Matchbox Rolls Royce Silver Shadow and Silver Cloud

For a brand based in England nothing seems more patriotic than replicating your home country automaker.  Jaguar, Land Rover, MG are just a few of the brands with the most prestige being the Rolls Royce brand.  Matchbox has made a majority of them between 1950 and 1980’s, yet sadly trickled down to none in the past few decades; in the 2000’s Matchbox tried to get the Rolls Royce Phantom in the line but eventually that did not work out (plus Mattel did not have the BMW license back yet since BMW owns Rolls Royce).  Here are a few fine examples of the fantastic Rolls Royce, the Silver Shadow convertible and the Silver Cloud sedan, part two.

Say Rolls Royce and expect rich, money, the good life, private jets, large yachts.  This is what the brand stands for in its over 100 year existence.  Over time the brand has mostly focused on automobiles with some engine work in large sea boats, and has been through good times, tumulative times, and even through ownership of Bentley and now to BMW.  The Silver Cloud was the Rolls of the 1950’s and first half of the 1960’s with a tall hood that features the tall grille, smooth flowing fenders, and roofline that was modern yet still recalls the early 20^th century automobiles.  The interior offers plenty of room for six with the best leather and wood trim that money can buy, oh and let’s not forget the tables behind the front seats to spread your Grey Poupon.  The body still rests on a frame and the brakes use dual master cylinders to help stop this heavy car, while the engine is a 155 horsepower 4.9L I-6 that produced 155 horsepower through a 4-speed automatic sourced from GM’s Hydramatic.  Silver Cloud two and three offered the 6.2L V8 for more power and by the third-generation the styling started to evolve into the upcoming Silver Shadow.

Notice that I said this was part two of the Silver Cloud for Matchbox:  That’s because Matchbox originally released one in the Lesney line in the 1950’s with no interior.  This second version was designed in the 1980’s by Universal for the James Bond Movie “A View to a Kill” alongside the Renault 11 that was converted to a taxi.  The cream white color looks gorgeous on this casting and fits the curves quite well.  The front has that tall chrome grille that is part of the chrome base with round headlights to the sides, signal lights on the front fenders, and lower bumper with bumper pads.  The hood area shows where the split opening still works on the real car, while the sides show conventional four doors with a nice kick up of the rear fenders.  The rear has a round trunk with vertical taillights and license plate mount on the trunk.  The base shows off the suspension and exhaust system, while the interior has front and rear bench seats and a right-hand drive layout though the dashboard lacks any detailing.  The base is plastic and the wheels look out-of-place on this model; now Matchbox could’ve done more to this casting but in all this was a quick fix for a movie promo and the model only lasted for a few years before disappearing all together.

The next-generation was the Silver Shadow and this would be the icon of Rolls Royce and the 1960’s and 1970’s.  For starters the body is now a unibody construction that allows the fenders to level with the beltline to give the new Rolls a cleaner and modern look.  Even so, areas like the rising rear fenders, round tip of the front fenders, and that tall grille still remain in the Silver Shadow.  The interior still has that flat dashboard with the best wood and leather trim, though now with more controls and gauges than before and also allows for the first use of an HVAC system.  Underneath the rear suspension is now all-independent and uses hydropneumatic air springs to help smooth out the ride.  Under the hood was the 6.2L V8 that produces 172 horsepower still using the 4-speed automatic from General Motors.  The design of this car would set the stage for upcoming Rolls Royce models and would become the most popular Rolls Royce model.

Just like the Silver Cloud the Silver Shadow also comes in two versions: the sedan or this convertible, the latter arriving first.  I love the gold paint with red interior, yellow-tint windshield, and Superfast wheels that really makes this car something special.  The front has the tall grille that connects to the metal base by the lower bumper and also incorporates the quad headlights as well.  The signal lights are on the tips of the front fenders and below the headlights are mini grilles.  The side profile offers a clean, simple look that looks better as a convertible complete with a separate tan tonneau cover for the top.  At the rear the vertical taillights are visible, as is the Euro plate on the trunk and even the trailer hitch does not look out-of-place on this car.  Speaking of trunk the rear trunk opens to basically an empty area that looks ready to take on a lot of luggage.  The metal base makes the car feel solid, while the smooth Superfast wheels with working suspension gives the Rolls that glass smooth ride.  The interior in red is simple, but gets to the point with seating for four (the rear seats get a center armrest) and a flat dashboard with 4-spoke steering wheel in proper right-hand drive layout.  This is one of the best Matchbox Rolls Royce castings out there and even after owning this one for years I still cherish this Silver Shadow more than the Silver Cloud.