1951 Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn Saloon
A smart example, in Shell grey and Tudor grey, with excellent re-upholstered interior in blue/grey with blue piping. The car spent the first twenty plus years in the dry climate of Kenya. There has been a great deal of good quality expenditure on the car in recent times, including stainless steel exhaust, new fuel tank, brake drums, radiator, tyres, etc, etc, as well as the previously mentioned upholstery, all documented, and amounts to £48,000 spent over the last five years. Also in the history file are a green logbook from the seventies, a great deal of correspondence over several decades, photos of restoration work, a handbook, manuals, etc, etc. The car featured in “Original Rolls-Royce & Bentley” by James Taylor, as shown in the photos below. Driving very well, and offered newly serviced, prepared and freshly MoT tested.
Chassis No. SDB134.
Reg No. KBH 585.
Price £35,000.
Snippets: The Almost Royal Car.
During the Silver Dawn’s time in Kenya it was an almost Royal car, it was available for use by Princess Elizabeth & Prince Philip whilst they were on tour in Kenya but the Royal couple had to cut short their visit due to the death of her father. The other members of the royal family that almost sat in the car included Princess Margaret & the Queen Mother but we do have a video in which SDB134 can be seen in the background when Prince Philip visited on his own, on this occasion he used a Phantom II (82OR) as the royal car! Other dignitaries who, we are told, used the car include Jomo Kenyatta & Haile Selassie!
The first owner of SDB134 was Francis D H Welldon who was born in Sri Lanka and was first noted as being in Kenya in 1925 where his profession was given as a coffee planter in the Thika area. Later owners included W. H. Martin a successful business man and chairman of Raleigh Industries, he was well known in Nairobi and was regularly seen as at the New Stanley Hotel where he was known as “Martini”! He also, according to his niece, owned a parrot who could imitate the sound of the soda syphon which Martini used to calm his sundowner!!
In 1970 SDB134 was bought by Dermot Kydd, who was awarded an OBE for his services to agriculture in Kenya, he used his knowledge of East Africa write The Konisgberg Assignment which is set in the Rufiji delta on the Tanzania coastline. We have managed to find a copy of this rare book and it will be with the car.