1988 Rolls-Royce Silver Spur

1988 Rolls-Royce Silver Spur Saloon Charles Stewart Rolls and Henry Royce first met on 4 May 1904 in Manchester. Within minutes of seeing Royce's twin cylinder 10hp, Rolls knew he had found what he was looking for. After taking the motor car for a drive, Rolls agreed on the spot to sell as many motor cars as Royce could build, under the name Rolls-Royce.. And the rest, as they say, is history. This info courtesy of rolls-roycemotorcars.com which goes into more detail about the fascinating origins of the company.   For consignment, a 1988 Rolls-Royce Silver Spur saloon showing 76,361 miles, but the true mileage is unknown. Silver has been part of the Rolls-Royce line since its inception, beginning with the Silver Ghost of 1906, the Silver Wraith of 1946, the Silver Dawn of 1949, Silver Spur of 1980, Silver Seraph of 1998, and this, the Spirit which was produced with the Spur beginning in 1980.   Exterior Green-Gray Metallic was skillfully applied to this Rolls, presented on a stunning and elegant profile that the best of the best is known for, here augmented with a red pinstripe on the shoulder line. We simply can't review the exterior without mentioning the legendary grille, emulated by many, respected by all, and flying the Spirit of Ecstasy on top. The high shouldered car is 211 inches long with a long wheelbase that accommodates four full sized doors, and the black vinyl roof is in wonderful shape. The chrome bumpers are mated with black rubber pads and then silver and black is repeated in the bezels of the U.S. spec headlights. The back is almost as regal as the front with wide and high tail lights that fit the proportions of the car and a large flat, deck lid. It's stately and upright and the 15-inch wheels wear 70 series tires. Imperfections include some chipping and cracking paint on the rocker panel and some touched up scratches on the body.    Interior While the exterior is open to subjective opinion, the interior is objectively beautiful. The top dog uses the finest materials which starts on the door with soft red leather and burlwood headers. Chrome backed controls are robust and refined and the rear doors include chrome plated ashtrays with personal lighters. Front bucket seats are thick and kingly and accented with black piping and color matched shells, each with their own pivoting armrest on the center side. The rear seats are just as large, just as comfortable, and include a sizable headrest, decent legroom, and burlwood trays, and it all feels a bit like the best booth at an Italian restaurant. A black plastic steering wheel is surprisingly simple while the dashboard is a collection of black faced gauges, an information panel with columns of idiot lights, vents, and switches, all backed by a shiny, burlwood panel which stretches across the expanse of the wide dashboard, allowing passengers to soak in the forest product on their side as well. A Delco AM/FM/Cassette radio resides in the center stack and the console between the seats houses seat controls, memory buttons, and an ashtray. Thick pile black carpet covers the floor, trimmed in red and protected by color matched mats. The thick headliner is soft and gray that further differentiates this car from mere mortal passenger cars. The trunk does this too, as it's lined in thick carpeted panels trimmed in red.   Drivetrain A clean engine bay houses a 6.75 liter V8 producing 230 horsepower, fuel injected and mated to a TH400 3-speed automatic transmission that quietly routes power to the rear axle with 2.69 gears.  Undercarriage Driver quality underneath with some oil noted from the transmission back, skipping the midpoint and reappearing on the rear differential. Dual exhaust runs in tandem into a stock style muffler then exits as a single tip in back. Independent coil spring suspension is found front and rear and power disc brakes are at all four wheels.  Drive-Ability From the driver's seat, a great view of that epic hoo