4,887cc F-Head Inline 6-Cylinder Engine
Single Downdraft Carburetor
Approximately 125bhp
4-Speed Automatic Transmission
Independent Front Suspension – Live Rear Axle
4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes

*Delivered new to Oilman Maurice Machris
*Rare owner/driver Long Wheelbase Saloon – one of only two built
*Original left-hand drive US market car
*Copies of factory records on file

THE ROLLS-ROYCE SILVER WRAITH

Rolls-Royce's first post-war model, the Silver Wraith debuted in late 1946 and employed a chassis similar to that of the Silver Dawn and MkVI Bentley, though with a 7" longer wheelbase at 10' 7". The Wraith, however, was only intended for traditional coachbuilt bodies rather than the MkVI's pioneering 'standard steel' bodywork. Only the bore and stroke dimensions were shared with the pre-war overhead-valve Wraith engine, the major advantage of this 'F-head' layout being its large valves and generous water jacketing around the valve seats. Manufacture of the short-wheelbase Wraith ceased in 1952, with a total production of 1,144; the long-wheelbase version continued until the introduction of the Phantom V in 1959, by which time 639 chassis had been completed.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

There are few cars as majestic as a Rolls-Royce in the immediate post-war era as exemplified by this handsome and graceful example. LBLW 45 as prefixed by 'L' decodes as a car that was delivered new in the rare left-hand drive form in which it remains to this day. According to copies of the factory records, which reside with the Rolls-Royce Owners Club in Mechanicsburg, PA, the car was built for the American market when new, and as completed was imported and retailed through the Hambro Trading Co. for its first owner Maurice A. Machris.

Machris would have been an ideal client for Rolls-Royce, while representing a more modern era of their buyers. He was well famed for his wealth from the oil industry and was one of a handful of pioneering hunters profiled in Sports Illustrated in July 1961. There he was described as "a trophy hunter for a mere eight years [who} has a Noah's Ark complex of staggering proportions, and happily has channeled it in ways which have enriched museums and zoos...At the end of a typical Machris trophy hunt, the biologists are kept busy for four or five years sifting through the collections. On a single trip to Brazil, in company with eight scientists, Machris brought back 11,000 insects, out of which 18 new species have been found, and 1,000 plants, out of which 58 new varieties have turned up. The sorting process is still going on; the trip was in 1957." It noted that the New Latin word machrisae now appears in the scientific names of several dozen new discoveries, including several water bugs!

Doubtless, having endured the wilds of nature, when he returned to Los Angeles it would be nice to contrast this with a cossetted ride in his Silver Wraith. True to the modernity of the Rolls-Royce clientele, Machris chose Touring Saloon coachwork, i.e. with no division and may well have been the newly fashioned 'owner/driver' as the company referred to them, distinguishing them from their chauffeured forebears—a truly rare option as only one other long wheelbase Wraith was so ordered. The colorway of the car is not recorded on the build sheet, but we do know that it was an automatic transmission example, sported whitewall tires and those that trailed it would have seen a 'Made in England' sign on its tail. A set high highly desirable, large P100 headlights completed the package.

The records do not list subsequent ownership, but in more recent times the car has migrated to the East Coast and into the present private custodian's hands. The seller reports that within the last few years the car has received considerable restoration work, this has included a repaint to the current two-tone sky blue over silver paint scheme and refurbishment of the interior in tan hides. As when new, white walls adorn the car's wheels.

With an interesting provenance and rare desirable specification, this is a one-off example of its breed.