10 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT... THE ROLLS-ROYCE SILVER SPIRIT

Although serious discussions about a replacement for the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow began as early as 1972, it wasn’t until eight years later that the eagerly-awaited Silver Spirit finally took a bow – and along with it, its Bentley Mulsanne cousin. The Silver Shadow had remained in production for an impressive 15 years and had become the highly respected elder statesman of the ultra-luxury car market. Remarkably, however, the Silver Spirit-based family was to enjoy an even longer career, with its eventual successor – the Silver Seraph – not arriving until 1998.

An 18-year run is impressive in itself, made all the more remarkable by the Silver Spirit employing essentially the same platform as its long-lived predecessor. Rolls-Royce hadn’t designed an all-new car since the Phantom III of 1935, and they couldn’t afford to do so for the Shadow’s replacement. Management required the new car to look fresh and modern yet retain as much of the Silver Shadow’s engineering as possible, which is why the Silver