Description
West Coast Classics are proud to present an exceptional and rare all original and stock and therefore very collectible example of this original southern California 1978 Rolls Royce Corniche 2 Door Coupe, coachbuilt by Mulliner Park Ward, with 23K original miles and originally owned by Blake Edwards & Julie Andrews!
1 of only 1, 108 Corniche Coupes ever built between the 1971-1982 production run.
23, 132 original miles
Originally owned by Blake Edwards & Julie Andrews
Dealer serviced including recent comprehensive full service at renown Rolls Royce specialists.
Originally purchased by the renown American film director and Oscar winner Blake Edwards on 8/ 2/ 1978 from the Rolls Royce/ Bentley dealership, 'Roy Carver Inc' of Newport Beach, CA. A legendary Rolls Royce owner, Mr Edwards was renown for meeting his future wife, the British actress Julie Andrews, in 1966 at a Hollywood intersection whilst driving a Rolls Royce! They married in 1969 and enjoyed over 40 years together before his death in 2010 and he purchased this particular 'Silver Sand' 1978 Corniche Coupe in 1978 and was reportedly one of his and his wife's favorite cars!
This particular example is finished in highly striking and virtually flawless all original factory 'Silver Sand' color paint with its original 'Dark Brown' Everflex roof and all original 'Dark Brown leather hides' and matching sheepskin rugs and carpeting.
All the chromework including the Rolls Royce grille is in absolutely outstanding condition and the interior has its original 'Dark Brown' leather seats which are in very fine condition with some very desirable original patina but no signs of any significant wear and with no rips or tears. The leather dashboard is also in exceptional condition (always garaged from the sun) and the 'Fawn' mohair headliner is also in very fine condition. The original burled walnut woodwork is also in very fine condition and all the power options including the front electric windows and two rear electric wing vent windows are working as they should.
The Silver Shadow coupe was an exclusive model sold in very few numbers (568 in total RR MPW coupes & 98 Bentley T MPW models built between 1965-71) and assembled in Crewe and finished in London at the renown Rolls Royce coachbuilders 'H. J. Mulliner', who had actually already merged with 'Park Ward' and become 'Mulliner Park Ward', and who continued their 1965 Silver Shadow coupes and 1967 dropheads later applying the 'Corniche' name in 1971. The Corniche coupe was discontinued in 1982. Total production of the 'Corniche' coupes (1971-82) was only 1, 108 and of the convertibles (1971-87) was only 3, 239.
The convertible 'drophead coupe' model was reworked in 1986 as the Corniche II (with 1, 226 produced), in 1989 as the Corniche III (with 452 produced) and in 1993 as the Corniche IV (with only 244 produced) when production was moved to Crewe after the closure of Mulliner Park Ward and the final form in 2000 was as the Corniche V after which production ceased in 2001.
This obviously always very well maintained Rolls Royce engine with only 23K original miles runs extremely strong and these cars are not slow - the engine purrs like a kitten, never stalls or idles rough and is extremely reliable - there is plenty of power to pull away at the lights and it cruises at high speeds with absolute ease. The transmission shift is almost imperceptibly smooth and the temperature always remains cool.
This Rolls Royce Corniche is truly a sensual car that you can drive with your fingertips, smooth and relatively silent, it's thoroughly therapeutic for both drivers and passengers. The delightful precision action of the electrically powered steering column gear change and the ultra light weighted power steering allows one to park this 5000lbs of pure luxury with literally one finger and this long but actually quite slender car is anything but ponderous thanks to it's torque and brilliant turning radius! The ride is truly luxurious from a high riding position and the soft feel is like no other car on the road. This particular model drives particularly well and must be driven to be fully appreciated.
Without a doubt you will look long and hard to find a finer driving or indeed looking example of this rare all original and very collectible and surviving example of a 1978 Rolls Royce Corniche MPW coupe, an obviously always garaged original southern California car with a storied past and very low original miles!
This is one of the last in the original line of cars hand built in the legendary Rolls Royce Crewe factory and then converted at their renown coachbuilders Mulliner Park Ward, of London England, with a quality and craftsmanship that far surpasses that of today's mass produced models with many BMW parts - this is indeed a rare opportunity to own a piece of classic automotive history, from a time when Rolls Royce was truly building the world's finest automobiles - a great investment for the Rolls Royce enthusiast or collector or simply an outstandingly striking example of a very rare and unusual Rolls Royce for the discerning luxury classic car owner!
