09/12/2026
◇ Thomas D. Verrill was a mechanical engineering graduate who worked in the aircraft industry. He had a vision. A car so long, so massive, that it would compete with the legendary Bugatti Royale. The Bugatti was one of the largest cars ever built. Verrill wanted to outdo it. He built the Wolfwagen Roadster.
◇ The car measures twenty four feet in length. That is longer than a Ford Expedition. It tips the scales at five thousand one hundred pounds. The body panels are thick three quarter inch fiberglass over a wooden structural frame. The chassis is from a 1952 Chrysler. The engine is a 331 cubic inch Chrysler Hemi V 8. A Fluid Drive transmission sends power to the rear wheels.
◇ Verrill hoped to pitch the design to major automotive companies for production. The extreme footprint made mass manufacturing impractical. No one wanted a twenty four foot long two door car. The Wolfwagen remained a singular prototype. It now resides in the Swigart Automobile Museum in Pennsylvania. A one off. A what if. A car built to beat a legend. It did not succeed. But it tried.
[Disclaimer: This image is for illustrative purposes only.]
