1989 Rolls Royce Silver Spirit from North America - Comments

Rear struts both failed.

Air conditioning compressor failed.

Front passenger and left rear passenger power window motors failed.

Hydraulic levelling pump failed.

Have noticed cracking in paint at roof line and next to grille.

Car was 10 years old with only 15000 miles, so many systems needed attention. These cars prefer to be driven, not parked.

This is a daily commuter vehicle for me and is now very reliable albeit an anachronism.

Although this model is fuel injected the actual performance is quite staid. I managed to get the fuel consumption up to 14 miles per gallon (US gallon) by not having the automatic climate control left on which always runs the air conditioning.

I had the privilege of driving a right hand drive Silver Shadow once. The first thing I noticed, was that the car still seemed tight after over 20 years and 100k miles. Also, when the brakes were applied fairly hard, the front didn't do the 'nosedive' that is so typical of American luxury cars. I've tried to duplicate the ride and I've come very close with my '89 Mercury Grand Marquis by adding stiffer shocks and wider, lower profile tires.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars once said, "You don't just buy a Rolls-Royce; you commission it, like a fine piece of art or a super yacht."

Rolls-Royce is in a segment of the automobile market totally removed from mainstream companies. Even Cadillac and Lexus can't provide cars to match. It's actually quite possible that nobody in the world builds cars like Rolls-Royce does. They aren't just cars, they are Rolls-Royces- fine works of art, automotive masterpieces. This kind of car isn't built with those involved worrying about costs- that doesn't matter. Not with this kind of car.

A Rolls-Royce is one of the finest cars on Earth, a testament, a monument, to how far the car has come and how far it can go. It also represents something else- the fact that nobody, deep down, wants to own a compact car. Who cares about economy when you can have a Rolls? No, every time a Rolls-Royce goes by, people don't say, "Who wants one of those? I'd rather have a Honda." All you need to know to be sure everybody would rather own a Rolls-Royce than a car that can help save the planet is for one to go by. When everyone near you says something like, "Damn, I wish I had one of those", that, right there, is all you need to know.

-Greetings from Richmond, Virginia

12th grade high school student.

I am about to have a job making around $120,000.00/year. I have very few bills. I have always wanted a Rolls Royce. Am I being overly ambitious at my income level to own this kind of car and is it real for me to expect to be able to keep it up as I would any other car? I keep my cars in top condition. They are beautiful automobiles. I would probably purchase a pre-owned model. Any suggestions?

I owned a Rolls Royce in the early 1990's. Bought a Silver Spirit when it was 18 months old.

For the first 6 months it was in the shop more than I had it. It kept over heating, and as it was in the summer, did not make it comfortable having to turn the air-conditioning off and then park on the side of the freeway till it cooled down. They changed about every thing relating to the cooling system, new water pump, new radiator, new head gasket. After nothing fixed it, I threatened the dealer with vehicle arbitration to finally gets some justice. This seemed to get some attention from Rolls Royce who flew in the Technical Manager, who in 30 minutes found that the radiator fan was not the correct one and did not give sufficient airflow over the grille. He showed the mechanic by putting a sheet of news paper over the beautiful RR grille and it just fell to the ground instead of being sucked up tight as it did on the Rolls Royce parked next to mine.

After 5 years I decided after shelling money out in every direction to sell it, and looked to see I had spent $33,000 just on maintenance after the warranty had expired. Beautiful looking car, but never again. By the way Rolls Royce's do not break down, they "Ceased to Proceed".

If you just want a car to go from here to there, and have a limited interest in engineering, this is not the car for you. Go buy something else.

These are cars to be appreciated as one would a fine yacht or aircraft, and if looked after in the same way, will give you years of trouble free motoring enjoyment.

These cars are build with old fashion values, when manufacturers were quality driven, not purely profit driven, which is why these companies are having trouble staying afloat.

Kevin.