Introduced early in 1955, the all-new Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud and Bentley S-Type replaced the ageing Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn and Bentley R-Type.

The duo sported sleeker bodywork on a new box-section separate chassis - Rolls-Royce eschewing unitary construction for the time being - incorporating improved brakes and suspension, the latter featuring electrically controlled damping.

Enlargement to 4,887cc and the adoption of a six-port cylinder head boosted the - traditionally undisclosed - power output of the dependable inlet-over-exhaust six-cylinder engine.

Automatic transmission was now standard and power-assisted steering an option.

Fast (100mph-plus), relatively economical and cheaper to maintain than the successor V8-engined versions, the Silver Cloud is arguably the most user-friendly of all post-war Rolls-Royces.

The retention of a separate chassis meant that, for the time being at least, customers could still opt for a coachbuilt alternative to the factory's own 'standard s...