A number of Nissan Bluebird owners return to the plant that built their cars 30 years ago to celebrate the milestone.

• Bluebird Car Club bring their cars back to Nissan’s UK plant
• Dozens of UK car enthusiasts witness Nissan innovation in action
• Visit marks Nissan’s 30^th anniversary in the UK

Thirty years after the first Bluebird rolled off the production line, Nissan fans brought their beloved cars back to the factory to see where it all began.

The 30 enthusiasts, members of the UK’s Bluebird Car Club, enjoyed a VIP visit to Nissan Sunderland Plant, meeting the employees who built their cars and viewing Nissan’s modern manufacturing operations first-hand.

Part of this year’s celebrations marking Nissan’s 30^th anniversary in the UK, the club invited members from across the country to go ‘Back to the Future’ and see how car production has changed since their Bluebirds were made.

Bluebirds of all shapes and colours arrived from as far as Cardiff, 310 miles away, to take part in a special tour of Nissan’s record-breaking manufacturing facilities, joined by long-serving staff who shared stories from the vehicle’s years in production in Sunderland.

Matt Welch, who drove his 1988 Bluebird 1.8 GS hatchback from Newark, Nottinghamshire, said:

“When I was a kid, everybody’s dad had a Bluebird. I’ve always loved these cars because of their retro shape, and growing up, my dream was to own one. A year ago, when I saw this perfectly preserved model on eBay, I went cold. Then I knew, this was the car I’d always wanted. I love it, it’s delicious; I get such a kick out of owning it. We have two other Nissans, however this is our favourite car which we take to shows and special events.”

He continued:

“Coming to the plant where my favourite car was built was a fantastic opportunity. I’ve been around many factory tours, but Nissan was a special one, as I got to come here in a car that I love, a car that’s so over engineered that even after 28 years of being on the road, it’s still as exciting to drive as it was when it was new.”

Ian Marshall, who travelled from Cardiff in his 1989 Bluebird 2.0 Executive, said:

“I've owned 11 Nissans over the last 13 years, six of which were Bluebirds. I’ve owned two GS, a ZX Turbo, a Turbo Executive, a GSXI, as well as an example of the 2.0 Executive version which I managed to find eight years ago.

“I’ve had this Bluebird T72 model for eight years; it's a fantastic car and in a world where most cars have a round shape to them, a vehicle like this really stands out. Aside from its looks, the Bluebird is also incredibly reliable, very well specified. Nissan really went to town on the quality of these cars and really proved how well their cars are built. Everything's to a really high standard and still works in this vehicle; the electric windows, sunroof, everything still works. I’ve also seen models that haven’t been looked after at all and despite that, they just keep running and running.”

Launched in 1986, the Nissan Bluebird 2.0 SGX was the first model to roll off the line at the Sunderland Plant. In 1990, almost 200,000 cars later, Bluebird production was ceased.

Kevin Fitzpatrick, Nissan’s Vice President for Manufacturing in the UK, said:  “There are some real classics on the road today which we have built in Sunderland and which our customers have taken to their hearts.

“Bluebird is a great example of this. It was the car that started our journey here in Sunderland and it’s always a pleasure to meet customers who share our passion for Nissan vehicles.

“Visits like this are a great reminder of how far technology has moved on in the 30 years we have been making cars in the UK. We used to marvel at things such as electric windows and central locking in these cars, and now we’re gearing up for the launch of a Nissan Qashqai equipped with piloted drive technology.”

The Sunderland Plant has grown to be the largest UK car plant of all time, supporting nearly 40,000 UK jobs and manufacturing one in three of all cars made in Britain.

This year, the Nissan Qashqai overtook the Micra as Nissan’s highest-volume car built in Europe, reaching 2.37m units.

In March, the plant also announced that the refreshed Nissan Qashqai crossover, available from 2017, will be the first vehicle in Europe to feature piloted drive technology.

90 years after it took the World Land Speed record, Bluebird runs again at Pendine.

Pendine Sands came alive as hundreds of spectators watched a commemorative run of the iconic 350hp Sunbeam, on the 90^th anniversary of Sir Malcolm Campbell’s World Land Speed Record of 150mph.

The National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, marked the anniversary with a low speed demonstration run in the restored Sunbeam with Sir Malcolm’s grandson Don Wales at the wheel.

Don Wales and the Beaulieu team also recreated two iconic pictures from the original run.

Don, who is also a Land Speed Record holder, said: “I was thrilled to be given this amazing opportunity to sit at the wheel of my grandfather’s car back at Pendine where he set his record. It was an honour both to follow in his footsteps and to drive this iconic car on such a special occasion.

“My grandfather was a remarkable man and for us to remember him and honour some of his achievements in this way is 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 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: “When we were rebuilding the Sunbeam, I always hoped it would be finished by 2015 so we could run it here today on the 90^th anniversary of its World Land Speed Record. I cannot think of a more fitting tribute to Louis Coatalen, the designers, the engineers who built it and the people who developed it during its racing history. I am also indebted to our team of engineers and volunteers who have spent more than 2000 working hours returning it to running condition.”

Supporting the run was 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 also made a few runs along the sand at Pendine, with Museum Director & CEO, Allan Winn, in the driving seat.

National Motor Museum: The world famous National Motor Museum houses a collection of over 280 vehicles telling the story of motoring on the roads of Britain from the dawn of motoring to the present day. The 350hp Sunbeam is one of four Land Speed Record cars on show in a permanent display For Britain & For The Hell Of it, opened in 2014, which also features the 1,000hp Sunbeam, the Irving-Napier Special ‘Golden Arrow’ and Donald Campbell’s  Bluebird CN7. Opened by Sir Stirling Moss in March, two new motor sport display areas in the museum, Grand Prix Greats and Road, Race and Rally, feature F1, rallying, trials and drag racing exhibits, as well as clothing, trophies, photographs, film and video, telling the story of both track and road racing from its beginnings to the present day.

In addition to its vehicle collection, the National Motor Museum Trust holds a Motoring Objects collection containing more than 46,000 items representing the social history of motoring, a Photographic Collection with over 1.2 million images and a Film & Video collection containing 45,000 items including the Ford Film & Video Library, plus material from Vauxhall Motors, General Motors and the Metropolitan Police as well as a number of private collections. The Motoring Archive contains 100,000 records of motoring related personal correspondence and memorabilia, company records and technical drawings, as well as information about vehicles, manufacturers, events and drivers while the Specialist Reference Library, one of the largest resources of its type anywhere in the world, holds 290,000 items including books, workshop manuals, handbooks, event programmes, auction and  sales catalogues and periodicals from the pioneering days to the present.www.nationalmotormuseum.org.uk

Brooklands Museum is on the site of the world’s first purpose-built motor racing circuit in Weybridge, Surrey which opened to the public in June 1907. More than a great sporting arena, Brooklands is the birthplace of British motorsport and aviation, home of Concorde and the site of many engineering and technological achievements throughout eight decades of the 20th century. The Museum displays a wide range of Brooklands-related motoring and aviation exhibits ranging from giant racing cars, motorcycles and bicycles to an unparalleled collection of Hawker and Vickers/ BAC-built aircraft, including the Second World War Wellington Bomber, Viking, Varsity, Viscount, Vanguard, VC10, BAC One-Eleven and the only Concorde with public access in South East England. With a year round programme of events that  includes car club visits (often with Test Hill in action), Auto Italia Italian Car Day, The Brooklands Double Twelve Motorsport Festival, aviation events and car rides on weekdays during school holidays, the Museum is embarking on a major Re-Engineering project that has secured £4.7M of Lottery Funding towards restoring and relocating the WWII aircraft hangar and re-joining the original Finishing Straight of the race track due to be completed in autumn 2016. www.brooklandsmuseum.com

About Don Wales: Wales, who is the nephew of Donald Campbell CBE and Grandson of Sir Malcolm Campbell, has been maintaining the Campbell record-breaking tradition since establishing the UK National Land Speed Record for an electric car in May 1998 at a speed of 116mph. In 2000 Don returned with Bluebird electric to Pendine Sands and set a two way average of 137mph, with a peak speed of over 160mph – a national record he maintained for 12 years.

In 2009 working alongside the British Steam Car Team Don achieved a World Land Speed Record for a steam powered car of 148mph, a record previously set in 1906 by Fred Marriott in a Stanley steam car. In 2010 he returned to Pendine Sands and set the World Lawn Mower Record with a speed of 87mph. Don currently holds a World Land Speed Record, two American National records and eight UK National records. It is his ambition to be the first to exceed 500mph in an electric car. www.donwales.co.uk

Rolls Royce shares special Waterspeed car with Sir Malcolm Campbell's family.

Donald and Joe Wales, the grandson and great grandson of pioneer record-breaker Sir Malcolm Campbell, have given their seal of approval to the first of 35 Bespoke Phantom Drophead Coupé Waterspeed Collection cars at the Home of Rolls-Royce in Goodwood, West Sussex.

Built to commemorate Campbell’s seminal act of British daring and endeavour, this latest creation by the marque’s Bespoke department takes inspiration from the Bluebird craft in which the records were set. A specially created exterior finish named Maggiore Blue takes its name from the lake on the Swiss-Italian border where Campbell broke the United States’ five year strangle-hold on the waterspeed records in 1937. This very special collection also pays homage to a period when the Rolls-Royce R-Type engine held speed records on land, water and in the air.

Donald and Joe enjoyed a walk through the manufacturing plant with Bespoke Designer Alex Innes before reviewing the specially commissioned car. On seeing the collection car, Donald, himself a record breaker, said, “I have no doubt that my grandfather Sir Malcolm Campbell would feel extremely proud to see his achievements honoured in this way. The Waterspeed car is a work of art; the blue and brushed steel evoke connotations of my grandfather’s World Record boats, Bluebird K3 and K4. This car is a lovely addition to the Rolls-Royce collection and a fabulous homage to a very important part of our racing heritage.”

It takes over 80 hours for a Rolls-Royce craftsperson to manufacture and hand brush the car’s striking brushed steel deck, whilst the coachline, complete with Bluebird motif, took another four hours to hand-apply using a squirrel hair brush.

Alex Innes, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Bespoke Designer, said, “It gives me great pleasure to reveal Waterspeed to Donald and Joe Wales.  Rolls-Royce Motor Cars echo Sir Malcolm Campbell’s commitment to engineering excellence and the constant pursuit of the ultimate in British Design.  Using only the finest materials and exceptional craftsmanship, we have created a car which demonstrates the possibilities of Bespoke personalisation available to all Rolls-Royce customers.”

The Phantom Drophead Coupé Waterspeed Collection features a number of exquisitely designed and crafted Bespoke design features that have never appeared on a Rolls-Royce before. Further details revealing an insight into the creation of the cars will follow in the coming weeks.

Beaulieu welcomes third BlueBird into the museums collection.

Sir Malcolm Campbell set a land speed record of 276.82mph in the Blue Bird V at Daytona Beach, Florida, USA, in February 1935 and then went on to become the first person to exceed 300mph when he achieved a record 301.129mph in it at Bonneville salt flats, Utah, in September of the same year.

This is only the second time in the vehicle’s history that Blue Bird V has crossed the Atlantic from its home at the Daytona International Speedway to the UK, giving visitors to Beaulieu an incredibly rare opportunity to see this magnificent motoring icon on display alongside other members of the Blue Bird family in the museum.

It joins the Bluebird CN7, driven by Sir Malcom Campbell’s son, Donald, to a land speed record of 403.10mph at Lake Eyre, Australia in 1964, and another of Sir Malcolm Campbell’s Land Speed Record Breakers, the Sunbeam 350hp – which he renamed Blue Bird and drove to two record speeds at Pendine Sands; 146.16mph in 1924, and 150.766mph in 1925.

Beaulieu Commercial Director, Stephen Munn, said: “Beaulieu has been home to Donald Campbell’s Bluebird CN7 since the 1960s, so it is wonderful to finally see his father’s most famous Land Speed Record Breaker, the Blue Bird V, displayed alongside it in the museum. To see these legendary vehicles together is an unforgettable experience, and we hope that by having them on display, they will inspire a whole new young generation and reignite the interest in land speed record breaking.”

Visitors to Beaulieu can also see Major Henry Segrave’s Sunbeam 1000hp which he drove to a record-breaking speed of 203.793mph at Daytona Beach in 1927.

This incredible Blue Bird display will only be on show for a few months, as the Blue Bird V will be making its return journey across the Atlantic at the end of November, so do not miss this amazing opportunity to view these three Blue Birds together.

The Blue Birds can be seen as part of a visit to the whole Beaulieu attraction, which includes the National Motor Museum, BOND IN MOTION, World of Top Gear, Beaulieu Abbey, Palace House and gardens.