographs, and describes the launch of the second series fitted with a completely new engine, the 1959 London Motor Show, the development of the V8 engine and the launch on the American market. Dedicated chapters are reserved for the coachbuilt, the long wheelbase and the Continental versions. The stories of some important cars are detailed, including those for owners or passengers such as H.M. Queen Elizabeth II, American President John F. Kennedy, Yuri Gagarin, British actress Elizabeth Taylor or Armenian millionaire Nubar Gulbenkian. The volume is inserted in a folding slipcase with envelopes containing reproductions of the Silver Cloud II and S 2 introduction booklets.

The second volume ‘Second Series Chassis Register’ is a list of every Silver Cloud II and S 2 built in the original order of build by chassis number, including the long wheelbase and Continental versions, for a total of 5,025 cars. The register provides information about the first owner, the delivery date, the country of delivery, the British registration number where known, the coachwork and design number for coachbuilt versions, the body number, the paintwork and interior colours.

Volume 1: The Early Days of the V8

• Report of the 1959 launch in Bray
• Report of the 1959 London Motor Show
• Report of the first deliveries on the American market with table
• Folding slipcase with envelopes containing reproductions of the Silver Cloud II and S 2 introduction booklets
• 15 period drawings included to the book
• Market analysis and standard colour range analysis tables
• 156 pictures (136 monochrome + 20 colour), many of them previously unreleased

Volume 2: Second Series chassis Register

• List of the 2,418 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II built
• List of the 299 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II long wheelbase built
• List of the 1,863 Bentley S 2 built
• List of the 57 Bentley S 2 long wheelbase built
• List of the 388 Bentley S 2 Continental built
• Of every car built each list provides the chassis number, the engine number, the delivery date, the first owner name, the country of delivery, the British registration number where known, the coachwork and design number for coachbuilt versions, the body number, the paintwork and interior colours

Buch, Softcover, 2 Bände, 32 x 24,5 cm, insges. 368 Seiten, 20 farbige und 136 s/w-Abbildungen, englischer Text