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Eyston’s Thunderbolt
Thunderbolt was built in the former Bean Car plant in Tipton, Staffs during 1937 in order to attempt to wrest the World Land Speed Record of 301 mph away from Sir Malcolm Campbell and his Bluebird car. The contender was powered by two V12 Rolls Royce R aero engines each of 36.5 litres both of which could develop 2350 bhp. Capt. George Eyston took Thunderbolt to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA where on the 19th November 1937 he took the record from Campbell by a margin of 11 mph. This achievement sparked a rivalry between Eyston and John Cobb and his Railton Special car who between them broke the LSR on a further five occasions before the outbreak of WWII. The photograph of Thunderbolt was taken in Beans Industries plant at Tipton while Max Millar‘s superb cut-away drawing appears here courtesy of Motorsport Images. (Drag the arrow in either direction to fully reveal each image)
