MODELS OF THE MARQUE – THE 1980s: ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM VI

• A brief history of the Rolls-Royce Phantom VI, built between 1968
  and 1993
• Last fully coachbuilt Rolls-Royce before the practice was revived
  in the Goodwood era
• Eighth chapter in a series celebrating landmark models from each
  decade of the marque’s history
• Year-long retrospective marks the 120^th anniversary of
  the first meeting between Henry Royce and The Hon. Charles Stewart
  Rolls in 1904

“The 1980s marked a watershed for Rolls-Royce, as the marque
produced its last rolling chassis, ending a line unbroken since
1904. However, the coachbuilding era ended in suitably magnificent
style with Phantom VI. Launched in 1968, just 374 were built in a
production cycle that extended over two decades; however, the 1980s
can be regarded as its true heyday – only six examples were
completed after 1990. The last fully coachbuilt Rolls-Royce, Phantom
VI had coachwork by H. J. Mulliner Park Ward, then a wholly in-house
operation; the best-known commissions were likely those built for
the Royal fleet, which remain in service today. It would be more
than 20 years before coachbuilt motor cars of comparable quality and
detail would become available, when Rolls-Royce began its modern-day
coachbuilding operation at Goodwood with ‘Sweptail’ in 2017. This
was followed by the announcement of a dedicated department within
Rolls-Royce named Coachbuild, and the unveiling of Boat Tail in
2021, then Droptail in 2023. Phantom VI is thus an important marker
in the Rolls-Royce story, as both the swansong of traditional
coachbuilding, and a model for the new generation that would follow.”

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

From its foundation in 1904, Rolls-Royce built
rolling chassis, upon which clients commissioned coachwork from an
independent coachbuilder. The marque produced its first complete
monocoque cars in the 1960s, but continued to offer rolling chassis
until the 1980s.

Phantom VI was the last Rolls-Royce to be made available in this
form. In line with standard Rolls-Royce practice, established by Sir
Henry Royce himself, Phantom VI was born out of the upgrades and
enhancements to its predecessor, Phantom V. The accumulated
improvements reached the point where Rolls-Royce engineers judged it
sufficiently evolved to be worthy of a new designation.

Even so, Phantom VI already felt like something of an
anachronism. Phantom V clients had been able to choose coachwork from
four great names: H. J. Mulliner, Park Ward, Hoopers and James Young.
By 1961, the latter two had closed their doors, while Rolls-Royce had
acquired and amalgamated the other two to create its own in-house
coachbuilder, known as H. J. Mulliner Park Ward, which would provide
the bodies for virtually all Phantom VI motor cars.

Like all Rolls-Royce models, Phantom VI underwent various
changes during its lifecycle, including a more powerful 6.75-litre V8
engine and a modern three-speed automatic gearbox to replace the
original four-speed version inherited from the Silver Cloud era. It
also had specially engineered brakes, which used the Silver
Shadow-style high-pressure hydraulics to operate rams connected to
twin master cylinders; the brake drums were designed for improved heat
dissipation and more efficient linings.

Changes in safety legislation required front-hinged doors with
burst-proof locks, flush interior door handles and a steering column
that would collapse upon impact. New crash-testing protocols also
meant the prototype Phantom VI chassis, PRH1500, suffered the
indignity of being driven into a 100-tonne concrete block at 30mph
(48km/h) – a test it passed so effortlessly it was subsequently
rebuilt and is still in service as a courtesy car at a Swiss hotel to
this day.

Although coachbuilding was by now a niche offer even for
Rolls-Royce, Phantom VI provided a fitting ‘last hurrah’ for this
longstanding traditional craft. The seven ‘Special Limousines’,
codenamed ‘Alpha’, for example, were superficially similar to other
Phantom VIs; but close examination revealed wider, chrome-plated
window trims and 16” wheels with tyres inflated to 90psi. These
modifications were required to accommodate the 5mm thick glass and 7mm
of armour plating that rendered the rear passenger compartment both
bullet and bomb-proof. No such provision was made for the luckless
chauffeur, however.

Phantom VI was also the last truly coachbuilt Rolls-Royce to
offer both Sedanca de Ville and landaulette coachwork. The landaulette
was available opening either to the B-pillar or over the rear seat,
the latter variant being the choice of HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen
Mother. Her daughter, HM Queen Elizabeth II, owned two Phantom VIs.
The first, codenamed ‘Oil Barrel’, had its roof height raised by 13cm
(5″) and a Perspex rear cupola that could be quickly covered by a
two-piece, black-painted aluminium dome when the occupants require
privacy. The second, delivered for the Royal fleet in July 1987, was
codenamed ‘Lady Norfolk’ and had a standard roof height. Both remain
in service at the Royal Mews today.

Increasing difficulty in obtaining minor chassis and coachwork
components manufactured in the Silver Cloud era finally put paid to
Phantom VI production. The last iteration commissioned by a client was
delivered in May 1991; its 117 bespoke features included a solid
silver fruit bowl to sit atop the cabinet behind the division, kept in
place by concealed magnets.

In its 23-year lifecycle, just 374 Phantom VIs were built. The
very last example to be completed was a landaulette finished in black
over red, with red leather in the front and red velvet in the rear
compartment. Rolls-Royce had originally intended to retain the car
itself, but recessionary pressures finally persuaded the company to
part with it in 1993.

Phantom VI was the last Rolls-Royce model with traditional
coachbuilt bodywork. It represented both the pinnacle and the swansong
of the traditional coachbuilder’s art, with a purity of line and
finesse of detail unequalled until Rolls-Royce embarked on its
contemporary coachbuilding renaissance at Goodwood, with ‘Sweptail’,
more than two decades later.