Michael Caine’s Rolls-Royce which he bought after being ‘kicked out of dealership for looking too scruffy’ is sold
SIR Michael Caine’s first Rolls-Royce which he bought after being kicked out of the dealership for looking too scruffy has sold for a six-figure sum.
The flash motor sold for the eye-watering sum of £135,000 when it went under the hammer at H&H Classics’ sale at the Imperial War Museum in Duxford.
When the film star bought the Silver Shadow Drophead Coupe in 1968 he reportedly wandered into a Berkley Square showroom with a shopping list for “milk, bread, newspaper, cigarettes, Rolls-Royce.”
But he was so scruffy he was ushered off the premises, and had to travel to Mayfair’s other dealership while completing his chores for the day.
Caine, then 35, eventually picked the sleek car up from exclusive dealership H.A. Fox, which had it in stock after playwright and screenwriter Terence Rattigan cancelled his order.
The actor did not even have a driving licence and ended up hiring a chauffeur after finding it was cheaper than the insurance he had been quoted.
He claimed he had great pleasure flicking the “vs” at the snooty salesmen when he next went past him.
The Rolls-Royce is just one of 506 made – and went on sale the day after his 90th birthday.
The suave vehicle stars in the documentary Candid Caine – a self-portrait of the celebrated actor released in 1969.
Extensively restored by its current owner, the car is now back in its original black.
The stunning 506 Silver Shadow two-door drophead coupes were hand built by Rolls-Royce’s in-house coachbuilder Mulliner Park Ward from 1967-71.
Caine sold the car after just two years of use to Jack Leach, owner of famous hotspot the Gasworks in Fulham, London.
Leach owned the car until his death in 2013.
Damian Jones, Senior Motorcar Specialist at H&H Classics, said Caine was a “true British icon” and the car was “itself is another great British classic.”
He added: “Our Duxford sale was a fantastic start to 2023, and we’re very pleased with the overall results.”