1923 Rolls-Royce 40/50 HP Silver Ghost 'Playboy' Roadster

At its inception, the Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost justly earned a reputation for reliability, style, and quality of build. Built at the Springfield, Massachusetts factory, this Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, chassis 355XH, was delivered new to Harvard alumni Huntingdon Reed “Tack” Hardwick of Boston, Massachusetts. A sports enthusiast, Mr. Hardwick was known as an exceptional football player at Harvard and went on to become one of the first owners of the Boston Nighthawks hockey team, among other local ventures.

Befitting its sporting Pall Mall coachwork, the car enjoyed a distinguished early history in the Boston area, including a sale through Tom Mix’s noted dealership in the late 1930s before being acquired by pioneering enthusiast and noted author Fred K. Roe. During the subsequent ownership of Everett and Cort Pauls, its bodywork was replaced with the more fashionable “Playboy” Roadster coachwork that it wears today. Later, the Silver Ghost passed to one of New England’s most respected restorers and engineers, Pierce Reid of Vintage Garage in Stowe, Vermont. Reid restored the car to his own exacting standards, which included fitting modern Hepworth pistons, re-coring the radiator, and other improvements aimed at making it the ultimate touring car. His exemplary workmanship shines throughout the car today, as it remains in excellent cosmetic and tourable order, ready to reward its next steward with the exceptional motoring for which the Silver Ghost is renowned.

Notes Please note that this vehicle is titled 1924.