autonews: Gallery: Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III cabriolet 1964

In 1963, Abraham van Leeuwen, Prince de Lignac, commissioned this Silver Cloud III to be built according to his own specific taste and instructions. The car was delivered to him by Rolls-Royce (Export Division) Ltd on 1st January 1964, having been registered in the UK as ‘679 EGK’. The Prince greatly enjoyed ownership of his Rolls-Royce, which spent most of its time on the Côte d’Azur parked in front of his 60-metre long yacht ‘The New Horizon’ (voted most beautiful ship in the world several times) until his death in 2001.

Soon afterwards, the Rolls-Royce came into the ownership of a charitable foundation that the Prince de Lignac had founded, and was exhibited at the Autotron Museum near ‘s-Hertgonbosch in the Netherlands. After the Autotron Museum was taken over by the world famous Louwman Museum in Wassenaar, Netherlands, the Silver Cloud was in need of a new home.

The present (second private) owner purchased the car in April 2008 and began the process of its complete and careful restoration. A dozen well-known European restorers were consulted and three years later, in the summer of 2011, the renowned Dutch expert Nico Oosterhuis was commissioned to carry out the work. Mr Oosterhuis is one of the most experienced experts in restoring Rolls-Royces and Bentleys, with more than 40 years of experience in this field.

The restoration took the best part of three and a half years. All the mechanicals, including the engine, gearbox, steering box and brakes were fully restored together with the carburettors, radiator, starter motor, dynamo, heating system, suspension, exhaust system (now stainless steel) and dashboard instruments. An electronic ignition system was installed also. The interior was completely re-trimmed and a new hood fitted with exacting attention to detail, and the interior could now be described as more comfortable and luxurious than that of most homes.

The chassis was in good condition; the body however, required a great deal of attention, consuming the bulk of resources both in time and cost. The original Porcelain White exterior colour was changed to a two-tone combination of Masons Black over Regal Red, and the car is now in concours condition.