Restored Sunbeam 1000hp National Motor Museum - Matt Howell Chestnut Ave

Sunbeam 1000hp World Land Speed Record Breaker Restored

25 June 2026

National Motor Museum engineers have successfully restored the World Land Speed Record breaker Sunbeam 1000hp in the countdown to its planned 100th anniversary run at Daytona Beach. The significant landmark has come on the same week as the fundraising restoration campaign launched by the National Motor Museum Trust to raise funds for the restoration has reached its goal.

The restoration project has taken over three years – with many additional years of preparatory work, with the Museum’s workshop team expertise being tested with such a mammoth motoring heritage project, as there were no manuals or documentation to help.

The workshop team led by Senior Engineer Ian Stanfield found more problems than expected while dismantling the front engine – one of two of the Sunbeam’s colossal 22.5 litre Matabele V12 aero engines - and extensive work has been carried out, both on and off-site, to repair the original parts. Collaboration partners and supporters have worked extensively with the Museum to get the project over the line.

National Motor Museum Chief Executive, Jon Murden says, “I’m so proud of this achievement and the Museum workshop team who made it happen. I’m delighted that Ian Stanfield and his team’s expertise and perseverance has secured that the restoration has been completed on schedule. We are grateful to all the funders and supporters who helped our hopes for this legendary car become reality, and we are excited for the next chapter as the Sunbeam 1000hp goes back to US for first time in a century.”

Restored Sunbeam 1000hp National Motor Museum Beaulieu - Matt Howell

Recent weeks have seen the second engine installed in the chassis, both engines tested and the original bodywork refitted with few additional components and new tyres added to the iconic car.

The clock has been ticking to complete the restoration for Sunbeam 1000hp so it could be shipped at the end of June to the USA from Southampton, to take centre stage at the Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance in California in August.

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

The focus of the Museum’s fundraising efforts will now shift to raising funds for the Sunbeam 1000hp to be further displayed in the USA 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.

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