Manufacturer Rolls-Royce Motors Designer Fritz Feller (1974) | Production 1980–1999 Class Full-size luxury car | |
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Also called Silver Spur
Flying Spur
Silver Dawn Assembly Crewe, Cheshire, England, UK | ||
The Silver Spirit is a British saloon motor car that was produced by Rolls-Royce Motors, in Crewe, England. It was launched in 1980 as the first model in the SZ series.
Contents
- Mark I
- Mark II
- Mark III
- Flying Spur
- Silver Dawn
- Mark IV
- Park Ward Limousine
- The Official Touring Limousines
- Production
- References
The Silver Spur is a long-wheelbase version of the Silver Spirit, produced at the same time. The Spirit was the first car to feature the retractable Spirit of Ecstasy. The spring-loaded Mascot sank into the radiator shell if dislodged from its position.
Mark I
The Silver Spirit, introduced by Rolls-Royce in 1980, was the first of a new generation of models for the company. It formed the basis for the Flying Spur, Silver Dawn, Touring Limousine, Park Ward and apart from branding differences and a different radiator housing also Bentley for the Mulsanne/Eight series.
The Spirit/Spur was not entirely new – it continued to use the basic design of the Silver Shadow as well as that motor car's 6.75 L (6750 cc/411 in³) V8 engine and GM sourced THM 400 3-speed automatic transmission. The Spur / Spirit continued the emphasis toward a high degree of ride quality by utilising the self-leveling suspension from the previous model Silver Shadow, though in this application using a Girling automatic hydraulic ride height control system and gas-charged shock absorbers.
Mark II
The Silver Spirit II and Silver Spur II were introduced at the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show. It was in the area of the suspension that the main changes occurred, with "Automatic Ride Control" introduced; a fully automatic system that worked by adjusting the dampers at all four wheels in real time. The dashboard was also updated to modernize the interior, with a considerably smaller steering wheel two additional 'bull's eyes' ventilation outlets added to the fascia. Other updates included the adoption of ABS and fuel injection as standard for all models.
Originally retaining the three-speed Turbo Hydramatic GM400 transmission from earlier Spirits/Spurs, a four-speed unit (the GM 4L80E) was introduced in the winter of 1991. The size of the petrol tank was also increased; now up to 107 L (24 imp gal) the car's range was now up to well over 500 kilometres (310 mi).
Mark III
The Silver Spirit III and Silver Spur III, introduced in 1993, introduced improvements to the engine and some cosmetic updates. A new design of intake manifold and cylinder heads increased the power output, although it was still stated simply as "adequate" in company literature. Dual airbags were introduced, and independent adjustment of the rear seats. The parameters of the active suspension system were also modified so that the shock absorbers would default into "soft" ride mode when they wore out (in the previous Mark II, the shock absorbers defaulted into "hard" ride mode when they wore out, noticeably impacting ride quality).
Flying Spur
The 1994–1995 Flying Spur is a turbocharged, higher performance version of the Silver Spur III. 134 cars were produced.
Silver Dawn
The Silver Dawn is a special edition of the Silver Spur III with several additional options such as Electronic Traction Assistance System and rear seat heaters.
The radiator height is reduced by 51 mm (2 in) and the size of the Spirit of Ecstasy was reduced by 20 percent. The new front was later inherited by the Mark IV series.
Silver Dawn appeared one year earlier on the American market.
Mark IV
Designed in the autumn of 1992, the final revision of the Silver Spirit and Silver Spur was introduced late in 1995 as a 1996 year model. The last single car was of model year 2000.
The model was marketed as the New Silver Spirit/New Silver Spur but the sign at the trunk/luggage compartment lid was unchanged as Silver Spirit/Silver Spur as per previous versions. As well as being consistent with previous updates; additionally a marketing decision was taken that the cars should not get a "series IV" designation because the suffix "IV" was found to be inappropriate in some Far Eastern countries where it is a symbol of death. The majority of the production went to the United States, as intended, as the new Silver Seraph was meeting with some resistance from buyers there.
Major changes included the introduction of a wooden column running down the center of the dashboard, the replacement of the previous Bosch engine management systems with a Zytec one, updated integrated front and rear bumpers, and the introduction of new sixteen-inch wheels. As of 1997, the long wheelbase was standard on all models, with the limousine models offering the extra-long only. Another major change that year was the introduction of a Garrett turbocharger on all models.
The Silver Spirit production closed with the model year 1997, although models continued to be produced through 1999 as Rolls-Royce wanted to use up the remaining Silver Spirit bodies and parts they still had in stock.
Park Ward Limousine
The Park Ward is a limited edition and extended wheelbase Silver Spur / Spirit mark IV. It has a 610-millimetre (24 in) extended wheelbase and a raised roof by 51 mm (2 in). The Park Ward replaced the Silver Spur / Spirit Touring Limousine.
The full title of this model was Rolls-Royce Park Ward Limousine. In the middle of model year 1998 the name changed to Rolls-Royce Silver Spur Park Ward. The model nomenclature on the badge on the trunk / luggage compartment lid says Park Ward.
Standard equipment on this model included a bar cabinet with crystal decanters and goblets, intercom, an electrically operated division and a backseat sunroof.
Rolls-Royce Park Ward Limousine should not be confused with succeeding stretched Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph Park Ward 2000-2002.
The Official Touring Limousines
Different touring limousine versions were built during production by Rolls-Royce, in cooperation with coach builder Mulliner Park Ward, London. Robert Jankel was responsible for the design.
The first Silver Spur Limousine was produced in 1982. 16 cars had the 910-millimetre (36 in) extended wheelbases, 84 cars with 1,100-millimetre (42 in) extended wheelbases were produced in 1984 and later. One car had 360-millimetre (14 in) wheelbase extension. These cars were extended at the B-pillar, between the front and rear doors.
From 1991 on, 99 units of the Touring Limousine with 610-millimetre (24 in) wheelbase extension were produced. The car was lengthened at the C-pillar with an opera window added, in a style reminiscent of Rolls-Royce's Phantom V and Phantom VI models. Like these earlier models, most of the cars had fold-down occasional seats in the rear passenger area.
The Park Ward Limousine was the last one to be officially extended (610 mm or 24 in, again at the C-pillar) with 70-unit production commencing in 1996 and concluding in 1999.
Production
Years are the model years based on the VIN (not the years of manufacturing).