1939 Rolls-Royce Wraith Town Car

This 1939 Rolls Royce Wraith is one of 492 examples produced and features four-door town car coachwork from J. S. Inskip of New York. The car was purchased by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation in 1965 out of Colorado, and until the 1980s it was displayed at Tony Hulman’s Early Wheels Museum in Terre Haute, Indiana. The vehicle was subsequently incorporated into the IMS Museum collection, where it spent the past decade in their climate-controlled storage facility. The cabin is partitioned and features red cloth upholstery in the rear along with jump seats, while the right-hand-drive front cabin area is upholstered in black leather. Power comes from a 4,257cc straight-six paired with a four-speed synchromesh transmission. In preparation for the sale IMS Museum staff freed the seized engine, cleaned the fuel system, and repaired the shifter. This Wraith is now offered by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation with a clean Indiana title that uses the car’s engine number. The Wraith debuted in 1938 as a replacement for the 25/30 model and was built as a running chassis at the Derby factory without coachwork. The body on this example was provided by J. S. Inskip Inc. of New York, who ran Brewster & Company’s Manhattan Rolls-Royce agency and offered coachbuilding for a number of different marques from 1937 to 1967. Checking, dents, scratches, and bubbles are noted in the two-tone black and red lacquer paint, and the brightwork is pitted, as shown up close in the gallery below. The finish and brightwork were polished using Sonax car care products in preparation for the sale. The forward portion of the roof can be removed to expose the driver’s cabin, and additional features include a centrally mounted front driving light, a badge bar, semaphore turn signals in the C-pillars, aftermarket radio antennas, and a single side-mount spare in the right-front fender. A 1965 Colorado inspection sticker is affixed to the windshield. Black wire wheels are mounted with older Denman 7.00-17 bias-ply whitewall tires that should be replaced prior to regular use. The Wraith features a coil-sprung independent front suspension based on the contemporary Packard 120, while its solid rear axle is equipped with leaf springs. Braking is handled by servo-assisted hydraulic drums all around. The right-hand-drive front cabin features a bench seat upholstered in black leather, along with matching-color door panels and carpeting. The wood dash fascia houses a Rolls-Royce-branded 90-mph speedometer in addition to plaques from 1950s and 1960s car shows. An aftermarket panel featuring heater controls is mounted below the dash. Just over 100 miles are shown on the five-digit odometer, and total mileage is unknown. The rear seating area is trimmed in red cloth with a matching headliner and door panels. Amenities include jump seats, cigar lighters, reading lights, and a partition with a sliding window. The window cranks on the doors have fallen off their splines but are included in the sale. The 4,257cc OHV straight-six features a cross-flow cylinder head and is mated to a four-speed manual gearbox with synchromesh on second, third, and fourth gears. IMS Museum staff freed the seized engine in preparation for the sale, and additional service included repairing a coolant leak, cleaning the spark plugs, replacing a battery terminal, repairing the shifter, cleaning the fuel tank and lines, and installing a new fuel pump. Further repair work will be required before the car can be returned to the road. A walk-around video with footage of NTT INDYCAR driver James Hinchcliffe piloting the car can be seen below.