The Car Illustrated
In 1903, Charles Sykes was engaged to work for The Car Illustrated. Most of the drawings he produced were in pen and ink, but occasionally he was asked to produce colour artwork for special editions.
Friends Reviews
The Design and Development of Bluebird K7
Donald Stevens at the National Motor Museum Collections Centre (image by Bruce Elder)
16 February 2013
Friends were privileged to hear Donald Stevens give a rare insight into what lay behind the development of K7 and how his career took him from a junior draughtsman at Norris Brothers to the Project Design Engineer for CN7.
Donald explained the development of K7 and the way the craft had evolved from the studies of Cobb’s fatal crash during his attempt on the Water Speed Record. From this information they produced a configuration and shape for K7 that eventually led to a successful design that enabled Donald Campbell in 1964 to take the record for jet-powered boats to 276 mph.
A film illustrating the design concepts and the Water and Land Speed Record attempts was shown. Donald also revealed that K7 indicated the class of the vessel, whereas CN stood for Campbell Norris in the record breaking car. (Commit this information to memory – you never know when it might come in handy).
John Hough, Chairman, Friends Liaison Committee
What's New
Conservation of the Percy Lambert racing silks
After many years of trying to raise funds for the conservation of Percy Lambert’s racing silks, we are delighted to announce that funding has been secured through The Arts Council Designation Development Fund. This has allowed us to commission interventive conservation treatment to stabilise and support the silks.
Highlights of the Vehicle Collection
How to Find Us
Situated in the south of England, in the New Forest between Bournemouth and Southampton, with easy access from London and the Home Counties.
By Road- M27 exit junction2, follow the brown and white tourist signs towards Beaulieu. Sat nav postcode is SO42 7ZN, however please follow brown signage when in vicinity. For more detailed directions please visit multimap
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Contact
The National Motor Museum Trust
Support the National Motor Museum Trust
How you or your company can get involved
The National Motor Museum Trust welcomes support both from individuals and commercial organisations.
As an individual you can become a member of our Friends organisation and enjoy the benefits this brings.
Perhaps you have some free time to pursue your interests and would like to come and work with us as a volunteer. Staff working with all our Collections are always glad of some extra help. We already have several volunteers working with us, but many more opportunities remain. Training is provided and volunteers enjoy many benefits, including free membership of our Friends organisation. A flexible approach ensures we can benefit from your help, whether you can manage just a few hours or a couple of days per week or per month.
Maybe you have some motoring memorabilia or a vehicle that you would like to donate or loan, or perhaps you would like to make a bequest to The National Motor Museum Trust.
Many commercial organisations become business partners of the Trust. They help us with financial support and also by donating products which help maintain the Collections. Business partners enjoy a range of benefits, depending upon the level of support they give.
Policies and Plans
On this page there will be information about:
- Collecting Policy
- Education Policy
- Volunteer Policy and
- Accessibility Policy.
The Board of Trustees
- Lord Montagu of Beaulieu - Founder and past chairman of Trustees of the National Motor Museum Trust
- The Hon Ralph Montagu
- The Hon Mary Montagu-Scott
- Raymond Pierce - Chair
- Joe Greenwell
- Christopher Macgowan OBE
- Nick Mason
- Mike O’Farrell
- Martin Packman
- Alastair Penfold
- Lord Strathcarron (Ian Macpherson)
- Viv Thomas OBE
- Mike Timmins
Original Condition
Birglow Signalling hand
Birglow Signalling hand replaces the human hand.
Driving Accessories
Photographic Reading Room
The Reading Room provides an environment where researchers can browse display binders of Photographic Collection prints. Please note that an appointment must be made to view the binders and that the same conditions apply as for visiting the Reference Library.** Link to booking form will appear here**
Seaside Days Out
A fancy dress competition for Austin Minis, 1960s.
The day trip to the beach was made popular by the Victorians who believed that fresh air and sea water benefited the health. Unlike today, it was not fashionable to get a sun tan, people much preferred to stay covered. Beaches were often restricted to a single sex.
The introduction of bank holidays and paid holidays made day trips to the coast a highlight for the working population. Industrial towns and cities were left behind for the freedom of the seaside.
By the 1930s the charabanc had evolved into more a comfortable form of transport: the motor coach. Coupled with the growth in availability of cars, these new forms of transport led to more far-flung days out.
In the mid-1960s a bank holiday trip to the seaside became notorious for the violent clashes of rival teenage gangs: The Mods and The Rockers. The sharp-suited scooter-crazy Mods and leather-clad motorbike-riding Rockers briefly turned resorts such as Brighton, Clacton and Margate into battlegrounds.
By the 1970s seaside trips were in sharp decline. The freedom of the motor car led to families seeking alternative days out while coastal resorts failed to invest in their future.
In recent years there has been a boom in British tourism, many seaside towns are being regenerated and revived as the popular destinations they once were.
Touring Britain
An early 20th century distance finder to show the mileage between major British towns and cities. Courtesy of Alfred Dunhill Ltd.
Early motorists faced many challenges. Some people saw cars as a noisy and dangerous nuisance while local police forces often hounded motorists with makeshift speed traps. To fight for motorists’ rights organisations like the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) and the Automobile Association (AA) were formed. These clubs later provided a range of support services including emergency breakdown assistance.
In addition, motor cars were notoriously unreliable and there was no such thing as a roadside garage. Maintenance and navigation equipment such as puncture repair kits, spare parts and maps had to be packed for the trip. Before the late 1920s even fuel had to be carried as there were few petrol outlets. The rise in motoring eventually led to an increase in local garages and service stations en-route which provided fuel and sometimes maintenance.
By the 1950s many touring accessories were introduced for the travelling masses. Publications such as The Shell Guides provided tourist information on popular British destinations, while games such as I-Spy books and packs of cards kept children occupied on long trips.
In recent years the digital age has revolutionised motoring accessories. Motorists often find their way by satellite navigation while children are entertained with television screens and portable computer games.
Feats of Endurance
'Feats of Endurance' opened in January 2011 and featured vehicles that have stretched the boundaries of motoring endurance - both in extreme conditions and on challenging terrain.
Recent Additions
A pre-World War II Caravan Site sign recently obtained by The Club.
The Caravan Club aims to develop a Collection that represents Club history as fully as possible. Thanks to generous donations from members of public The Caravan Club Collection is a continually growing resource.
Recent additions include:
- Ten Log Books of caravan tours, 1951 - 1965.
- Photograph album featuring The Royal Caravan.
- A tapestry purse made for a competition at a caravan Rally event in 1937.
- Book written by Club founder J Harris Stone, 1913.
Founder of The Caravan Club, J Harris Stone, hands out mail to members at The Club's New Forest Meet, Cadnam, Hampshire, 1914.
If you have an enquiry relating to the collection or you would like to donate an item please check out the Frequently Asked Questions before getting in touch.
To contact us at The Caravan Club Collection, you can telephone 01590 614762 or email caravanclub@beaulieu.co.uk
Please note: For research enquiries allow up to 28 days for a response. Alternatively, you may wish to visit us to conduct your own research, therefore please make an appointment.
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View the presevation of the Graham Walker collection
This secton will provide an introduction to the Graham Walker preservation section
The Coach Builders’ and Wheelwrights' Art Journal 1901
Plate 1113 Gentleman's Driving Phaeton.
First published in 1880 as The Coach Builders’, Harness Makers’ and Saddlers’ Art Journal this periodical underwent a number of title changes to reflect the growing interest in the motor car and by 1901 was featuring illustrations of motor vehicles alongside those of the more traditional horse-drawn carriage such as the two colour plates shown here of a Gentleman’s Driving Phaeton and a Panhard Phaeton Motor Car.
Introduced in the 18th century and named after a character in Greek mythology, the four-wheeled horse-drawn Phaeton was a light carriage with open sides in front of the seat. The Highflyer, an extreme form made popular by George IV when he was Prince of Wales could be viewed as the sports car of its day, the horse-drawn equivalent of a Jaguar E-Type or Aston Martin DB4. Young men drove their Phaetons with great dash at high speeds with their groom or 'tiger' perched up on the seat behind them.
Highlights
Grenville Steam Carriage circa 1880
The Grenville Steam Carriage pictured outside the National Motor Museum.
On 26 June 2009, the National Motor Museum took delivery of the Grenville Steam Carriage.
Believed to be the oldest self-propelled passenger-carrying road vehicle still in working order, it was steamed for the occasion and made several demonstration circuits around the grounds of Beaulieu.
Built over a period of 15 years, it was Robert Neville Grenville who, having studied engineering at the South Devon Railway workshops, Newton Abbott, first penned the designs about 1875 at his Butleigh Court workshops, Glastonbury. Grenville enlisted the help of friend and fellow South Devon Railway student, George Jackson Churchward, who would later become Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Great Western Railway, Swindon. It is at Swindon that some of the parts could well have been made and the use of construction techniques more akin to railway rolling stock is evident in the frame and wheels.
The vertical boiler, believed to have been built by Shand Mason & Co., was of a type used for the pump on horse-drawn fire engines and, although the Grenville is now fitted with a replica, this in turn was built by the same company in the 1930s. Although intended to be operated by two people, it is somewhat easier with three.
The driver has control of the throttle and cut-off levers, the whistle via a foot pedal, and the brake pedal. On the driver’s left and in charge of the tiller sits the steersman whilst at the back the fireman has a small seat in the engine compartment and is responsible for firing the boiler and maintaining its water level. On the flat, the carriage can attain a speed of just under 20mph/32kph and consumes about five gallons of water and 6lbs of coal per mile. There is seating for four passengers.
The Grenville had been on display at Bristol Industrial Museum since 1947. Closed in 2006, plans for the new Museum of Bristol unfortunately left the Grenville without a home. Through the sterling efforts of Bristol's Museums, Galleries and Archives Curator of Industrial & Maritime History, Andy King, the steam carriage was initially displayed at Beaulieu on a two-year loan and became a permanent resident thereafter.
We are indebted to Mr King for his invaluable help in arranging the transfer to the National Motor Museum and also the enthusiastic band of volunteers who travelled all the way from Bristol to demonstrate the Grenville.
Diecast Delights
The National Motor Museum Trust Collecting Policy states a preference for the acquisition of toy cars rather than scale models, unless the latter are high quality, manufacturers’ trade or design pieces or have been commissioned by or for an important person. This is because children and families were not well represented in our collections prior to 2000 and toy cars are among the childhood items we have been acquiring to give more balance to our material and subject matter.
Shell's website
The type of material held is wide and varied and includes approximately 12,500 books, 30,700 workshop manuals and handbooks, 11,600 event programmes, 2,700 auction catalogues together with around 104,850 manufacturers’ sales catalogues and items. Added to this are some 6,500 bound and 73,000 unbound periodicals with titles including:
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Autocar
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Autosport
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Car Illustrated
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Classic Motorcycle
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Commercial Motor
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La Vie Automobile
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Light Car and Cyclecar
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Motor
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Motorcycle
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Motorcycling
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Motorsport
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Omnia
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Practical Classics
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Road and Track
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Veteran and Vintage
The library continues to receive a large number of transport-related titles on a regular basis, including many club magazines and newsletters.
Please contact the Motoring Research Service for access to the Reference Library »
Access to the Photographic Collection
Images from the Photographic Collection can be viewed in the Reading Room at our Collection Centre, by prior appointment.
With our continued commitment to increase public access we also plan a number of online exhibitions for the future.
The Reading Room provides an environment where researchers can browse display binders of Photographic Collection prints.
For further information or to book the Reading Room please contact the Motoring Research Service »
Postcards
The earliest items in the collection are charming postcards dating from the early 1900s. The lively and colourful illustrations refer to events of the time and capture the spirit of the period. From vehicles of a bygone era to the endorsement of women’s rights, Shell’s wit and vision illustrates a charming and innocent period of motoring history, in a uniquely English manner.
For more information about Shell postcards, visit A R Postcards which features over 150 examples.
New Exhibition at the National Motor Museum
We currently have volunteering opportunities with the following collections:
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Motoring Reference Library
The motoring reference library is renowned for the breadth and quality of the information it holds. Volunteers catalogue and sort all new and existing books, journals, programmes and sales material as well as storing this information onto our database. They are also involved in the preservation of the Collection.
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Photographic Collection
Our dedicated team of volunteers assist with many tasks relating to the documentation, digitisation, repacking and the storage of our photographic materials as part of the ongoing preservation of the Photographic Collection.
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Motoring Object Collection
The work involved with our vast Object Collection varies from storage re-allocation to research and computerised documentation. Volunteers can involve themselves in a variety of projects including preservation/collection care, exhibition preparation and photography.
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Film and Video Library
Motoring history is brought to life in the Film and Video Library which collects both historic and moving images. Volunteers view films to record the vehicles, events and personalities depicted. They also assist with the restructuring of film and video storage as well as recording information concerning film content.
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The Caravan Club Collection
The Collection contains a variety of material, objects, photographs and ephemera relating to the history of The Caravan Club. Volunteers work to preserve these items through cataloguing, digitisation and other collections-based tasks. Some knowledge of computers is desirable.
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Shell Art Collection
Volunteers help with cataloguing the large number of posters within the Shell Art Collection. This vast collection of 7,000 posters and paintings requires accurate documentation of information and data entry. Assistance is also required with preparation for exhibitions and research of the artists involved.
The Ralph Lee Collection
You can do this by making an donation on-line using Charity Choice or by post.
Or if you are considering making a bequest, please contact us to discuss your wishes further.
Directions by Road:
M27 exit junction 2, follow the brown and white tourist signs towards Beaulieu.
Sat nav postcode is SO42 7ZN, however please follow brown signage when in vicinity.
The National Motor Museum Trust's Vision:
To be the best, most representative and accessible collection of motor vehicles, motoring artefacts and archives telling the story of motoring in Britain.
Guiding Principles:
- We are an Educational Charity
- The Trustees are committed to Education, Enlightenment and Enjoyment
- We must live within our means
The Reading Room
For those wishing to undertake their own research using material to be found in the Motoring Archive, Photographic Collection and in our world famous Motoring Reference Library, an appointment can be made to visit the Collections Centre's Reading Room. For charges please see below.
Opening Times
The reading room is open by appointment only at the following times:
Tuesday – Friday, 10.00 – 13.00 & 14.00 – 17.00.
Closed between Christmas and New Year.
Access Keys (shortcuts)
You can navigate to the sections of this site using your keyboard. Available shortcuts are:
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Toy cars and children's books
The National Motor Museum has a significant collection of toy cars and children's books and annuals.
2011 Winner
The star prize in the 2011 Trust raffle, a Mazda MX-5 2.0SE convertible, went to Clive Snowdon of London with winning ticket number 010591. The second prize of a seat on the 2012 London to Brighton Run went to Miss N Booth of Eastbourne, Douglas Glover of New Addington won a ride in a Rolls-Royce from the Museum collection with lunch in Palace House, and Mrs A Jovic of Leighton Buzzard won the Garmin Sat Nav.
42,000 tickets were sold and the money raised will further the work of the National Motor Museum Trust.
The following boxes are available to borrow...
Film and Video Library Montage
This video clip montage gives a brief overview of the breadth of the Film and Video Library at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.
Poems Written by the Poets
One of the wonderful designs inspired by vintage Caravan Club car badges created last summer.
Each summer holidaymakers at The Caravan Club's New Forest Centenary Site, Bransgore, Hampshire, can enjoy fun creative workshops run by the National Motor Museum.
The activities take place one afternoon per week on the site's play field.
Previous activities have included pennant making, car badge design and badge-making. More news of Summer 2013 events will be available in the Spring.
The events are kindly sponsored by The Caravan Club.
High Days and Holidays
The High Days and Holidays exhibition explores the impact of the motor vehicle on British leisure time. From chauffeurs and charabancs to carnival and caravans, High Days and Holidays showcases objects, archives, books and photographs from the Museum’s Collections, along with items loaned by many partners.
This online exhibition was created from a touring exhibition produced by The National Motor Museum Trust, which was supported by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Designation Challenge Fund. Throughout 2007 and 2008 High Days and Holidays travelled to venues across Britain before returning to Beaulieu where it became a popular feature with visitors in the Museum until 2011.
Showing 201 to 250 of 305 records.
Ford Mustang Mach 1
The bright lights of Las Vegas provide the backdrop for the pursuit of diamond courier, Tiffany Case’s Mustang by local police.
Bond performs a number of slick manoeuvres which both fool the authorities and cause a large amount of damage. The climax of the chase comes when Bond drives up a ramp, leans the car to one side and squeezes through an alleyway and escapes.
| Year | 1971 |
|---|---|
| Country | American |
| Capacity | 4 litre |
| Cylinders | 8 |
| Output | 400 bhp |
| Maximum speed | 108 mph |
| Manufacturer | Ford Motor Co. Ltd |
| From | Diamonds Are Forever |
| Extra equipment | N/A |
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