This 1930 Rolls-Royce isn't just passing Grey Poupon… it's passing everything

Jeff Glucker

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1930 rolls royce with viper v10

Oh to have money… the things I’d do.

One person in Michigan knows what they like doing with their money, and it includes building a rather interesting 1930 Rolls-Royce. Look at the picture of the car above, and tell me if you notice anything interesting. Oh, you spotted the header coming out of the bodywork right away? I figured you would, this is Hooniverse after all.

I’ll tell you what that bundle of metal tubing is connected to, and I guarantee it’s going to make you smile, laugh, and possibly shake your head in a manner that’s a mix of displayed intrigue and knowing insanity. Under the hood sits a ten-cylinder motor plucked from betwixt the fenders of a Dodge Viper. Yes, this plucky old Brit has a massive beating heart that should turn those skinny bits of rubber wrapped around the wheels into vapor.

According to the thread on the Viper Club forums, the car isn’t being built to embarrass every other vehicle at every single stoplight. Instead, the owner wanted a Rolls-Royce restomod with no shortage of highway pulling power. It’s built to be a cruiser, and I can live with that. Not every car needs to be dialed in for drifting and autocross and rallying and Bonneville and LeMons and grocery getting (though the right wagon could pull ALL of that off, just saying). This particular Rolls should make for a fine cruiser that goes from head turner to neck snapper, and I say kudos to the owner for mating an old Roller with V10 excitement.

[Source: Viper Club | Image: Viper Club | Thanks for the tip, Scandinavian Flick!]

About

Jeff Glucker

Jeff Glucker

Jeff Glucker is the co-founder and Executive Editor of Hooniverse.com. He’s often seen getting passed as he hustles a 1991 Mitsubishi Montero up the 405 Freeway. IG: @HooniverseJeff

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24 responses to “This 1930 Rolls-Royce isn't just passing Grey Poupon… it's passing everything”

  1. CABEZAGRANDE Avatar
    CABEZAGRANDE

    That is absolutely amazing. I was thinking the same thing as everyone else on the forum though, they couldn't do a prettier job with the headers? Everything is going great down to the fender, and then it's just hanging there into an ugly 90. I'd have swept the collector back some to match the angle of the fender mself. Oh well, it's their baby, and a tiny complaint about an extremely cool project. Only other thing is the tires. That much torque and 165 section width tires = lots of smoke. But I love that it makes it more sleeper style. Wonder if Coker Tire could hook them up with some tires that look just like those old school ones but were made with modern construction and compounds.

    Reply
    1. Alff Avatar
      Alff

      Should have read your comment first. I'm with you on the headers. It's almost like this is the proof-of-concept mockup.

      Reply
  2. acarr260 Avatar
    acarr260

    I want to hear it. That noise coming from such a stately car must be highly confusing.
    <img src="http://www.colectiva.tv/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/lkzyz89efm_clap.gif&quot; width=500>

    Reply
  3. JayP2112 Avatar
    JayP2112

    Shades of:
    [youtube iFSGSL3Nrmc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFSGSL3Nrmc youtube]

    Reply
  4. Batshitbox Avatar
    Batshitbox

    Cute. Not the way I would achieve the stated goal of having highway cruising power without RR reliability problems (the noise of a 6BT wouldn't bug me, but it wouldn't fit the Roller idiom, either). Seems this builder just wants the low-end torque and smooth running, plus the prestige equal to the chassis that the Viper engine has. There'll be quite an exciting moment (f'nar!) when his foot slips and accidentally gives it the beans. Those disks seem adequate to stop the buggy, but are the diff and wire wheels going to handle even 1/3rd of what that motor can put out?

    Reply
  5. pj134 Avatar
    pj134

    This is definitely and ultimately awesome. What I really got out of this is that the guy who complains about having too many cars is still looking for a Viper.

    Reply
  6. Alff Avatar
    Alff

    Great idea but I wish the plumber had been a bit more artistic.

    Reply
  7. muthalovin Avatar
    muthalovin

    Awesome x 10. Remind me to nominate this for HCOTY in December.

    Reply
  8. Sjalabais Avatar
    Sjalabais

    Is this even allowed…? =8^) Awesome!

    Reply
    1. jeepjeff Avatar
      jeepjeff

      In the US? Sure. The smog and safety laws over here grandfather in for old cars. You only have to meet the standards in place for the year of manufacture. The US didn't start regulating smog anywhere until 1965, so any chassis with an earlier manufacture date is no-holds barred if you can meet the relevant safety/equipment requirements. And for newer cars, dropping a newer engine of similar enough purpose into any chassis is often legal (depending on jurisdiction, there are some that don't allow you to put bigger engines or engines with more cylinders in as a replacement).

      Reply
      1. Sjalabais Avatar
        Sjalabais

        That's just great – but what about social norms? Replacing the venerable Rollers blue blood with brutal American ketchup would never have struck me as sensible. Yet the result is just mindblowing.

        Reply
        1. jeepjeff Avatar
          jeepjeff

          Sorry, I'm American. I interpreted "allowed" as "legal", which is very different from "within the bounds of social norms". It merely takes a trip to a WalMart parking lot to realize many American's aren't up on the latter.
          As far as by social norms? After some brief, but careful, soul searching, I'm really Ok with this. It's amazing. OTOH, the number of times I've been to a WalMart parking lot dwarfs the number of times I've sat in a Rolls Royce. So, take that for what you will.

          Reply
          1. Sjalabais Avatar
            Sjalabais

            I actually meant both meanings – and couldn't agree more with you. It's just that this build is more creative and has more balls than I have even in my thoughts.

  9. calzonegolem Avatar
    calzonegolem

    With those tires and wheels I imagine the only embarrassing things at stop lights would be broken wires and the rear stepping out into the Honda next to you.

    Reply
  10. tiberiusẅisë Avatar
    tiberiusẅisë

    Highway cruiser? Did I miss the installation of a 25 gallon fuel cell.

    Reply
  11. longrooffan Avatar
    longrooffan

    When I saw this come across the tips hotline, I thought I would try my hand at writing something up about it. Several drafts later, I decided this olelongrooffan is gonna keep with first person experiences. There is no way I could have come up with anything close to this post. Nice write up about an exceptional vehicle.

    Reply
  12. dukeisduke Avatar
    dukeisduke

    It looks like it uses a Ford nine-inch rear end, so it should be able to handle the torque. the only thing I would have done differently is angle the headers back once they passed through the fenders. He does say they're ceramic coated, and heat transfer shouldn't be a problem, due to the construction of the firewall, insulation, and air conditioning.

    Reply
  13. fat_cole Avatar
    fat_cole

    TI hope he does something about those headers, they make that classic Roller look like a cheap kit car.

    Reply
    1. fat_cole Avatar
      fat_cole

      Much like that beginning typo makes me look like a horrible typist…

      Reply
  14. Rust-MyEnemy Avatar
    Rust-MyEnemy

    That's simply exquisite. And, If I'm honest I could easily make my peace with the 90degree header treatment, if just because it immediately looks like it shouldn't be there and starts people who care asking questions.
    It's a bit like the guy I met who had a stock-looking Ford Cortina. It was original, right down to the hubcaps, except the rear tyres looked a bit on the wide side. This had me asking questions. Turns out he was running a heavily boosted Cosworth mill under there and could do thirteen second quarters all day long.

    Reply
  15. Mr.Roadrage Avatar
    Mr.Roadrage

    His Viper with the 1930 Rolls Royce engine is even more interesting.

    Reply
  16. nutzforautos Avatar
    nutzforautos

    -1 for the headers…other than that..how do I get a ride??

    Reply
  17. gerry rose Avatar
    gerry rose

    Beautiful car except the headers

    Reply
  18. James Avatar
    James

    http://forums.viperclub.org/threads/662406-OK…-…
    for more info use this link

    Reply