Roll’s-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club
This month over 1,200 Rolls-Royce and Bentley motor cars will gather at Burghley House for a concours d’elegance event, the largest gathering of the vehicles anywhere in the world. It’s a chance to admire some beautiful examples of the marques
If you’ve ever doubted the old adage that it’s better to travel than to arrive, you probably haven’t been chauffeured in a Rolls-Royce. It’s perhaps the best-known and most revered brand in the world, synonymous with luxury and with over 120 years of provenance.
Among the marque’s devotees are the 7,500 or so members of the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club, of which around 4,000 members are based here in the UK. The Club began life in 1957 and usually holds its flagship annual event in the same location for five years in a row.
However, since 2015 Burghley House has been the preferred location for the Club to invite what has become the largest gathering of Rolls-Royce and Bentley motor car owners to celebrate the very best of luxury motoring with the stately home as an impressive backdrop to the event.
Not too far away from Stamford are Rolls-Royce and Bentley aficionados Philip Robinson and Stephen Went. We met in the village of Water Newton right next to the River Nene. The place is also home to their 3 beautiful self-catering cottages (www.rivernenecottages.co.uk) a beautiful setting to experience the couple’s motor cars and find out if the magic of the two brands still endures in the 21st century.
Raised in Zimbabwe, Philip was schooled in England and worked in banking where, at the age of just 26, he was able to purchase his first Rolls-Royce, a 1963 Silver Cloud III. That was back in the late 1980s, during which era the voiture de jour would have been a Porsche 911, with a few choice optional extras; Filofax, red braces, mobile phone with brick-like proportions. So what made Philip opt for a Rolls?
“Elegance, craftsmanship, quality,” he says. “The cars are hand-built and I think that – subliminally, if not consciously – you appreciate the fact that somebody has really worked hard and put an incredible amount of effort and talent into creating something so magisterial.”
“At no point in the process has anybody intervened and deemed a process too labour-intensive, or a material too expensive. Nobody will have compromised or settled for less than excellence, and that really is reflected in the car, experientially but also technically.”
Undoubtedly the sight of so many of the vehicles in one place is impressive, but this is not 1904 and today’s cars are all rich in technology, generally reliable, rapid enough and reasonably quiet.
Those were all unique hallmarks of Rolls-Royce vehicles as far back as 1904 when Sir Henry Royce and Charles Rolls conceived the 30hp (of which just 37 were produced between 1905 and 1906), before the Silver Ghost was declared a satisfactory outcome of the company’s ambition to build ‘the best car in the world’ – or rather cars (plural) since 7,874 examples were made.
That’s impressive for the era, and was sufficient to secure the marque’s reputation for the next century and beyond. But in a world where adjectives like ‘luxurious’ are a ubiquitous addition in any marketeer’s copy, is a Rolls-Royce or a Bentley still the ultimate expression of engineering and comfort? We thought we’d find out.
Philip is the Events Manager for the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club Annual Rally 2024, and looks forward to the Burghley event, keen for as many people as possible to discover the romance and technical excellence of the cars for themselves. Rolls-Royce and Bentley motor cars come in all shapes and sizes, but the Club celebrates all of the two marques’ models, from the very early vintage vehicles to the modern classics and Goodwood-era vehicles.
The latter point should be explained and it was a point that always puzzled me. Rolls-Royce and Bentley were similarly positioned in the market as luxury vehicles, yet they were the same company for a number of years. I wondered why you’d have two very similar brands surely competing with each other.
It turns out there’s a significant point of difference between the two brands. Bentley was founded in 1919, 15 years after the founding of Rolls-Royce. Hit hard by the great depression of 1931, Bentley ran into financial difficulties, and was acquired by British Central Equitable Trust which was in reality Rolls-Royce. Both brands would endure, with their future models developed concurrently, which solved a problem for Rolls-Royce which had always favoured cars that provided a smooth, quiet, ‘wafty’ ride.
Bentley motor cars, meanwhile, were favoured by those seeking a more spirited ride, who aspired to follow in the tyre marks of Tim Birkin and the rest of the Bentley Boys of the 1920s.
Happily, with both brands, the company could now develop two separate lineages with one oriented towards pure luxury and one providing a more sporty experience. That’s why you won’t see a rev counter in most Rolls-Royces, but you’ll find one front and centre in the cabin of a Bentley.
In 1998, the companies diverged with Rolls-Royce purchased by BMW Group and Bentley purchased by the Volkswagen group. Rolls-Royce’s cars were produced at a new facility in Goodwood, with 90 people working along the Glass Mile, a vast production facility with the entire linear assembly line flanked by huge panes of glass to make the whole manufacturing operation visible to the world.
Is there any brand snobbery or bias towards Rolls-Royce or Bentley, and are any particular vintages of cars preferred? “No!” says Philip. “It’s an inclusive club in which both marques are revered and all ages of cars are celebrated right up to Goodwood-era vehicles.”
“Some owners favour cars from a particular era, or from one brand or the other, but that’s personal preference. Each iteration of car represents the best of what could be achieved in engineering and as an expression of luxury at the time.”
I wondered, too, with generally better, generally more sophisticated cars – like a thoroughly modern and very competent Tesla I drove recently – if new cars are so good that the point of difference (luxury and engineering) that Rolls-Royce and Bentley once championed are now ubiquitous among luxury cars from brands like Range Rover, Mercedes and BMW.
‘Judge that for yourself,’ was Philip’s response, as we headed towards two of his vehicles with a view to experiencing the marque for ourselves, and comparing vehicles from two eras.
Our cars were a 1970 Silver Shadow LWB named Beyoncé, and a 1997 Silver Spur LPT (Light Pressure Turbo) named Mary Berry (the cars all have personal names of significance). The couple’s 2001 Park Ward (Silver Seraph LWB, ‘Eminem’) and Bentley Arnage R Mulliner (‘Louis’) were enjoying some R&R at Peakirk’s Colbrook R&B who provide specialist service and restoration for the marques.
‘Beyoncé’ was parked next to a modern Range Rover, but the difference in size was vast. Even accounting for the fact that the car is an extended wheelbase model it’s physically huge, long and wide with that enormous grille and a proud Spirit of Ecstasy on the bonnet (specified with a little bit of bling in gold rather than silver from the factory… now is not the time to be bashful).
The cabin is equally enormous with incredibly deep, squashy seats in dove grey Connolly Vaumol hide, leather Duchess handles and chrome accents everywhere. Under the bonnet is a 6.2-litre engine with eight cylinders. For context, even the most powerful modern Range Rover Sport models are only 4.4-litre eight-cylinder cars, albeit turbocharged and more modern. The power feels enormous with a guttural rumble still despite the company’s soundproofing and refinement.
Just like a modern Range Rover Sport, the car weighs over two tonnes, but whereas the former has a number of electronic systems to provide driver assistance, the Silver Shadow has recirculating ball steering and comparatively basic disc brakes. Interestingly, it does have a similar suspension setup to Citroën’s DS of the 1960s, providing a superbly gentle ride.
The available power was obvious even though the car is 55 years old, but most impressive was the gentle ride. A little body roll by today’s standards but very comfortable and composed over road gaps and patchy surfaces.
Back at River Nene Cottages, we alighted from Beyoncé and stepped forward 30 years into Mary Berry, so-called because she was purchased by Philip and Stephen just prior to Christmas, and the official name of her colour is Wildberry.
Inside, there’s magnolia hide, piped in matching Wildberry, pretty glossy walnut veneer and the very deepest lambswool rugs you’ve ever felt. About 320hp, Philip reckons, from the 6.75-litre hand-built engine.
Despite Mary’s age, the power the car possesses is impressive today, never mind back in the late 1990s. Dynamically, it’s a bit more taut, stiffer, but very refined and quiet. Travelling in the rear is an absolute treat, with lots of room and a sense of hush despite the enormous power underfoot.
The evolution that Philip eluded to from generation to generation is apparent. He’d suggested that each Rolls-Royce iteration is two or three decades ahead of whatever else is on the roads at the time, and I can see now that’s not a baseless claim.
The question, then. Is a Rolls-Royce still as special in an era of well-engineered cars where luxury is a ubiquitous claim? Yes. Absolutely.Surprising though, it’s a tangible quality, as well as the sense of reverence that a Rolls-Royce naturally commands.
They are both genuinely beautiful vehicles and very well-engineered too, able to hold up well against much newer vehicles giving a sense that the cars are simultaneously ahead of their time but abiding in their remit of offering luxury motoring.
Visitors to this year’s event will see around 1,200 vehicles, with a good number of those competing for the Concours d’Elegance’s best in show award. Non-members of the Club are very much welcome to this ticketed event and can enjoy a great day out and a celebration of the greatest brand in the world.
As well as the display of vehicles, and many trade stands, there are driving experiences, live music and it’s hoped – although unconfirmed at the time of print – a special guest in the form of Edwardian-era AX201, the most famous Silver Ghost in the world.
Happily though, Philip doesn’t need to wait for Club events to enjoy a drive. His regular trips in Beyoncé include picking up fish ‘n’ chips on a Friday evening… if that’s not a quintessentially British journey in a vehicle that remains an icon of British engineering excellence 120 years on, we’re not sure what is!
The Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club (RREC) Annual Rally will take place at Burghley House from 21st-23rd June. See www.rrec.org.uk.
