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Rolls-Royce
*** Shopping-Tip: Rolls-Royce
{| align=right
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Image:Rolls-Royce Spirit of Ecstasy.jpg Spirit of Ecstasy.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|250px|The Rolls-Royce badge and the "[[Spirit of Ecstasy" on the bonnet of a 1971
Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow Silver Shadow.html" title="Meaning of 250px|The Rolls-Royce badge and the "[[Spirit of Ecstasy">thumb|250px|The Rolls-Royce badge and the "[[Spirit of Ecstasy" on the bonnet of a 1971
Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow Silver Shadow">250px|The Rolls-Royce badge and the "[[Spirit of Ecstasy">thumb|250px|The Rolls-Royce badge and the "[[Spirit of Ecstasy" on the bonnet of a 1971
Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow Silver Shadow
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Image:Rollsroyce1905.jpg thumb|right|250px|Original 1905 Rolls-Royce
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image:rolls.arp.850pix.jpg Rolls-Royce_Silver Seraph.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|[[Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph.html" title="Meaning of right|250px|[[Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph">thumb|right|250px|[[Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph">right|250px|[[Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph">thumb|right|250px|[[Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph
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image:Park_Ward.JPG Rolls-Royce Silver Spur.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|1994 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Spur Armoured Touring Limousine.html" title="Meaning of right|250px|1994 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Spur">thumb|right|250px|1994 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Spur Armoured Touring Limousine">right|250px|1994 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Spur">thumb|right|250px|1994 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Spur Armoured Touring Limousine
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image:1977.rolls.royce.silver.shadow.arp.jpg Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|1977 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II.html" title="Meaning of right|250px|1977 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II">thumb|right|250px|1977 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II">right|250px|1977 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II">thumb|right|250px|1977 [[Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II
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image:Camargue.JPG Rolls-Royce Camargue.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|1982 [[Rolls-Royce Camargue.html" title="Meaning of right|250px|1982 [[Rolls-Royce Camargue">thumb|right|250px|1982 [[Rolls-Royce Camargue">right|250px|1982 [[Rolls-Royce Camargue">thumb|right|250px|1982 [[Rolls-Royce Camargue
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Image:Blue_Phantom.JPG Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003) thumb|right|250px|2005 [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom.html" title="Meaning of Rolls-Royce Phantom.html" title="Meaning of thumb|right|250px|2005 [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom">thumb|right|250px|2005 [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom">Rolls-Royce Phantom.html" title="Meaning of thumb|right|250px|2005 [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom">thumb|right|250px|2005 [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003)|Rolls-Royce Phantom
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Image:RR Trent A380.JPG Rolls-Royce Trent.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|The [[Rolls-Royce Trent 900 installed on the world's largest airliner, the
Airbus A380 A380.html" title="Meaning of right|250px|The [[Rolls-Royce Trent">thumb|right|250px|The [[Rolls-Royce Trent 900 installed on the world's largest airliner, the
Airbus A380 A380">right|250px|The [[Rolls-Royce Trent">thumb|right|250px|The [[Rolls-Royce Trent 900 installed on the world's largest airliner, the
Airbus A380 A380
|}
'''Rolls-Royce''' is a set of companies derived from the
United Kingdom British automobile car and aero-engine manufacturing company founded by
Henry Royce and
Charles Stewart Rolls C.S. Rolls in
1906. The companies are:
*
Rolls-Royce plc, by far the most significant in economic terms, a British engineering firm specializing in turbine-based products, particularly
aircraft engines, which has recently added marine propulsion and energy systems to its portfolio, providing civil and military engineering products and services.
*Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited, a new manufacturer of luxury automobiles, owned by
BMW, which started deliveries of its single model, the Phantom, in
January 2003 (see below).
*
Bentley Motors Limited, the continuation of the original Rolls-Royce automobile division. Since
1998 the company has been owned by the
Volkswagen Group. Rolls-Royce and
Bentley Motors Limited Bentley cars shared much mechanically since the
1931 takeover of Bentley by Rolls-Royce, often differing in little other than the radiator grille. Confusingly, from 2003 the company is no longer allowed to produce cars called Rolls-Royce, the
trademarks being licensed to BMW rather than to Volkswagen.
Nicknames for Rolls-Royce cars are "Rolls", "Roller" and "Double R", although in
Derby, where the headquarters of Rolls-Royce plc is located, the firm is commonly known as "Royce's". The former Rolls-Royce motor car factory in Crewe, Cheshire, which now builds only Bentley cars, is also often known by locals as "Royce's". The term "The Rolls-Royce of ''x''" is often used informally to describe anything that is the best of its type. The company is aggressive at protecting its trademarks whenever commercial use of the term is mentioned. (One noted example was a coachbuilder marketing the Custom Cloud, which used a
Chevrolet Monte Carlo with Rolls-Royce cues. The company was forced to shut down production after a heated lawsuit.) The company did allow the creation of a futuristic pink Rolls-Royce for
Thunderbirds (TV series) ''Thunderbirds'' in 1965.
Column-mounted
automatic transmission shifters are still used today on all Rolls-Royces.
History
In
1884 Frederick Henry Royce started an electrical and mechanical business. He made his first car, a "Royce", in his
Manchester factory in
1904. He was introduced to
Charles Stewart Rolls at the Midland Hotel in Manchester on
May 4 of that year, and the pair agreed to a deal where Royce would manufacture cars, to be sold exclusively by Rolls. A clause was added to the contract stipulating the cars would be called "Rolls-Royce". The company was formed on
March 15,
1906, and moved to
Derby, England Derby in
1908.
The
Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Silver Ghost (1906-1925) was responsible for the company's early reputation. It had a 6-cylinder engine, 6173 were built. In
1921, the company opened a second factory in
Springfield, Massachusetts, in the
United States to help meet demand, where a further 1701 "Springfield Ghosts" were built. This factory operated for 10 years, closing in
1931. Its chassis was used as a basis for the
Rolls-Royce Armoured Car first British armoured car used in both
world wars.
In 1931 the company acquired rival car maker
Bentley Motors Limited Bentley, whose finances were unable to weather the
Great Depression. From then until 2002, Bentley and Rolls-Royce cars were often identical apart from the radiator grille and minor details.
Rolls-Royce and Bentley car production moved to
Crewe in
1946, and also
Mulliner Park Ward,
London, in
1959 as the company started to build bodies for its cars for the first time — previously it had built only chassis, leaving the bodies to specialist coachbuilders.
Financial problems caused largely by development of the new
Rolls-Royce RB211 RB211 turbofan engine led — after several cash subsidies — to the company being
nationalization nationalized by the
Edward Heath Heath government in
1971. (Delay in production of this engine has been blamed for the failure of the technically advanced
Lockheed Lockheed L-1011 TriStar — it was beaten to launch by its competitor, the
Douglas Aircraft Company Douglas DC-10.) In
1973 the automobile business was spun off as a separate entity, '''Rolls-Royce Motors'''. The main business of aircraft and marine engines remained in public ownership until
1987, when it was privatised as '''Rolls-Royce plc''', one of many
privatisations of the
Margaret Thatcher Thatcher government.
In
1980 Rolls-Royce Motor Cars was acquired by
Vickers plc Vickers. In 1998 Vickers sold the company on to
Volkswagen. A year later Rolls-Royce plc acquired Vickers plc for £576m.
The VW and BMW deal
In
1998 Vickers plc Vickers decided to sell the Rolls-Royce car business. Although
Volkswagen Group also made offers for the company, the leading contender seemed to be
BMW, who already supplied engines and other components for Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars. However their final offer of £340m was outbid by VW, who offered £430m.
This was far from the end of the story, though. Rolls-Royce plc, the aero-engine maker, decided it would license certain essential
trademarks (the Rolls-Royce name and logo) not to VW, but to BMW, with whom it had recently had joint business ventures. VW had bought rights to the "
Spirit of Ecstasy"
mascot and the shape of the radiator grille, but it lacked rights to the Rolls-Royce name in order to build the cars. Likewise, BMW lacked rights to the grille and mascot. BMW bought an option on the trademarks, licensing the name and "RR" logo for £40m, a deal that many commentators thought was a bargain for possibly the most valuable property in the deal. VW claimed that it had only really wanted Bentley anyway.
BMW and VW arrived at a solution. From
1998 to
2002 BMW would continue to supply engines for the cars and would allow use of the names, but this would cease on
January 1,
2003. On that date, only BMW would be able to name cars "Rolls-Royce", and VW's former Rolls-Royce/Bentley division would build only cars called "Bentley". Rolls Royce's convertible, the Corniche, ceased production in 2002.
Aero engines
{{main|Rolls-Royce plc}}
The company's first aero engine was the
Rolls-Royce Eagle Eagle, built from
1914. Around half the aircraft engines used by the Allies in
World War I were made by Rolls-Royce. By the late 1920s, aero engines made up most of Rolls-Royce's business.
Henry Royce's last design was the
Rolls-Royce Merlin Merlin aero engine, which came out in
1935, although he had died in
1933. This was developed after the
Rolls-Royce R R engine, which had powered a record-breaking
Supermarine S6B
seaplane to almost 400 mph in the 1931
Schneider Trophy. The Merlin was a powerful V12 engine and was fitted into many
World War II aircraft: the British
Hawker Hurricane,
Supermarine Spitfire,
De Havilland Mosquito (two-engine),
Avro Lancaster (four-engine),
Vickers Wellington (two-engine); it also transformed the American
P-51 Mustang into possibly the best fighter of its time, its Merlin engine built by
Packard under license. Over 160,000 Merlin engines were produced.
In the post-
World War II period Rolls-Royce made significant advances in
gas turbine engine design and manufacture. The Dart and Tyne
turboprop engines were particularly important, enabling
airlines to cut times for shorter journeys whilst
jet aircraft jet airliners were introduced on longer services. The Dart engine was used in Argosy,
Avro 748,
Fokker F27 Friendship, Herald and
Vickers Viscount Viscount aircraft, whilst the more powerful Tyne powered the Atlantic, Transall and
Vickers Vanguard Vanguard, and the SRN-4
hovercraft. Many of these turboprops are still in service.
Amongst the
jet engines of this period was the RB163 Spey, which powers the
Hawker-Siddeley Trident Trident,
BAC 1-11, Grumman Gulfstream II and
Fokker F28.
During the late 1950s and 1960s there was a significant rationalisation of British aero-engine manufacturers, culminating in the merger of Rolls-Royce and
Bristol Siddeley in
1966 (Bristol Siddeley had itself resulted from the merger of
Armstrong-Siddeley and
Bristol Aeroplane Company Bristol in 1959). Bristol Siddeley, with its principal factory at
Filton, near
Bristol, had a strong base in military engines, including the
Rolls Royce Olympus Olympus,
Armstrong Siddeley Viper Viper,
Rolls-Royce Pegasus Pegasus and
Bristol Orpheus Orpheus. They also manufactured the
Olympus 593 Mk610 for
Concorde.
In the early 1970s, following Rolls-Royce's bankruptcy and nationalisation, the aero-engines and automobile division were separated. The Rolls-Royce aircraft engines company was privatised in 1987.
Today Rolls-Royce is the world's second-largest aero-engine manufacturer and continues to power many of the world's civil and military
aircraft.
Current products include the
RB211 and
Rolls-Royce Trent Trent three shaft civil turbofan series plus many engines made in collaboration with other manufacturers e.g.
V2500,
RB199,
EJ200,
RTM322, etc.
Rolls-Royce cars
Rolls-Royce cars 1904-1939
* 1904-1906
Rolls-Royce 10 hp 10 hp
* 1905-1905
Rolls-Royce 15 hp 15 hp
* 1905-1908
Rolls-Royce 20 hp 20 hp
* 1905-1906
Rolls-Royce 30 hp 30 hp
* 1905-1906
Rolls-Royce Legalimit Legalimit
* 1906-1925
Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost 40/50 Silver Ghost
* 1922-1929
Rolls-Royce 20 hp 20 hp
* 1925-1929
Rolls-Royce Phantom 40/50 Phantom
* 1929-1936
Rolls-Royce 20/25 20/25
* 1929-1935
Rolls-Royce Phantom II Phantom II
* 1936-1938
Rolls-Royce 25/30 25/30
* 1936-1939
Rolls-Royce Phantom III Phantom III
* 1939-1939
Rolls-Royce Wraith Wraith
'''Bentley Models''' (from 1933)
* 1933-1937
Bentley 3.5 L Bentley 3½ L
* 1936-1939
Bentley 3.5 L Bentley 4¼ L
* 1940-1940
Bentley 3.5 L Bentley 4¼ L Mk V
Rolls-Royce cars 1945-1998
Image:Rolls Royce logo.png thumb|right|100px|The Rolls-Royce logo.
Main cars in this period:
* 1949-1955
Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith Silver Wraith
* 1949-1955
Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn Silver Dawn
* 1950-1956
Rolls-Royce Phantom IV Phantom IV
* 1955-1966
Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud Silver Cloud
* 1959-1968
Rolls-Royce Phantom V Phantom V
* 1965-1980
Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow Silver Shadow — the first Rolls-Royce with a
monocoque chassis; started with a 6.23 L V8 engine, later expanded to 6.75 L; shared its design with the
Bentley T-series
* 1968-1991
Rolls-Royce Phantom VI Phantom VI
* 1971-1996
Rolls-Royce Corniche Corniche
* 1975-1986
Rolls-Royce Camargue Camargue with a
Pininfarina body
* 1980-1998
Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit Silver Spirit/Spur/Dawn — design shared with the
Bentley Mulsanne
Bentley models were produced mostly in parallel with the above cars. The Bentley Continental coupés (produced in various forms from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s) did not have Rolls-Royce equivalents. Very expensive Rolls-Royce Phantom limousines were also produced.
Rolls-Royce cars from 1998
* 1998-2002 '''
Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph Silver Seraph''' — This shared its design with the
Bentley Arnage, which sold in much greater numbers.
* 2000-2002 '''
Rolls-Royce Corniche (2000) Corniche''' — This two-door convertible shared its design with the
Bentley Azure and was the most expensive Rolls-Royce until the introduction of the 2003 Phantom.
* 2003 '''
Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003) Phantom''' — Launched in January 2003 at
Detroit's
North American International Auto Show, this is the first model of '''Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited''', a
BMW subsidiary having no technical or corporate connection with the original Rolls-Royce company, apart from the trademarks mentioned above. The car has a 6.75 L V12 engine from BMW, but most other components are unique to the car. Most parts are made in
Germany, but the assembly and finishing is in a new factory in
Goodwood,
Sussex. The price starts at around £250,000. It is available in normal and extended wheelbase.
Rolls-Royce cars timeline
{{Rolls-Royce}}
Prototypes
*
Rolls-Royce 100EX
*
Rolls-Royce 101EX
Further reading
* Richard Feast, ''Kidnap of the Flying Lady: How Germany Captured Both Rolls Royce and Bentley'', Motorbooks, ISBN-7603-1686-4
External links
{{commonscat|Rolls-Royce vehicles}}
-
Rolls-Royce
-
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
-
Rolls-Royce and Bentley enthusiasts' website
-
Rolls-Royce picture galleries
Category:1906 establishments
Category:British automobile manufacturers
Category:Luxury car manufacturers
Category:Prestige vehicles
Category:Rolls-Royce *
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{{catmore}}
Category:British automobile manufacturers
Category:Luxury car manufacturers
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see
Rolls-Royce
{| cellspacing=1 cellpadding=0 class="toccolours plainlinks" align="center"
|||align="center" colspan=23|'''
Rolls-Royce road car timeline'''||colspan=3 align=right|{{Edit|Template:Rolls-Royce}}
|-
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|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1900s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1910s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1920s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1930s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1940s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1950s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1960s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1970s
|align=center colspan=2 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1980s
|align=center colspan=4 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|1990s
|align=center colspan=4 width=8% bgcolor=#F0F0F0|2000s
|- align=center
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|- align=center bgcolor=#E0E0E0
|colspan=16|Independent
|colspan=5|
Vickers
|colspan=5|
BMW
|- align=center
|bgcolor=#F0F0F0|
Sedan Saloon
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
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Rolls-Royce 20 H.P. 20/25/30
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Rolls-Royce Wraith Wraith
|rowspan=3 colspan=1 bgcolor=#996699|
World War II WWII
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Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn Dawn
|colspan=2 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud Cloud
|colspan=3 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow Silver Shadow
|colspan=5 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit Silver Spirit/Spur
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
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|- align=center
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Luxury car Premium
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
Rolls-Royce 10 H.P. Rolls-Royce 10 H.P.
|colspan=4 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Silver Ghost
|colspan=3 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Phantom I Phantom I Rolls-Royce Phantom II II Rolls-Royce Phantom III III
|colspan=3 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith Silver Wraith
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
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Rolls-Royce Camargue Camargue
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|colspan=2 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
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Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph Seraph
|colspan=3 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003) Phantom
|- align=center
|bgcolor=#F0F0F0|
Convertible
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
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|colspan=7 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Corniche Corniche Rolls-Royce Corniche II Rolls-Royce Corniche III Rolls-Royce Corniche IV
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#C0C0C0 |
Rolls-Royce Corniche (2000) C
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=2 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
Rolls-Royce Corniche (2000) 100EX
|}
*** Shopping-Tip: Rolls-Royce
