The ad was created by David Ogilvy, who was one of the most notable advertising executives of the 20th century.
This ad featured the most famous advertising headline in history. "At Sixty Miles an Hour, the Loudest Noise in this New Rolls-Royce Comes from the Electric Clock." This famous headline came from a specific, obscure piece of testing data from the factory — a triumph of Ogilvy's faith in research.
Before writing the advertisement, Ogilvy spent three weeks immersing himself in Rolls-Royce data. The final copy (607 words of it) was entirely factual, and although the ad ran in only two newspapers and two magazines (the total media buy was $25,000), the headline now represents David Ogilvy in the Oxford Book of Quotations.
Rolls-Royce 1958
"At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock"
1. "At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock," reports the Technical Editor of THE MOTOR. The silence of the engine is uncanny. Three mufflers tune out sound frequencies -- acoustically.
2. Every Tool-Royce engine is run for seven hours at full throttle before installation, and each car is test-driven for hundreds of miles over varying road surfaces.
3. The Rolls-Royce is designed as an owner-driven car. It is eighteen inches shorter than the largest domestic cars.
4. The car has power steering, power brakes and automatic gear-shift. It is very easy to drive and to park. No chauffeur required.
5. There is no metal-to-metal contact between the body of the car and the chassis frame -- except for the speedometer drive. The entire body is insulated and under-sealed.
6. The finished car spends a week in the final test-shop, being fine-tuned. Here it it subjected to ninety-eight separate ordeals. For example, the engineers use a stethoscope to listen for axle--whine.
7. The Rolls-Royce is guaranteed for three years. With a new network of dealers and parts-depots from
Coast to Coast, service is no longer any problem.
8. The famous Rolls-Royce radiator has never been changed, except that when Sir Henry Royce died in 1933 the monogram RR was changed from red to black.
9. The coachwork is given five coats of primer paint, and hand rubbed between each coat, before fourteen coats of finishing paint go on.
10. By moving a switch on the steering column, you can adjust the shock-absorbers to suit road conditions. (The lack of fatigue in driving this car is remarkable.)
11. Another switch defrosts the rear window, by heating a network of 1360 invisible wires in the glass. There are two separate ventilating systems, so that you can ride in comfort with all the windows closed. Air conditioning is optional.
12. The seats are upholstered with eight hides of English leather -- enough to make 128 pairs of soft shoes.
13. A picnic table, venerered in French walnut, slides out from under the dash. Two more swing out behind the front seats.
14. You can get such optional extras as an Espresso coffee-making machine, a bed, hot and cold water for washing, an electric razor.
15. You can lubricate the entire chassis by simply pushing a pedal from the driver's seat. A gauge on the dash shows the level of oil in the crankcase.
16. Gasoline comsumption is remarkably low and there is no need to use premium gas; a happy economy.
17. There are two separate systems of power brakes, hydraulic and mechanical. The Rolls-Royce is a very safe car -- and also a very lively car. It cruises serenely at eighty-five. Top speed is in excess of 100 m.p.h.
18. Rolls-Royce engineers make periodic visits to inspect owners' motor cars and advise on service.
19.The Bentley is made by Rolls-Royce. Except for the radiators, they are identical motor cars, manufactured by the same engineers in the same works. The Bentley costs $300 less, because its radiator is simpler to make. People who feel diffident about driving a Rolls-Royce can buy a Bentley.
PRICE. The car illustrated in this advertisment -- f.o.b. principal port of entry -- costs $13,550.
If you would like the rewarding experience of driving a Rolls-Royce or Bentley, get in touch with our dealer. His name is on the bottom of this page. Rolls-Royce Inc., 10 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, N.Y.
