Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow History
Catalog record
This is a brief catalog introduction with limited source documentation. A licensed, identity-checked lead photograph has not yet been added for this page. Detailed year, configuration and ownership coverage must be identified separately; this page is not a complete vehicle catalog.
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Model history available. Detailed year guides are not published for this model.
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The Silver Shadow was a radical departure when it arrived in 1965: Rolls-Royce's first car with unitary (monocoque) construction rather than a separate chassis, plus all-round independent suspension and, later, four-wheel disc brakes. Despite being smaller than the Silver Cloud, clever packaging gave it more usable interior space.
It became the most-produced Rolls-Royce of its era — about 30,057 cars across the Shadow I (1965–1976) and the revised Shadow II (1977–1980) — and underpinned the two-door Corniche and the Pininfarina-bodied Camargue. The two-door saloon and drophead were spun off as the Corniche in 1971.
Generations
Silver Shadow I · Shadow I
The original monocoque car; 6.2- then 6.75-litre V8, hydraulic self-levelling suspension licensed from Citroën.
1967 Photo: “1967 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow sedan (19433333265).jpg” by Jeremy from Sydney, Australia / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0
1970 Photo: “1970 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow (51203595796).jpg” by Jones028 from Hong Kong / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0
1972 Photo: “1972 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I Saloon (46510886494).jpg” by Sicnag / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0
1973 Photo: “1973 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I Coupe (33358719048).jpg” by Sicnag / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0
Silver Shadow II · Shadow II
Revised model with rack-and-pinion steering, a front air dam, and a redesigned dashboard; replaced by the Silver Spirit.
1977 Photo: “1977 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II (51300364288).jpg” by Jones028 from Hong Kong / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0
1980 Photo: “1980 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II Classic-Gala 2025 DSC 1103.jpg” by Alexander Migl / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Body styles
- Saloon
- Coupe
- Convertible
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