‘MODELS OF THE MARQUE’: THE 1920s – ROLLS-ROYCE 20 H.P. THE ‘TWENTY’

• A brief history of the Rolls-Royce #20 H.P. – known as the
  ‘Twenty’ – launched in 1922
• A transformative motor car for the marque, it was the first
  Rolls-Royce ever designed expressly to be owner-driven rather than chauffeured
• Third in a series celebrating landmark models from each decade of
  the marque’s history, from its foundational years in the 1900s to
  the contemporary Goodwood era
• Year-long retrospective marks the 120th anniversary of the first
  meeting between Henry Royce and The Hon. Charles Stewart Rolls in 1904

 

“The legendary #20 H.P., known simply as the ‘Twenty’, was
launched on 6 October 1922. Designed by Henry Royce, it ranks among
the most important and transformational models ever produced by the
marque. Its technology was highly advanced for the time and set the
mechanical template for generations of Rolls-Royce motor cars that
followed it. Smaller, lighter and less complex than its
predecessors, it was also the first Rolls-Royce specifically
intended for owners to drive themselves, rather than chauffeured
use, reflecting the changed world in which Rolls-Royce found itself
operating after 1918. More than a century later, its influence can
still be seen in contemporary automotive engineering and design,
including the models we build at Goodwood today – a remarkable motor
car with an extraordinary legacy.”

Andrew Ball, Head of Corporate Relations and Heritage,
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars

A CHANGED WORLD
Even before the Armistice was
signed in 1918, Henry Royce was preparing for what he knew would be a
very different post-war world. He reasoned that, given the likely
difficulty of recruiting, retaining or affording a mechanic or
chauffeur as they had done previously, some customers would no longer
be able or willing to run the marque’s most popular pre-1914 model,
the 40/50 H.P. ‘Silver Ghost’. He needed to create a motor car that
was simpler to maintain – and, even more importantly, that the owner
could more easily drive themselves. At the same time, Royce knew these
discerning clients would expect and accept nothing less than the
Rolls-Royce standards of excellence they were accustomed to – and
neither would he.

THE ‘TWENTY’
On 6 October 1922, Rolls-Royce unveiled its
new ‘small horsepower’ motor car, the 20 H.P., the first Rolls-Royce
ever designed expressly to be owner-driven rather than chauffeured. It
was immediately obvious that the ‘Twenty’, as it quickly became known,
represented a huge technical leap forward. Its straight-six cylinder,
3.1-litre engine was less than half the size of the Silver Ghost’s
7.5-litre unit: however, the new model also weighed around 30% less.
This meant the performance gap between them was far less than the raw
numbers might suggest. Indeed, with its light controls and more
advanced steering, braking and suspension systems, the ‘Twenty’ made
the Silver Ghost seem rather outdated, although the larger model
remained significantly ahead of its direct competitors.

The ‘Twenty’ quickly became a firm favourite both with
established Rolls-Royce owners and those new customers for whom, as
Royce had predicted, purchase price and ongoing running costs were
more important considerations than they had been a few years earlier.

In letters to the motoring press, one happy owner praised it as
‘a charming piece of mechanism’ while another declared, ‘I have never
handled anything as sweet-running’. A company advertisement quoted an
expert assessment of the car as ‘everything a motorist can want…
motoring with a high degree of refinement and its simplicity of
construction will delight the driver’. After taking delivery of his
car, a contented customer wrote to the company from his home in France
declaring: ‘I drove my 20 H.P. here from Liverpool and am very
satisfied with the running of the engine, not having to change gear
between Liverpool and Versailles’.

WEIGHTY ISSUES
Like all Rolls-Royce models of the era, the
‘Twenty’ was produced as a ‘rolling chassis’, on which owners
commissioned bespoke bodywork from an independent coachbuilder. Royce
had always intended that it should primarily be an owner-driver car
and hoped coachbuilders and customers alike would embrace this by
keeping their creations as svelte and lightweight as possible.

However, he was unable to change the habits of a lifetime among
some customers. Many owners persisted in specifying their preferred
style of solid, formal coachwork that was both heavier and produced
greater wind resistance. To Royce’s understandable irritation, these
massive, overbuilt bodies inevitably compromised performance.

Ever the pragmatist, Royce knew there was only one way to
improve the weight-to-performance ratio. In 1929, the ‘Twenty’ was
replaced by the 20/25 H.P., powered by an enlarged capacity engine,
followed in 1935 by the 25/30 H.P. with a 4.25-litre powerplant. The
‘small horsepower’ era finally came to an end with the Wraith of 1938.
These later iterations, all direct developments of the ‘Twenty’, add
further lustre to its record and reputation.

A LASTING INFLUENCE
The ‘Twenty’ had a profound influence
on Rolls-Royce long after production ceased in 1929, by which time no
fewer than 2,940 examples had been built. In particular, the straight
six-cylinder engine – with detachable cylinder head and overhead
valves – would provide the template for Rolls-Royce engines for years
to come. Open the bonnet of any six-cylinder Rolls-Royce right up to
the Silver Cloud model (1955-9) and their shared heritage is clear to
see, albeit with many internal improvements. And when the by-then
venerable Silver Ghost was replaced with the new Phantom in 1925, its
engine also adopted the essential ‘Twenty’ pattern.