1931 Rolls-Royce 20/25hp Limousine

Coachwork by Windovers Registration no. GP 5809 Chassis no. GFT5

Footnotes

'The traits of the larger chassis, acknowledged to be the best in the world, embodied in a dignified yet brisk motor car' was how Motor Sport magazine summed up the Rolls-Royce 20/25hp in 1933.

The introduction of a smaller Rolls-Royce - the 20hp - in 1922 had enabled the company to cater for the increasingly important owner-driver market that appreciated the quality of Rolls-Royce engineering but did not need a car as large as a 40/50hp Ghost or Phantom. The 'Twenty' proved eminently suited to town use yet could cope admirably with Continental touring when called upon. Its successor, the 20/25hp, introduced in 1929, up-dated the concept with significant improvements, featuring an enlarged (from 3,127 to 3,669cc) and more-powerful cross-flow version of the Twenty's six-cylinder, overhead-valve engine. The latter's increased power allowed the bespoke coachbuilders greater freedom in their efforts to satisfy a discerning clientele that demanded ever larger and more opulent designs. Produced concurrently with the Phantom II, the 20/25 benefited from many of the larger model's improvements, such as synchromesh gears and centralised chassis lubrication, becoming the best-selling Rolls-Royce of the inter-war period.

The Rolls-Royce 20/25hp was, of course, an exclusively coachbuilt automobile and most of the great British coachbuilders offered designs, many of them unique, on the 20/25hp chassis. The example presented here carries limousine-with-division coachwork by the respected firm of Windovers. Founded in 1856 in Huntingdon but from 1924 based in North West London, Windovers diversified into the manufacture of motor bodies in the early 1900s, concentrating on quality marques – chiefly Daimler and Rolls-Royce at first – before adding the likes of Alvis, Armstrong-Siddeley, Lagonda, Lanchester, Mercedes-Benz and Bentley to its portfolio in the 1930s.

Chassis number 'GFT5' is listed in Tom C Clarke's definitive work, 'The Rolls-Royce 20/25hp', as off test on 15th August 1931, its first owner being one W Swire. The car was purchased by the late owner in 1984 from Guards Coaches of London (the only listed previous owner) via well-known dealer, Peter Harper (receipt on file). Also on file are numerous invoices dating back to 1983, including those for an interior re-trim (1991), starter motor rebuild (2007), brake system overhaul (2012), and lots of general servicing work. There are also many expired MoT certificates dating back to November 1983 at 23,683 miles, the most recent being issued in 2012 with a mileage of 46,309. Like the other cars in the late owner's private collection, the Rolls-Royce has seen little used for last two or so years.