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Automotive Lifestyle
VINTAGE: Hand-Built 1937 Rolls-Royce Twins At Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale
The refurbished speedsters were built recently in Southern California from a pair of derelict cars to reprise the sporting cars of their era.
The hand-crafted 1937 Rolls-Royce boat-tail speedsters will be offered individually at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction. (Photo: Barrett-Jackson)
The magnificent matching pair of 1937 Rolls-Royce boattail speedsters (Lot #5002 and 5003) that will roll gracefully across the block at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction look like restored custom showpieces built by expert coachbuilders back in the day.
This was a common practice for the great prewar luxury marques; they would be delivered to the top body craftsmen as bare chassis and running gear to be custom made for their wealthy new owners.
But these two Rolls-Royce beauties with their sporty speedster bodies have a different story entirely. Both of these cars were created by Southern California restoration expert Gary Wales, who calls himself a “retro restorer,” and were completed in January 2011.
But before the purists get all up in arms, they should realize that Wales rescued two derelict Rolls-Royces and made them into objects of art that are back on the road. One of them had been converted into an ambulance during the World War II bombing of London, and it was found thoroughly shot up and in ruins; the other was a rotted-out heap discovered in Puerto Rico.
Wales decided that the best approach for these old relics was to rebuild them in a way that would be more appealing and long-lived. And he decided to build them as twins.
The popular response to these re-created Rolls-Royce speedsters has been overwhelmingly positive. They have been shown as a pair in concours competition 15 times and won top awards at every outing, including the Pasadena Art School of Design “People’s Choice,” Caruso Concours d’Elegance “People’s Choice,” Grand National Roadster Show “First” and “Second,” and 11 additional prestigious prizes. Wales and his speedsters have even been featured in a segment of “Jay Leno’s Garage.”
Among their special features:
• The new redesigned bodies are expertly crafted from aluminum and feature real mahogany wood elements that were handmade by an expert vintage boat restorer.
• The original chassis, engine, transmission and running gear were restored to as-new condition before the bodies were installed.
• The engines, transmissions and firewalls were moved back 18 inches for improved balance and a long-hood appearance.
• The classic boattail speedster bodies look appropriate and authentic to the cars’ 1930s era.
• The cars are equipped with their original dashboards and sport authentic period Marchal headlamps.
• Among the hand-built pieces of bodywork are double-hinged hoods for improved appearance and functionality, unique and artfully designed fenders and windshields, and outside-mounted handbrakes.
The fresh and original Rolls-Royce speedsters easily transcend the labels of replicas or re-creations. They are instead creative pieces of fine art, rendered to perfection in an authentic representation of how the great coachbuilders of the era might have built them.
The Speedster twins will cross the block one after the other on Saturday, Jan. 19, during the primetime sale.
The 42nd annual Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction takes place Jan 13-20 at WestWorld, with 39 hours of live coverage on SPEED. For more information about the January event, see Barrett-Jackson.com.
Bob Golfen, Automotive Editor for SPEED.com, is a veteran auto writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, with a passion for collector cars, car culture and the automotive lifestyle. SPEED.com fans can email Bob Golfen at
This was a common practice for the great prewar luxury marques; they would be delivered to the top body craftsmen as bare chassis and running gear to be custom made for their wealthy new owners.
But these two Rolls-Royce beauties with their sporty speedster bodies have a different story entirely. Both of these cars were created by Southern California restoration expert Gary Wales, who calls himself a “retro restorer,” and were completed in January 2011.
But before the purists get all up in arms, they should realize that Wales rescued two derelict Rolls-Royces and made them into objects of art that are back on the road. One of them had been converted into an ambulance during the World War II bombing of London, and it was found thoroughly shot up and in ruins; the other was a rotted-out heap discovered in Puerto Rico.
Wales decided that the best approach for these old relics was to rebuild them in a way that would be more appealing and long-lived. And he decided to build them as twins.
The popular response to these re-created Rolls-Royce speedsters has been overwhelmingly positive. They have been shown as a pair in concours competition 15 times and won top awards at every outing, including the Pasadena Art School of Design “People’s Choice,” Caruso Concours d’Elegance “People’s Choice,” Grand National Roadster Show “First” and “Second,” and 11 additional prestigious prizes. Wales and his speedsters have even been featured in a segment of “Jay Leno’s Garage.”
Among their special features:
• The new redesigned bodies are expertly crafted from aluminum and feature real mahogany wood elements that were handmade by an expert vintage boat restorer.
• The original chassis, engine, transmission and running gear were restored to as-new condition before the bodies were installed.
• The engines, transmissions and firewalls were moved back 18 inches for improved balance and a long-hood appearance.
• The classic boattail speedster bodies look appropriate and authentic to the cars’ 1930s era.
• The cars are equipped with their original dashboards and sport authentic period Marchal headlamps.
• Among the hand-built pieces of bodywork are double-hinged hoods for improved appearance and functionality, unique and artfully designed fenders and windshields, and outside-mounted handbrakes.
The fresh and original Rolls-Royce speedsters easily transcend the labels of replicas or re-creations. They are instead creative pieces of fine art, rendered to perfection in an authentic representation of how the great coachbuilders of the era might have built them.
The Speedster twins will cross the block one after the other on Saturday, Jan. 19, during the primetime sale.
The 42nd annual Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction takes place Jan 13-20 at WestWorld, with 39 hours of live coverage on SPEED. For more information about the January event, see Barrett-Jackson.com.
Bob Golfen, Automotive Editor for SPEED.com, is a veteran auto writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, with a passion for collector cars, car culture and the automotive lifestyle. SPEED.com fans can email Bob Golfen at
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