Its about the journey of the famous automobile brand Rolls Royce. From its birth to its fame, it has seen many ups and downs in its life span of more than 100 years.
1884
Henry Royce started an electrical and mechanical business.
1904
- Royce made his first car, a two-cylinder Royce 10, in his Manchester factory and introduced to Charles Rolls that year, who was proprietor of an early motor car dealership, C. S. Rolls & Co. in Fulham.
- In the same year a partnership began between Rolls and Royce.
- Rolls preferred three or four cylinder cars. But he was impressed with the Royce 10 (being a two cylinder car). He agreed to take all the cars Royce could make. There would be four models (10 hp, 15 hp, 20 hp and 30 hp)
- It was agreed that all models would have a badge of Rolls-Royce, and be sold exclusively by Rolls.
- In December the first Rolls-Royce car, the Rolls-Royce 10 hp, was unveiled at the Paris Salon in.
1906
- 15th March 1906, Rolls-Royce Limited formed as a result of partnership. New premises were required for production of cars. After considering an offer from Derby's council of cheap electricity, the decision was taken to acquire a site on the southern edge of that city.
- The 40/50 hp was developed as the company's first all-new model. This chassis was used for Rolls Royce Armoured Car.
- In 1906, Rolls-Royce produced four chassis for exhibition at the Olympia car show.:
- a four-cylinder 20 hp
- a six-cylinder 30 hp, and
- two examples of a new car designated the 40/50 hp.
- But the 40/50 hp was so new that the show cars were not fully finished, and examples were not provided to the press for testing until March 1907.
- During World War I development of the Silver Ghost was suspended, but the chassis and engine were supplied for use in a range of Rolls-Royce Armoured Cars.
- In March 1908, Claude Johnson, Commercial Managing Director also described as the hyphen in Rolls-Royce, persuaded that Rolls-Royce should concentrate exclusively on the new model. Hence, all the earlier models were duly discontinued.
- The factory began with a formal opening on 9th July 1908 by Sir John Montagu.
- Aero engine manufacturing was started by Rolls-Royce.
- The company opened a second factory in Springfield, Massachusetts in the United States (to help meet demand), where a further 1,701 "Springfield Silver Ghosts" were built. The factory was closed in 1931.
- Rolls Royce introduced the smaller and cheaper Twenty in 1922, effectively ending the one-model policy followed since 1908.
- Despite several improvements in 40/50, by the early 1920s the performance of the Silver Ghost's competitors had improved to the extent that its previous superiority had been eroded.
- Sales of 40/50 declined from 742 in 1913 to 430 in 1922.
- Therefore the company decided to launch its replacement which was introduced in 1925 as the New Phantom, after the launch of which the older 40/50 models were referred to as the Silver Ghost to avoid confusion.
- Rolls Royce acquired car maker Bantley, which splintered in the wake of the Great Depression. From World War II until 2002 standard Bentley and Rolls-Royce cars were often identical apart from the radiator grille and minor details.
- Bentley was purchased by Volkswagen AG in 1998.
- The colour of the Rolls-Royce radiator monogram was changed from red to black.
- Rolls-Royce and Bentley car production moved to Crewe, where they began to assemble complete cars (the new standard steel models) for the first time. Before 1946, they had built only the chassis, leaving the bodies to specialist coachbuilders.
- Due to costs of developing the advanced RB211 jet engine, the financial status of the company splintered.
- Hence, the company went was nationalised as Rolls-Royce (1971) Limited.
- The car division of the company was separated as Rolls-Royce Motors.
- The company Rolls-Royce (1971) Limited was privatised as Rolls-Royce Plc.
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