Rolls-Royce Corniche
The Riviera convertible of film stars and rock stars.

The story
The Corniche was the two-door Silver Shadow given its own name. Each one took months to build, with the body finished by hand in London. The convertible stayed in production for nearly a quarter of a century.
Inside
As lavish as a Shadow, with a power hood lined so thickly that it is as quiet as a saloon when raised.
In period colours
Tap a colour to respray the drawing.
It is named after the cliff roads of the French Riviera.
Meanwhile, in 1971
Britain switched to decimal money in February.
Best-selling single of 1971: My Sweet Lord by George Harrison
Before you buy a 1970s car
- Rust is common in sills, wheel arches, front panels and the bottom of the doors.
- Check the wiring and electrics carefully, as they age badly.
- Many volume-selling cars still have good parts support, but badge-engineered and low-volume models can be harder to source.
General notes, not specific to this model. Check the model's own history before buying.
Rivals of its day
Picked automatically: cars on sale at the same time with similar size, speed and price.
See the real thing
These open in a new tab: the car on Wikimedia Commons, the interior and the badge as Google image searches.
Today's money: the launch price adjusted for inflation to 2026, using the Office for National Statistics price index.