Rolls-Royce Landspeed Collection, the Wraith and the Dawn celebrate a 1937 land speed record

More than 80 years ago, racing driver George Eyston became the first Briton to take part in speed trials at the Bonneville Salt Flats, a location that, as you know, has been the setting for numerous land speed records. It was there that Eyston set three world land speed records in 1937 aboard his vehicle, which he called Thunderbolt.

The Thunderbolt was a three-axle, eight-wheel vehicle that weighed a hefty seven tonnes despite having an aluminium body. It was powered by two Rolls-Royce 37-litre V12 engines capable of delivering 2,000 CV of power. Only 19 units of this engine were built due to its high cost, yet it was so important for the brand that, along with these records, it also helped lay the foundations for the legendary Spitfire.

Rolls-Royce pays tribute to the milestone achieved by George Eyston and his Thunderbolt, and to do so has created the Landspeed Collection, in which the Wraith and the Dawn are the main protagonists of a limited edition of which only 25 units of the Dawn and 35 units of the Wraith will be made, each one already assigned to the brand’s most exclusive customers at a price that, as is customary on these occasions, has been kept secret.

In this way, we find the Rolls-Royce Wraith and Dawn presented with Bonneville Blue paint as the main colour of their bodywork, in reference to the salt flats where the feat took place, while the secondary colour is Diamond Black metallic. The discordant note comes from the yellow details applied to the ends of the front bumper.

If we look at the interior of the Rolls-Royce Wraith, we see that black is the dominant colour, with yellow seat details matching the exterior as a contrast and, if we look up, the roof features a replica of the starry sky that was visible on the day the records were set. The Rolls-Royce Dawn is its antagonist, with an interior dominated by white, where yellow and black provide the contrasting accents. Common to both models, the always special analogue clock on the dashboard features an engraving showing the figure of 357.497 km/h recorded in Eyston’s record.

The heart of both models remains the powerful 6,600 cc twin-turbo V12 capable of delivering 563 CV, enabling them to reach 100 km/h in around 4.9 seconds despite both models being heavy, before going on to reach the electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h.