CounterPoint: 1969 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow
For about eight thousand smackeroos you could drive the Acura coupe that was featured earlier today, and by all accounts it would make a good driver…but…why on earth would you drive such a plebeian pile of parts when for the same amount of cash you could drive a decent looking example of one of the most iconic marques to ever cruise the surface of this rock. Find this 1969 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow here on eBay offered for $8,950 buy-it-now or make-offer located in Villa Park, IL.
Through the magic of depreciation anybody can be a sultan or a dictator until the first repair bill hits your credit card…but until some rare part goes all sputnik on ya. The proudly states that the brakes have been serviced to the tune of $6,000 recently…which is probably the cost of restoring the entire running gear, plus an engine rebuild from the Acura earlier today.
In front of those overstuffed lounge chairs and behind the delightfully vintage wooden dash is a 6.2 liter L410 V8 that was developed in-house between Rolls-Royce and Bentley engineers. Power was rated at 189 horsepower and some monstrous amount of torque.
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This car would be like dating a really rich older woman. She would get you used to a life of luxury and then leave you by the side of the road without understanding exactly how you got there or what happened and without the ability to afford to get back to where you were.
When I was in high school in the mid-80's, my grandparents had a 1979 Corniche. My Grandfather used to let me take it for short drives (to the dismay of my Grandmother) when they would stop by the house sometimes on the weekends. Puffing on his big cigar, he would say with a wink, "Go check the tire pressure son!" It was like driving an aircraft carrier… regardless of the condition of the road, NOTHING would permeate the suspension and those seats. Didn't handle for beans and it could hardly get out of it's own way, but I didn't care.
One time, I drove to the grocery store where I worked part-time as a sacker. Back then, sackers were more prominent and it was customary for your groceries to be taken out to the your car… at least in Texas it was. I saw some of the guys in the parking lot and cruised by, saying something smart ass like, "Pick it up heathens! You disgust me!" Or something along those lines, LOL
The car was my Grandmother's and he was typically a Caddy man, but for while he drove a 1986 Chrysler New Yorker Turbo. Whenever they would leave the house in that car he would bury the gas pedal and that thing would burn the tires down in first gear… my Grandmother hated it when he did that, LOL. Good memories of seeing him drive off with his cigar in place, a big ass grin and haze of tire smoke. 😀