Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith Touring Limousine

Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith Touring Limousine

The Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith, produced from 1946 to 1959, was the first new Rolls-Royce to emerge after the Second World War and the last to be offered exclusively as a rolling chassis for bespoke coachwork. It represented the final flowering of the British coachbuilding tradition that had defined Rolls-Royce motoring since the company's founding.

The Silver Wraith's chassis was an evolution of the pre-war design, featuring the venerable straight-six engine enlarged to 4.25 litres at launch and subsequently to 4.5 litres in 1951. This inlet-over-exhaust engine, equipped with twin SU carburetors, produced power in the characteristic Rolls-Royce manner: smoothly, silently, and in quantities described only as 'sufficient.' Independent front suspension and servo-assisted drum brakes were fitted, while later cars received the option of an automatic gearbox.

Because every Silver Wraith was a rolling chassis, each car received unique coachwork from the buyer's chosen bodybuilder. The finest firms in Britain — Hooper, H.J. Mulliner, Park Ward, James Young, and Freestone & Webb — created an extraordinary variety of body styles. These ranged from formal limousines with division windows and occasional seats to elegant touring saloons, drophead coupes, and even the occasional estate car. Each body was constructed largely by hand, with hand-formed aluminium panels over an ash wood frame.

The Silver Wraith was the car of choice for the establishment. It served as official transport for government ministers, ambassadors, and the leaders of industry. Hooper built the formal limousines favoured by government and diplomatic services, while H.J. Mulliner and Park Ward created the more sporting designs favoured by private owners.

Two wheelbase lengths were available: the standard 127-inch wheelbase and a long-wheelbase version at 133 inches, introduced in 1951. The long-wheelbase Silver Wraith was particularly suited to formal limousine coachwork and provided generous rear passenger accommodation.

Total production amounted to 1,883 units over the thirteen-year production run — a remarkably low figure that ensured exclusivity. Today, the finest coachbuilt Silver Wraiths are highly prized by collectors, with formal limousines by Hooper and sporting saloons by H.J. Mulliner commanding particularly strong prices.

The Silver Wraith marks the end of an era in motoring. Its successor, the Silver Cloud, was the first Rolls-Royce to offer a standard factory body, ending the century-long tradition of bespoke coachbuilding that the Silver Wraith represented so magnificently.