Appeal launched to raise money to build a new gearbox for Sir Malcolm Campbell's 1920 Land Speed Record Car.

The National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, has launched an appeal to raise funds to build a new gear box for Sir Malcolm Campbell’s historic 1920 Sunbeam 350hp Land Speed Record car.

The museum’s manager and Chief Engineer, Doug Hill says: “During the Sunbeam’s long and chequered history, its Achilles heel has been a weak gearbox. At some time after WWll, the original gearbox was removed and subsequently lost. 

It was replaced with a gearbox that was originally used in an Albion 35hp van, designed to take only one tenth of the power this engine produces and the way in which the braking system has been modified means that this installation severely compromises the braking of the vehicle.

“For the next stage of the Sunbeam’s restoration story, we need to build a new gearbox from scratch. 

As the original gearbox no longer exists and there is no template to follow, this will be a challenge requiring all of our knowledge and expertise. It is a vital step in our journey to restore the car to its 1925 specification and will greatly help us to drive the car closer to the speed it was built for.”

This year celebrates the 90th anniversary of Sir Malcolm Campbell achieving a new World Land Speed record of 150mph at Pendine Sands, South Wales, in this car. On 21 July, ninety years to the day since the record was set, the National Motor Museum marked the occasion with a commemorative low-speed demonstration run with the Sunbeam back at Pendine Sands, with Sir Malcolm’s grandson, Don Wales, in the driving seat.

Commenting on the restoration appeal Don said: “This beautiful car has been lovingly restored and looked after by Doug Hill and the team and its only right that such an iconic car deserves to have the final pieces in place to complete her!”

The appeal for £30,000 has been launched to help fund the work on the gearbox. If you would like to donate to the Sunbeam Appeal you can do so now via BT MyDonate or if you would like to speak to someone in person please contact Heather Reid or email donations@beaulieu.co.uk

The new gearbox will be part of a long term project to restore the car to its 1925 specification.  This would also require the fabrication of two full length exhaust pipes, a new seat and upholstery, and the re-manufacture of a slightly dropped nose cone and rear wheel spats.

The Sunbeam, renamed Blue Bird by Campbell, holds three World Land Speed Records, the first achieved by Kenelm Lee Guinness at Brooklands in 1922 with a speed of 133.75mph. Campbell then purchased the car, had it painted in his distinctive colour scheme and in September 1924 achieved a new record speed of 146.16mph at Pendine, raising it the following year to 150.76mph.

Subsequently Campbell sold the Sunbeam and it passed through a number of owners before being purchased, in a very poor condition, by Edward, Lord Montagu in 1957. It was restored to working order and had its last outing at Goodwood in July 1962.

During a test fire-up in 1993 to assess the car’s condition, disaster struck when a blocked oil way in the engine caused it to seize and ‘throw a rod’. For several years after that, the car was on display in the museum with a very visible hole in its engine where the piston and con-rod had exited.

In January 2014, following a complete mechanical rebuild undertaken by the National Motor Museum’s workshop team over a period of many years, the Sunbeam was fired-up again, the first time it had been heard in public in over 50 years. The following month it was a star of the show at Retromobile, Paris and was also run at the Goodwood Festival of Speed

90 Years after setting the world Land Speed Record, the car returns to Pendine Sands for a low speed run.

This year celebrates the 90^th anniversary of Sir Malcolm Campbell achieving a new World Land Speed record of 150mph at Pendine Sands, South Wales, in his 350hp Sunbeam. Ninety years to the day, the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, is marking the occasion with a commemorative low-speed demonstration run with the Sunbeam, back at Pendine Sands. 

The run will take place at 4pm on 21 July, starting from the area of the beach adjacent to the Pendine Museum of Speed.

The car will be driven by Sir Malcolm’s grandson, Don Wales, himself a Land Speed Record holder. In addition to performing the run, he and the museum team will be aiming to re-create two iconic pictures from the original run.

Don said: 'I am really looking forward to driving the 350hp Sunbeam, which is the car that gave my grandfather his first Land Speed Record. I cannot believe that I will get this fantastic opportunity to drive this iconic machine on Pendine. It will also be fun to dress in costume to look as my grandfather did in the pictures taken ninety years ago.

“My grandfather was a remarkable man and for us to remember him and honour some of his achievements in this way will be very humbling. I really must thank Beaulieu for this opportunity and for all the hard work the restoration team have done on her.'

The car was the brainchild of Sunbeam’s chief engineer and racing team manager, Louis Coatalen, and was constructed at the company’s works in Wolverhampton during 1919 and early 1920. Its power came from a modified 18.322 litre V12 modified Manitou Arab aero engine, a type used on naval seaplanes.

The Sunbeam, renamed Blue Bird by Campbell, holds three World Land Speed Records, the first achieved by Kenelm Lee Guinness at Brooklands in 1922 with a speed of 133.75mph. Campbell then purchased the car, had it painted in his distinctive colour scheme and in September 1924 achieved a new record speed of 146.16mph at Pendine, raising it the following year to 150.76mph.

Campbell then sold the Sunbeam and it passed through a number of owners and was in a poor condition when purchased by Lord Montagu in 1957, for his ever expanding motor museum. It was restored to working order and when not on display, it was taken to motoring venues in the UK, Europe and as far afield as South Africa.Its last outing was at the British Automobile Racing Club Festival of Motoring at Goodwood in July 1962 when Lord Montagu took it on a 3-lap demonstration run and Donald Campbell did a lap d’Honneur.

During a test fire-up in 1993 to assess the car’s condition, disaster struck when a blocked oil way in the engine caused it to seize and ‘throw a rod’. For several years after that, the car was on display in the museum with a very visible hole in its engine where the piston and con-rod had exited.

In January 2014, following a complete mechanical rebuild undertaken by the National Motor Museum’s workshop team over a period of many years, the Sunbeam was fired-up again - the first time it had been heard in public in over 50 years. The following month it was a star of the show at Retromobile, Paris and was also run at the 2014 Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Doug Hill, the National Motor Museum’s Manager and Chief Engineer said: “We are delighted to be able to celebrate such an amazing achievement with this historic motorcar, 90 years to the day after Malcolm Campbell achieved 150mph with it on the same stretch of sand. Having spent over 2,000 hours on the engine alone, this low speed commemorative demonstration run is a fitting tribute both to the team of engineers at the Museum involved in its restoration and to the original creators of the car. It is also a tribute to Lord Montagu who had the foresight to preserve this iconic motorcar and to the courage and determination of Malcolm Campbell.”

Supporting the run will be the 1933 aero-engined Napier Railton Special, which holds the all-time lap record of 143.44mph at Brooklands. The Napier-Railton has its own unique history at Pendine, having been the star (alongside James Mason and Ava Gardner) of the 1951 movie Pandora & The Flying Dutchman. In the film, the car is used for an attempt on the Land Speed Record, for which the action sequences (culminating in the car being driven into the sea to quench an engine fire) were filmed on Pendine Sands during 1950. In recent months, a film researcher has established that amongst the ‘extras’ in the crowd scenes for these sequences was the famed Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas. Owned by the Brooklands Museum since 1977, the Napier-Railton will also run at Pendine, with Museum Director & CEO, Allan Winn, in the driving seat.

Do you want a BRAND NEW 1980 Talbot Lotus Sunbeam, well you can.....

Silverstone Auctions is offering the chance to own a ‘brand new’ hot hatch icon, a 1980 Talbot Lotus Sunbeam, in its auction at the Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show. The car is presented in immaculate, as new condition, has never been registered and has covered just 193 miles in its lifetime.

The left-hand drive, time warp car was discovered overlooked and ignored as part of a large private collection in Italy by the current vendor. Every single aspect of the car is factory standard and it appears like it has just rolled off the production line. It is estimated at between £24,000 and £28,000 and finished in the evocative colour scheme of Embassy Black with silver decals.

“It’s incredibly rare to discover a historic car that is ‘brand new’ but this is exactly what we have here. Sitting in this amazing example takes you right back to the late 70s and early 80s and the early days of the hot hatchback”, said Nick Whale, managing director, Silverstone Auctions.

The Talbot Sunbeam-Lotus was one of the most exciting hot hatchbacks to emerge from the 1970s. It originally came about because Chrysler commissioned Lotus to produce an effective entrant for international Group 4 rallying. Lotus took a Sunbeam 1.6GLS shell and installed a 2.2-litre version of the Lotus 16-valve four-cylinder engine and a five-speed ZF gearbox. It proved very effective in rallying, winning the challenging 1980 Lombard-RAC event. The road-going version proved quick and balanced, although it was priced higher than the comparable Chevette HS or Escort RS2000.

Having never been registered, the buyer of this vehicle will be the first registered keeper in its history. Supplied with all hand books, service books and a fresh UK MoT, this 1980s icon is an incredible find for any collector of modern-classics.

“This really is a time warp car, immaculately preserved. Nothing has been modified and this must surely be the only unregistered and lowest mileage Talbot Lotus Sunbeam in existence”, added Nick.

The vendor describes this vehicle as in "perfect running order” and will be supplied with a NOVA certificate for the new owner to register the car. The car will be auctioned on the 16^th of November at the NEC, Birmingham as part of Silverstone Auctions’ two-day sale the Classic Motor Show.

For more information please visit http://www.silverstoneauctions.com/talbot-sunbeam-lotus.