Auto Ego: Resembling a High Roller

Even if only a few of them acknowledged this imposing two-tone blue sedan as a Rolls-Royce, they could easily confirm that the great man in a dark blue striped suit and a trench coat standing next to the driver's door was its owner. Filling of each rear door window was a sign with a picture of the man, David Michael Leedy and his wife, Donna. Both are real estate agents working in this Office.

Mr. Leedy possessed this 1975 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow since 2009. He sometimes uses it in his work, client driver to see listings and Park the car in the open days, a tactic that he said helped attract attention and potential buyers. His other vehicle, a Chrysler minivan, uses less gas, but rolls offers more panache.

"It helps me to stand out in a crowded market," he said.

The latest announcements from Mr. Leedy include an assortment of the colonials, raised Cape Cod and the homes of two families at Bloomfield, Clifton, Belleville and burgher of North Jersey cities, spanning the Passaic River and the Garden State Parkway. A grey winter day, the region seems ready for the refreshing effect of the spring; It might even of Rolls-Royce's Mr. Leedy, a point he made repeatedly.

"It is far from perfect," he said, his apologetic tone, suggesting that one could reasonably expect any Rolls, even the one who is 38 years old, to remain a Virgin.

The painting has lost some of its luster, and there are a few scratches and bumps on the body. But two hallmarks of the brand - the Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament and the vertical grid, a monument of polished stainless steel - shine again.

The Silver Shadow arrived to 1966 as a replacement for the upper, obsolete Silver Cloud, a model that many Americans recognize the 1980s television, a commercial for Grey Poupon mustard. A unibody chassis and independent suspension modern four-wheel - with hydraulic Tower upgrade licensed from Citroën - gave the Silver Shadow of 4 700 soft raccompagne books with enough handling.

Some 30,000 Silver shadows were built over a period of 15 years. Approximately 210 inches long on a 120-inch wheelbase, it is the mower that luxury Leviathan of Detroit, period cars, however, it offered a large cabin and trunk. Faithful to the British penchant for understatement, Rolls-Royce cited the engine output to only as "adequate". (It was, in fact, about 190 horses.)

Mr. Leedy bought its rolls for $10,000 from a dealer of used cars of luxury in Queens. The Silver Shadow was sold for about $40,000 when it is new - the equivalent of about $171 000 today, which is four times the price of America's most popular luxury car this year, the Cadillac Coupe de Ville. Knowing that his local reliable mechanic expertise Rolls-Royce helped Mr. Leedy to feel confident about the purchase of the car.

' He told me the best way to keep this car that works well is often lead, this is what I do, "he said.

Most of the car wear has occurred before Mr. Leedy bought, but a small dent in the passenger door was acquired when the rollers wouldn't start one day and brushed the door while being towed out garage of Mr. Leedy.

«Getting minor scrapes doesn't bother me,» he said. "If it was a perfect car when I had this tooth, I would have another heart attack."

Mr. Leedy, who is 47, had his heart attack 10 years ago the outcome, he said, a work of high stress and a habit of smoking, which he had left on his doctor's advice. He left a 23 year career at United Parcel Service, where he had started as a telephone representative centre and is passed to a senior account manager.

"I had the UN and Madison Square Garden as clients," he said.