1000hp Sunbeam LSR breaks cover at Pebble Beach

History came roaring back to life on the lawn at Pebble Beach last weekend as the Sunbeam 1000hp World Land Speed record breaker, the first-ever Earth-bound machine to go over 200mph, launched its North American tour with a visit to Monterey’s Car Week and a debut appearance at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

The history-making twin-engined Sunbeam was fully restored by the staff at the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu in Hampshire, UK as part of a fund raising effort to support the next chapter in the history of the prestigious museum.

Powered by two colossal 22.4-liter Matabele V-12 aero engines, the British engineering icon will return to Daytona Beach, Fla., in 2027, to mark 100 years since it broke the 200mph Land Speed Record.

The car was displayed as the headline entry in the Pebble Beach Special Curated Class at the 75th anniversary event and was greeted enthusiastically by the crowd on the Pebble Beach lawn as there was no mistaking the sound of the powerplants as they roared to life.

The focus of the Museum’s fundraising efforts will now shift to raising funds for the Sunbeam 1000hp to be further displayed in the U.S. and subsequently back in Great Britain in 2027. The aim is to raise funds to enable the Museum to undertake further restoration projects, and deliver high-quality learning, educational and community initiatives.

The car was joined at Pebble Beach by two staff members from the Museum workshop team; Senior Engineer Ian Stanfield and the workshop apprentice Aaron Burton, who have both worked on the restoration. Additionally, Sunbeam 1000hp Project Patron Martin Braybrook and Jon Murden, National Motor Museum chief executive and Lord Montagu of Beaulieu were on hand to represent the Museum at the prestigious event in California.

Following its appearance at the Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance the car has made a pit stop at Jay Leno’s "Big Dog Garage" located in Burbank, Calif., where it was filmed for a future episode of "Jay Leno's Garage." From there, the Sunbeam will remain in California and is on display on loan for the rest of the year at the Petersen Automotive Museum.

The tour marks an exciting chapter for the restoration project, which has taken more than three years – with many additional years of preparatory work, and the expertise of the Museum workshop team being tested with such a mammoth motoring heritage project, as there were no manuals or documentation to help.

The Museum's logistics partner in the USA, CARS (Classic Automotive Relocation Services) transported the car from Beaulieu to California, with an initial ship journey from Southampton,UK to New York.

“It was an honor for the National Motor Museum to see the 1000hp Sunbeam make is debut at the 75th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance – the world’s most prestigious car show,” said National Motor Museum chief executive, Jon Murden. “Over 15,000 people came to see 200 of the most beautiful cars and it was a real thrill to see the Sunbeam amongst such exclusive company. The highlight was undoubtedly the start-up of both engines of the Sunbeam at 1pm on the Sunday. A large crowd gathered to witness the first running of these engines in public for over 95 years, and this is an event which has undoubtedly put the National Motor Museum back on the global stage.”

The vehicle – also known as "The Slug," the slang term for bullet after World War 1 – will go back to Daytona Beach for a momentous low-speed centenary run on March 29, 2027, to celebrate Sir Henry Segrave breaking the 200mph World Land Speed Record there 100 years ago.

More information on the Sunbeam 1000hp’s itinerary in the USA, its history and its restoration is available at https://nationalmotormuseum.org.uk/sunbeam1000hp.