For most of Rolls-Royce’s company history, it was tradition to offer two models. One was a Ghost, or Phantom, which was a large, powerful model that was intended to be driven by the owner’s chauffeur. The second was a smaller car, essentially a scaled-down version of the first, which was intended for the increasing number of buyers who preferred to drive themselves. Both cars were sold as rolling chassis, in Rolls-Royce tradition, and the coachwork on the “owner-driver” cars was very often as striking as that on the Phantoms.

The 20/25 offered here is an example of the “little brother” to the Phantom II, of which 4,000 were built between 1929 and 1936, making this one of Rolls-Royce’s best-selling models of the era. This car was originally delivered to G. Vaughan Morgan, whose stately home at 37 Harrington Gardens in South Kensington, London, eventually became home to the Society of Genealogists.

Appropriately, the genealogy of this particular car has been documented by the Rolls-Royce Foundation, which recorded it as having eventually made its way to Miami, Florida, where it was owned by Robert Collins. It was sold by him in mid-1974 to the present owner, a Midwestern collector and enthusiast. In this enthusiast’s ownership, the car has remained and been enjoyed for nearly four decades.

The 20/25 was not known as the basis for particularly enticing coachwork, which makes this car’s unusually rakish tourer bodywork all the more exciting. It was built in the style of the body fixed to the experimental Phantom I, chassis 10EX, by Barker, and it features jauntily flared, racing-style fenders and a body in the style of which Italian coachbuilders dubbed bordino, which is a semi-boattail that has lines that gradually taper to a gently rounded stern.

According to the owner, the car has undergone a complete frame-up, body-off restoration that was performed by a respected marque expert, and it is intended to last for years of trouble-free motoring.

Now, as then, this sporting Rolls-Royce is an ideal choice for the buyer who prefers a car that is engineered to drive rather than to be driven.