Our Touring Past

I recently ran across this while 'Troving' and it is certainly something different. Hard to imagine such an item didn't survive, or maybe it did with a more conventional body when its roving days were done.

George

Hi George.
That would have been one flash "caravan". I wonder who Mr R G Nicholas of Toorak was ?

I've not made any attempt to find out who he was or what he did, but at a guess I think he had a bob or two to spread about I wonder if the R-R Owner's Club knows more about the car or him? They seem to keep fastidious records of cars from what I've seen. It it is still about and turned up at the right price I could transfer the RR number plates from my Velox

George

Hi Griffin and Richard,

I can help with a bit of info.

The Rolls Royce motorhome in the photo was built for G R Nicholas by Romany Road, which was one of the pre-World War II Victorian caravan manufacturers.

Nicholas was George Richard Rich Nicholas, a pharmacist who developed the Aspro during World War I when supplies of aspirin were no longer available from the German company Bayer. The Nicholas family became wealthy off the back of the world wide sales of Aspro, and also became well known philanthropists. Growing up in Melbourne in the 50's, the Nicholas name was well known and there are various landmarks around Melbourne which are connected to the Nicholases. In fact I reckon that most Australians around our age (well, yours and mine Griffin, not Richard's ) would probably recognise a pack of Nicholas Aspros by the colour of the pack (pink). However I think that Aspros are now produced as a generic medicine, and I doubt if my kid's generation would even recognise the signficance of the Nicholas name.

Don Ricardo

Hi Don R

You are full of knowledge about Melbournians of note.

I took my own advice and emailed the R-R Owner's Club of Vic. who replied with a copy of the original photo which clearly shows it has a lantern roof. Information from Tim Dean says the Nicholas family were loyal customers of Rolls-Royce and over several generations owned 17 R-R and Bentley cars. They give the chassis number as 48OR for the Phantom I which had the chassis lengthened for the caravan, but they didn't know who did the work so one up there DR.
As I suggested, the vehicle survives but the chassis has been returned to normal length and an undisclosed new body fitted which is a real shame, but R-R owners are ultimate recyclers. So my RR number plates will remain firmly attached to the Velox.

It seems odd that such a fine 'motor caravan' only seems to have made the press just once.

This is the copy of the original photo for some extra detail.
I don't recall ASPRO particularly by the way having been free from the requirement to take such medications until recent years. As an apprentice everyone in the factory I worked in threw down BEX powders like lollies. There were vending machines for them! I tried one once and nearly choked, I think I rather put up with a headache!

Out of curiosity I checked some early advertising for ASPRO and was amused to see advertisements promoting the bottle of 100 as the ideal Christmas Gift, one that would keep on giving, how quaint!

George

magnificent looking motorhome,
imagine turning up with that at the local beach camp!
hughdeany