ROLLING STOCK
Dan orders a mountain of parts in readiness for his Silver Shadow II’s return to the road…
After the conclusion of my Silver Shadow II’s exhaustive health check at independent RollsRoyce service, maintenance, repair and restoration outfit, Colbrook Specialists (www.colbrook), and a subsequent test drive to confirm the large barge’s six-and-three-quarter-litre V8 is in good working condition, I was ready to place an order for the list of suspension and braking components my car has been crying out for following my decision to recommission it after the two years it has spent in a state of suspended animation. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the catalogue of requested items sent to Matt at RollsRoyce and Bentley parts supplier, IntroCar (www.introcar), was extensive!
Though none of the necessary bushes, mounts, ball joints, bearings, nuts and washers are particularly expensive, the fact all these suspension items needed to be replaced at the same time should serve as a cautionary tale highlighting the perils of leaving a classic car standing for a significant period of time. The moral of the story is clear: old cars enjoy being used, activity which prevents working parts from corroding or seizing. Additionally, regular road use will promote airflow around chassis components, thereby drying parts susceptible to the effect of moisture ingress or condensation.
As readers following this project will recall, I’d already acquired a complete set of Bilstein B6 heavy duty shock absorbers. It made sense to fit these Nürburgring-developed dampers at the same time as the aforementioned supporting suspension hardware. The brilliant ‘Billies’ also join six new brake calipers (four at the front, two at the back), new discs, new pads, new brake hoses, new hydraulic system pipework and a new power steering oil cooler. Ah yes, the infamous PAS fluid radiator I attempted to sort in time for my last project progress report. You’ll remember how the original part was missing and how the replacement I bought was leaking. Consequently, Matt at IntroCar supplied me with a used first-gen Shadow PAS oil cooler to fit in place of the ‘no longer serviced’ Shadow II part. The earlier finned item is smaller than the later cooler, but in truth, they’re both adequately effective.
Long-time Colbrook technician, Richard Meadows, carefully removed all
my car’s faulty parts before treating what remained with anti-rust fluid and corrosion protection solution. My numerous IntroCar purchases were then installed, resulting in what should be a Silver Shadow II which stops on the proverbial sixpence and feels as though it glides along even the roughest of surfaces. This isn’t a sensation the car is currently keen to promote; every bump in the road can be felt by the driver through the steering wheel thanks to knackered suspension and rock-hard black circles.
The keen-eyed among you will have noted the incorrect tyre profile at each corner of my car when pictured in previous project updates. Richard advises me Pandora (that’s the name my Silver Shadow doesn’t answer too) has been riding on tyres intended for the Silver Cloud. Recognising the need to change them, I spoke to the guys at Longstone Tyres (www.longstonetyres). Their extensive knowledge and a well-stocked warehouse mean new whitewalls in the correct profile were winging their way to Colbrook’s workshop within hours.
With many of the ‘need to haves’ taken care of in advance of that all-important appointment at an MoT testing station, I indulged in a ‘nice to have’ by way of investing in an LED headlight upgrade kit designed by Gil Keane at 4Sight Lighting (www.4sightled). The standard ‘Royce lamps are about as effective as using candles to light the road ahead! I’m looking forward to fitting and testing the kit, which I’ll review in a forthcoming project update.