Land speed legend reborn as historic Sunbeam 1000HP's rear engine thunders back to life

This was the moment a land speed legend was reborn, and the historic Sunbeam 1000hp’s rear engine thundered back to life.

Back in 1927, the Sunbeam 1000HP Mystery became the first car to travel at over 200mph.

Ever since its historic run, it has been sitting in the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, England.

But now, the car has made a comeback.

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The return of the historic Sunbeam 1000HP’s rear engine

There are a lot of cars out there with historically significant backstories.

The first Ford Mustang had a remarkable story, as did this 1936 Bentley, which had been in storage for 50 years.

The Sunbeam 1000HP cemented its place in car history nearly 100 years ago.

On March 29 1927, Henry Segrave drove the car to a new land speed record of 203.79mph on Daytona Beach in Florida.

It was the first car to reach a speed of more than 200mph.

Whilst the car was nicknamed ‘the slug’ due to its appearance, its performance was anything but sluggish.

The car’s significance can’t be understated, and Ian Stanfield, senior engineer at the National Motor Museum, didn’t hold back.

“It’s equivalent to the moon landings, it was right up there with the height of technology,” Stanfield told BBC South Today.

“No other car had gone that fast on the planet, so it’s a very important thing.”

It was a big undertaking for the team to get the engine ready for its first start in 90 years.

It won’t come as a surprise to you to learn that there isn’t a manual for fixing up a land speed legend.

The plan is to take the Sunbeam 1000HP back to Daytona Beach for a centenary run.

The engine of a land speed legend comes back to life

But for now, the crowd gathered at Beaulieu’s International Autojumble had to settle for the engine starting up again.

At first, it sounded like a bagpipe.

But it didn’t take long for it to thunder back to life.

“It’s not just the noise that hits you, it’s the smell as well, the vibrations, the whole visceral experience,” BBC reporter Josh Bowness said.

“It was absolutely phenomenal.”

Here’s hoping things go well for its centenary run in 2027.

To see the moment this engine revved back to life, visit the National Motor Museum’s YouTube channel.

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