[left: 1935 Bluebird outside the Malcolm Campbell shed at Brooklands. Courtesy Brooklands Museum]
In February 1932, Sir Malcolm Campbell came away from Daytona beach with a record of 253.9mph - yet another milestone in his illustrious career, but already thinking about how to get to 300mph, the magic 5 miles a minute. The Napier Lion engine had served him well and given him several land speed records, but now needed to be replaced by something giving more than 1,400 bhp.
With many successes (not to mention a knighthood) already in the bag, Sir Malcolm now had the credibility to negotiate with Rolls-Royce. He was able to acquire for a nominal sum, one of their Type ‘R’ V12 supercharged engines, as used successfully in the 1931 Schneider air race. This engine was good for 2,500 bhp. Reid Railton was commissioned to make the many changes required to Bluebird to accommodate the biggest engine ever to be fitted to a motor car.
The Rolls-Royce Bluebird’s first outing was again at Daytona, where on 22nd February 1933, Campbell achieved 272.46mph, a new record by almost 20mph. The powerful engine though caused much wheel spin and ripping up of the Dunlops in the soft sand. However, Campbell was convinced the engine had the power to get to 300mph, and during the latter half of 1933 and 1934, the car was completely stripped down and rebuilt.
[left: 1935 Bluebird outside the Malcolm Campbell shed at Brooklands. Courtesy Brooklands Museum]
Railton considered 4 wheel drive in order to transfer the power to the wheels, but there were difficulties in converting Bluebird, and Railton decided to stick with the successful rear-wheel drive format. The rear axle was an unusual design however. The offset propeller shaft had two bevels that drove separate crown wheels and axle shafts on each side. This arrangement actually caused Bluebird to have a shorter wheelbase on one side than the other! The axle shafts each carried two rear wheels in an attempt to increase grip, which was also helped by lead blocks at the rear of the chassis. Also at the back, a large vacuum cylinder operated two flaps that opened to assist breaking. At the front, a narrower streamlined full-width radiator was fitted and to further improve streamlining, the front aperture could be closed during the measured mile by operating a lever.
Bluebird’s next attempt on the record was at Daytona where on 7th March 1935, a new record of 276.88mph was set. The Daytona strip was becoming too short for this monster car, which also appeared to be suffering lack the expected power when the nose flap was closed. Back in England, Leo Villa’s hunch that the streamlining was causing problems for the engine’s air intake was confirmed by Railton, and following wind tunnel testing, the intake was extended.
For his next attempt, Campbell was invited to the Utah Salt Flats, and following a favourable report from John Cobb, the attempt on 300mph was set up for September 1935. A track 12 miles long by 50 yards wide was prepared by scraping the surface with a heavy steel joist. Campbell’s initial worries that the roughness of the salt would cut the tyres to ribbons were soon allayed and on the 2nd September, a trouble-free run was timed at 240mph. The scene was set for the record run.
[left: 1935 Bluebird heads for the salt flats. Courtesy Mike Varndell]
The next day, the team was out on the salt at 6:30 as they wanted to run before the heat became unbearable. At 7:12, the first run began. Campbell accelerated down the prepared course, and two miles before the measured mile pulled the lever that closed the radiator flap. Immediately, the cockpit filled with exhaust fumes and the windscreen was covered in a thin film of oil. Despite this, Sir Malcolm kept his foot hard down. His problems were still not over though; just as the car completed the mile, one of the front tyres burst, and by the time Bluebird came to a halt, Campbell had been half choked by the fumes, blinded by the oil and the front tyre was on fire! Not to be beaten, the mechanics quickly put out the fire and changed all the wheels. News came that the first run was timed at 304.311mph - the mile being covered in 11.83 seconds.
Campbell was ready to make the return run with 15 minutes of the hour remaining. However, the news came that there were problems with the timing equipment. The engine was switched off and a frustrating wait began. With about five minutes to go, the OK was given, but the engine now refused to start straight away! With only a few minutes to spare, the engine was finally started and Campbell was away. This time the shutter would not be closed, and the return was less eventful - apart that is, from wrestling the car from a 250mph skid during braking! Sir Malcolm was confident that he had achieved a 300mph average and was soon surrounded by press and public. However, when the official announcement was made, the average speed was given as 299.874mph.
Bitterly disappointed, Sir Malcolm immediately announced that a further run would be made the next day. A couple of hours later, Campbell was called to see the timers and was told that there had been an error in the calculation. He had covered the return mile in 12.08 seconds, not 12.18 seconds as had been used in the calculation. The average speed was therefore 301.129mph. Campbell was furious with the timekeepers but had now finally achieved his ambition, and in his fiftieth year set what was to be his final Land Speed Record.
© Nick Chapman 2001
Acknowledgements:
“Life with the Speed King” by Leo Villa
“The Record Breakers” by Leo Villa
“Speed on Salt” by George Eyston
“The World’s Land Speed Record” by William Boddy.
This feature article originally appeared in the Bluebirds club magazine no 1 in Spring 2001.
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