Rolls-Royce Phantom II

Sultan: "Rolls-Royce Phantom Two. 4.3 litre, 30 horsepower, six cylinder engine, with Stromberg Downdraft carburetor. Can go from zero to 100 kilometers an hour in 12.5 seconds. And I even like the color."

Donovan: "The keys are in the ignition, Your Highness."

―Sultan of Hatay and Walter Donovan^[src]

The Sultan is presented with the Rolls-Royce.

A Nazi Rolls-Royce Phantom II staff car was used by Walter Donovan in Hatay. When offered "suitable compensation" for removing the Holy Grail from within Hatay's borders, the Sultan balked at the chest of gold valuables and instead expressed interest in Donovan's Rolls-Royce, adding that he even liked the color.^[1] In fact, the Rolls-Royce was the car the Sultan had always wanted.^[2]

Willing to give up his car if it meant obtaining the Grail, Donovan politely told the Sultan the keys were in the ignition. In return for the prize automobile, the Sultan promised to provide provisions and troops for the expedition to recover the Grail, including camels, horses and tanks. However, giving his car to the Sultan ultimately amounted to nothing as Donovan's pursuit of eternal life ended with his demise.^[1]

Behind the scenes[]

The Rolls-Royce Phantom II car used for the filming of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was not a Phantom II, but a Rolls-Royce 20/25 h.p. Barker Saloon.^[1]

The real Rolls-Royce Phantom II has a 7.7 L (7668 cc/467 in³) pushrod-OHV straight-6 engine. The engine was unitary with a 4-speed manual transmission. Synchromesh was added on gears 3 and 4 in 1932 and on gear 2 in 1935, respectively six and three years prior to the film's 1938 setting.^[1]

In Rob MacGregor's novelization, the car is a Daimler-Benz instead, but the Sultan's interest and overall negotiation scene is otherwise the same.^[3] A Daimler Benz 3.4 litre is likewise used in Anne Digby's storybook.^[2]