Rolls-Royce Launches New Wraith And Dawn Black Badge Landspeed Collection

Rolls Royce is introducing a new limited edition for the Wraith and Dawn Black Badge models celebrating the land-speed records set by Captain George Eyston in the late 1930s with the twin-engined Thunderbolt.

The new Rolls Royce Wraith and Dawn Black Badge Landspeed Collection models feature unique details dedicated to these records and will be limited to just 35 examples for the Wraith, and 25 for the Dawn.

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The new special edition Rolls Royce models are painted in a specially created two-tone finish, which combines Black Diamond Metallic with a new bespoke color, called Bonneville Blue. Rolls Royce says that the new Bonneville Blue transitions under light from light blue to almost silver, “illustrating the reflections of both the vast sky over Bonneville and the crisp salt flats on Thunderbolt’s aluminum body”.

In addition, Rolls Royce has added two-tone yellow accents and black bumper inserts as a tribute to the Thunderbolt’s black arrow with a yellow circle, which was painted to heighten visibility for the photo-electric timing equipment used to verify the land-speed records.

The new Wraith Landspeed also features a special Starlight Headliner that perfectly depicts the night sky on 16 September 1938, when Eyston set his third and final land-speed record of 357.497 mph (575,335 km/h). The headliner uses 2,117 individually placed fiber-optic ‘stars’, the largest number of stars in a Rolls-Royce Wraith Starlight Headliner ever featured.

Other special features include an engraved dashboard wooden veneer with the Salt Flats’ fissured texture, the Thunderbolt’s silhouette and the records it achieved on the polished aluminum surface of the front tunnel, and the outline of the Silver Island mountains engraved on the upper “waterfall” between the rear seats.

Eyston’s Thunderbolt was powered by a pair of Rolls Royce R supercharged 37-liter V12 aero engines, each producing well over 2,000 HP. Rolls Royce made just 19 of these engines, and those of the Thunderbolt were previously used in a seaplane and today are preserved at the Royal Air Force Museum in London. The car itself was sadly destroyed in 1946 when the building it was stored in caught fire.

“The Collection, which includes both Wraith and Dawn Black Badge, celebrates someone with exactly that dauntless, fearless, pioneering spirit,” said Torsten Müller-Ötvös, CEO, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. “His name was Captain George Eyston, a Cambridge University graduate, racing driver, gifted inventor, and engineering genius. In the late 1930s, he broke the world land-speed record three times with his car Thunderbolt, powered by two Rolls-Royce R V12 aero engines. He was a true hero from an age of epic endeavors, yet both he and Thunderbolt have been all-but-forgotten for more than 80 years.

“With this Collection, we have revived Eyston’s memory and retold his remarkable story. Throughout Wraith and Dawn Landspeed, clients will find numerous subtle design elements and narrative details that recall and commemorate his amazing achievements, grand vision, and exceptional courage.”