Rolls-Royce of America Incorporated, a subsidiary set up in December 1919 when the parent company purchased the American Wire Wheel Company's plant in Springfield, Massachusetts, followed the British company's suit of transition to the New Phantom in 1926.

By the second half of 1929 production had risen to 12 cars per week.

This would prove to be the high point of Rolls-Royce of America's fortunes, the October '29 Wall Street Crash and the introduction of the Phantom II - re-tooling for which the US company could not afford - signaling the beginning of its decline.

Unlike its British-built counterpart, the American product could be ordered with 'factory' bodywork, usually by Brewster, the latter company having been taken over by Rolls-Royce in December 1925.

In this period American coachbuilding and design was well on its way to the zenith of the 1930s Classic era and there were alternatives for Rolls' clientele.

Styles and design preferences naturally varied depending on where a ...