Rolls Royce is at cemetary 'visiting' original owner Mike Ellis who purchased in 1960.
One Family-Three Generations
Rolls Royce Silver Cloud II LTSB 4
The vehicle on display, chassis LSTB 4 and engine number 2.BS and body No. CT. 3358, is a
1960 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II. It is a highly desirable left-hand drive specification model which was custom ordered by Michael Franklin Ellis Sr, a 33 rd degree mason, Advertising Executive and Former Chairman of the Board of Ellis Advertising, Buffalo, NY. This Rolls Royce has been fully restored and remains in excellent mechanical condition. The original owner drove this vehicle as a Daily Driver being his only car, from 1960 – 1985. Mike Ellis had written 14 limerick and poetry books with the Rolls Royce proudly featured on the cover of several of them. Mike was an adviser to the New York State Governor in the 1970’s and this Rolls Royce enjoyed police escorts from Buffalo to the state Capital, Albany, NY on several occasions and the car was a “showcase about town” in Buffalo. Following his passing, the car was managed by his son-in-law, Dr. Samuel Shatkin Sr. at which time it began its first full restoration from 1985 –1997. This 12 year restoration included partial engine rebuild and significant body repair from rust and chassis damage due to 25 Western New York winters. The vehicle was then driven for 15 years until ownership was transferred to Dr. Samuel Shatkin Jr. at the time of his father’s death in 2010. This one family, three generation
car underwent a full nuts and bolts, top to bottom restoration from April 2021 until June 2022 in Scottsdale Arizona managed and overseen by Harry Clark of Classics Promenade, with full
engine rebuild having most of the work done by by British Automotive in Scottsdale. The body
work performed Miranda Automotive in Phoenix, AZ included complete removal of weather worn lower exterior and interior body panels with metal ordered directly from Flying Spares in the UK, with welding of the lower panels to existing metal and flawless fabrication to complete the body restoration. All engine parts are original, excluding the starter. This Rolls Royce Saloon Chassis LSTB 4 was restored to all its original specifications, having Sand over Sable 2 tone finish with a Deep Red accent line on the body trim as well as the RR hubcaps. Final work was done by Service First in Phoenix. The interior was finished with original details of beige leather interior and fawn headcloth and refinishing of wood at the time of the first restoration.
Details of Vehicle
It is denoted that this example was built to U.S.A. specifications with the following options added from the factory: R.R. Electric Windows, Plain Sundym glass throughout and Dunlop Buffalo white-sided tubeless tires VG. 3839. The car was delivered to the North No.1 Huskisson Dock, in Liverpool on 2/2/1960 and shipped to Rolls Royce New York on the ss.“PARTHIA” 2/4/1960. It was delivered to the dealer, Nick Ciliberti Pontiac, 601 East Main Street, Kutztown, PA. on 3/15/60 and delivered to owner shortly thereafter.
Nothing was left untouched on the car, restoring it to the original appearance as verified by the
current owner, who was privileged to be passenger in the vehicle from the time of purchase in
1960 and who continues to drive the beautifully finished Silver Cloud II “daily” on sunny clear
weather Western New York days.
The Overview Rolls Royce Silver Cloud II
The Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud was released in 1955 with a newly restyled design that departed
heavily from the pre-war influenced Silver Dawn that it was replacing. Construction of the new
Silver Cloud was body-on-frame which allowed the car to be fitted with special coach-built
bodies, although most examples were fitted with the standard Pressed Steel Company body
shell. These Series I cars were fitted with a 4.9-liter inline six-cylinder that provided ample
power. The Series II Silver Cloud was introduced in 1959, with the very little changing
cosmetically. It was again offered in three different configurations, 4-door saloon, 2-door coupe, and 2-door convertible, similar to the Series I cars. The biggest change for the Series II cars was under the hood where Rolls-Royce placed their all-new 6.2 liter V8. This new V8 engine did increase the weight of the car but provided a drastic increase in acceleration and torque, with a new top speed of 114 mph. Additionally, power steering was now a standard option on the car and electronically operated windows were now available as an option. There were a few very minor cosmetic changes made to the car throughout its four-year production run before it was replaced by the newly styled Silver Cloud III in 1963. In total, approximately 2,417 Rolls-Royce Silver Clouds were produced for worldwide consumption.