n 13 May, the latest Bespoke Collection from Rolls-Royce Motor Cars will make their UK and European debut, first at an exclusive event on the site of the original Bluebird Motor Company – now the Bluebird Restaurant – on the King's Road, London before heading to the world-renowned Concorso D'Eleganza at Villa D'Este on the shores of one of Italy's world-famous lakes, Como, where it will be unveiled to the public for the first time on 23 May.
The Bluebird Motor Company building was commissioned in 1923 to be Europe's largest garage and was built in the era's characteristic Art Deco style, a style which it preserves today. The business would ultimately help fund Campbell's pursuit to wrest the Waterspeed record from its American holders.
It was also on the adjacent Lake Maggiore where, on 1 September 1937, Campbell established his legend, setting a world-record speed of 126.33 mph in the famous Bluebird K3 boat powered by a Rolls-Royce R Engine.
The Waterspeed Collection Phantom Drophead Coupés feature a number of exclusively created Bespoke design and engineering features, perfectly executed to create a thoroughly contemporary tribute to Campbell's famous craft.
The car is finished in a specially developed 'Maggiore Blue' exterior paint, inspired by Bluebird's famous colour scheme. Nine layers of paint are applied before an exhaustive process of hand-sanding and the application of a cutting-edge powdered lacquer is undertaken to ensure an impeccable finish.
"This very special motor car serves to pay a perfect homage to my grandfather's remarkable acts of British daring and endeavour," said Donald Wales, grandson of Sir Malcolm Campbell.
"The extraordinary attention-to-detail and commitment to engineering excellence so evident in these motor cars perfectly echoes the lengths my grandfather and his colleagues went to in their pursuit of the waterspeed records."
For the first time in Rolls-Royce history the exterior finish extends to the engine, creating a visually striking homage to the power behind Campbell's records.
The finish also adorns the car's specially developed, fully-polished eleven-spoke wheels for the first time, providing a subtle decorative accent.
The exterior is completed with a hand-painted coachline that culminates in a Bluebird motif with the design taking Rolls-Royce's master coachline painter four hours to apply by hand.
Reference to Campbell's craft is made via a new interpretation of the famous 'power reserve' dial. As the driver presses on, the dial moves backwards towards a yellow and blue zone, echoing Campbell's original K3 boat's 'going into the blue' at maximum engine revolutions. A bespoke front-lit clock adorned with Bluebird's infinity symbol and dials hewn from a billet of aluminium evokes K3 further.
Direct tribute to the records is paid in the glovebox, with a hand-embroidered panel expressing the records Campbell achieved at Lake Maggiore and Coniston Water.
Finally, the steering wheel is presented in two-tone for the very first time, with Magiorre Blue accents balancing perfectly with traditional black leather to complete a beautifully conceived interior design scheme.
SENATUS Member Comments