640hp R-R Silver Cloud takes the SEMA biscuit

10/31/2023

Just when you thought all the Chevy V8 engine swaps had happened, Ringbrothers pulls a rabbit from its hat…

By Matt Bird / Tuesday, 31 October 2023 / Loading comments

There are a couple of common themes when it comes to a Ringbrothers build: they’re American cars, and they’re awesome. Whether Camaro or Mustang, Blazer or Charger, the commissions for the Spring Green boys tend to be domestic. Not this time, though, because Paramount is a Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. Only it’s a 640hp Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud.

Described by Ringbrothers as ‘the ultimate luxury sleeper’, the Rolls is notable for retaining largely stock bodywork. Typically, one of its builds is more overt. This really is stealthy as anything, too, complete with the trademark Pantheon grille, colour-matched wheels (with gyro centre) and Spirit of Ecstasy standing proud. Only the tiniest clues give the game away, including a Ringbrothers ‘R’ badge on the boot, wider rear track and more suggestive ride height. To all intents and purposes, this is a 1961 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II, albeit one lovingly restored, the body stripped back to the bare metal and hand-corrected before being painted again. Nobody would have any idea that it shared an engine with a Camaro ZL1.

But that it does, the Paramount build packing a 6.2-litre supercharged V8 under the hood. The LT4 is the same engine that was used in the old Corvette Z06 and still sees service in the really hot Cadillacs – it’s an absolute monster, basically, one that makes 635lb ft as well. Even in an Escalade it makes for epic performance, so heaven knows what will happen to the Rolls-Royce. Harnessing all that potential is GM’s 10-speed auto, albeit the Bowler Tru-Street version which we’ll assume is better. The Cloud also gets a carbon fibre driveshaft and Strange Engineering rear axle, both of which sound appropriately heavy-duty; the rear tyres are just a 255-section, however, so there’s going to be ample opportunity for mayhem.

The whole car has been beefed up to deal with this incredible powertrain swap, though it has retained ‘all stock body, bumper and core support mounts’. Which probably helps the Cloud retain its standard looks. Otherwise it’s all custom, from newly independent rear suspension to bespoke floor pans, the centre structural crossmember to fabricated fully-boxed frame rails made of 10-gauge steel. The more you read, the easier it is to understand how 3,400 hours were spent on this build. And the more convinced you become Paramount is probably going to be fantastic to drive; far from being just about power, the old Rolls now ride on Roadster Shop front suspension and Fast Link rear, both using Fox RS SV coilovers. There are 15-inch brake discs and six-piston calipers at each corner. Another Ringbrothers project full of surprises…

The interior is predictably amazing, too. Much like the outside, it’s far from immediately obvious this is now such a performance-oriented build – Paramount once more resembles a beautifully restored car. A sympathetically updated one, too, with more than a thousand LEDs in the roof to mimic the starlight effect of a new Rolls-Royce. The picnic tables remain, as well. But there’s now machined billet switchgear alongside instrumentation that ‘offers old-world charm with new-world metrics and infotainment’. Plus what looks like absolutely glorious hide and veneers. Nothing is left to chance in a Ringbrothers build, and never more so than with Paramount.

“Every part of this build is brimming with detail and character,” said Ringbrothers co-owner Mike Ring.“The exterior keeps to the allure of traditional British luxury while the engine, chassis and interior all embrace a modern luxury sedan. This project combines Rolls-Royce’s past and present with a 640-horsepower American accent. We invested over 3,400 hours in fabricating, painting and engineering this project and are grateful to our partners for working with us to further our craft and allowing us to explore an entirely new realm of art form.” As if it couldn’t sound any better, eh? Even by the standards of what the Rings produce, this feels like another level.

Paramount will be shown to the world at SEMA over the coming days, where it debuted alongside Tusk – a ‘69 Charger powered by a 1,000hp Hellephant V8 – and Uncaged,a 1965 Mustang Convertible that’s a sister car to last year’s Caged car, which was the coupe. Clever. What on earth do they do next?

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640hp R-R Silver Cloud takes the SEMA biscuit

Just when you thought all the Chevy V8 engine swaps had happened, Ringbrothers pulls a rabbit from its hat…

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