ROLLS-ROYCE SILVER CLOUD II
RUN BY Martin Buckley OWNED SINCE August 2016 PREVIOUS REPORT March 2023
I hadnʼt been to the Goodwood Revival for years, certainly not since Iʼve owned the Cloud II, so 2023 seemed as good a time as any to reacquaint myself, particularly because pals Hari and Amanda were keen on the idea.
For once we did it properly and rented a farmhouse for a couple of nights. Setting out on the Friday afternoon with the intention of taking a slightly more scenic route if possible, this still entailed some mileage eastwards on the M4. I was trying to ignore a slight miss from the engine for most of the journey, which turned out to be (I think) a loose king lead from the distributor cap to the coil,
although the extreme ambient temperatures made me suspect fuel vaporisation at first. The odd thing was that reattaching the lead didnʼt cure the issue instantly. But, given that the car ran beautifully the following day (and has since), I decided to accept my good fortune graciously rather than delve any further.
Apart from losing the Cloud in the pitch-black car park on the Saturday evening, all went well, although one of the rear tyres developed a huge bulge in its sidewall on the way home. Dougal Cawley at Longstone Tyres got two new radials in the post early the following week. When fitting the spare, I at least learned something: the radial – fatter than the original crossply – is too big for the slot under the boot floor, so you have to let air out before it will emerge from its hole, rather negating the purpose of carrying a spare.
At this point, I was weighing up the pros and cons of going back to the original-equipment Avon Turbospeed crossplies. They look correct, for sure, and I wondered if the Cloudʼs behaviour might be slightly more progressive on them; further enquires suggest not. Crossplies also wear out more
quickly and can cause the car to wander, which seems a high price to pay for a period tread pattern.
Turbospeeds are pricey, too, so I think I have talked myself out of the idea for now. In fairness to the Cloud, itʼs quite light on its feet for its size, weight and age – probably uniquely so in the realm of really large, 60-year-old luxury cars. Sitting in the back seat, both of our passengers commented on its surprising agility, but it does give me the occasional surprise: perhaps I expect too much of it?
On the Sunday after the Revival, we were due to do a wedding for a friend as a favour. All went to plan, but Iʼve let it be known that I wonʼt be doing any more freebies: I even had a random neighbour (to whom Iʼve never spoken before) on my doorstep, trying to blag the car for her impending nuptials – and she wasnʼt even happy to contribute towards a tank of fuel! Annoyingly, I also missed some lucrative film work with the car because I was on holiday.
The Cloud is due a session at Hillier Hill to look at the exhaust, which rattles against the underside and has slightly throaty overtones that suggest it might not be long for this world. Iʼm feeling a bit down about the rear of the driverʼsside sill, too, which looks as if it is going to need attention soon.