Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph
WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DRIVE?
The BMW V12 might lack the outright torque of the venerable Rolls-Royce V8, but it’s smooth and unstressed and mated to a clever five-speed automatic transmission that is responsive to throttle inputs and kicks down briskly. The ride is excellent, too – you feel sufficiently cushioned and isolated from the worst of poor road surfaces, with no untoward clunks from below decks. The high-geared steering is almost completely lacking in feel, but there are no dead spots to report. Likewise, the all-round disc brakes do a fantastic job of bringing this 2.3-ton behemoth to a halt keenly and without pulling to either side.
BODYWORK CHECK
The Meteor paint is nicely preserved with only minor blemishes and no swirl marks. There’s a small touched-in stone chip close to the leading edge of the bonnet, with a second on the driver’s door mirror. The twin Sandstone coachlines and body-coloured bumpers are faultless, there’s no corrosion to speak of and panel gaps are uniform throughout. There are no stone chips or scratches on the grille and the rest of the chrome is in similarly good condition. However, the windscreen’s rubber surround appears to be lifting slightly on the top nearside corner and there are a couple of minor chips in the windscreen itself just within the driver’s eye line.
HOW’S THE INTERIOR?
The large seats, trimmed in Cotswold leather with French Navy piping, have minimal creasing – more so, as you’d expect, on the driver’s side – but there no signs of wear. The light oak dashboard fascia has burr oak and walnut inlays but the veneers haven’t discoloured or cracked. The Dark Blue lambswool rugs also appear to
be well-preserved. All the touch points – steering wheel, handles and so on – likewise show no wear, while the Munichdesigned switchgear works with typical Teutonic precision.
UNDER THE BONNET
Most of the engine bay is shrouded by plastic but there are no indications that anything is amiss. The underbonnet sound deadening is undamaged, the radiator fi ns look healthy and visible coolant hoses seem to be in good condition. There are no signs of any leaks and all fl uids are to the correct levels.
THE CCW VIEW
This Seraph costs a fraction of the £120,000 its second owner paid for it in 2001. That same owner, who had it until very recently, clearly didn’t skimp on maintenance during his tenure and has done a fantastic job of preserving it. This, the first Rolls produced under BMW ownership, was considered to be somewhat underwhelming in period but there’s much to admire today and the condition of this one makes its asking price look very attractive.
EXTERIOR
Fantastic paint Even panels, no dents INTERIOR
Well-persevered wood and leather MECHANICALS
Vivid performance No faults