George Eyston's Thunderbolt - Land Speed's Missing Monster 

As a boy I lived in Wendover and my Dad would take me out to Bonneville during the speed trials, this was in the mid '50's. There used to be several tracks out there including a 10 mile long international course and a giant oval track where cars would race for 24 hours when the salt was good. I remember that my Dad used a post hole digger and dug a hole, the salt was about three feet thick before he hit mud. Last time I was out there in 2017 for Speed Week you would be lucky to see the salt a couple inches thick and some years you could just scuff your shoe on it and see mud. Seeing those salt racers as a small kid was a treat and it was a huge event to an eight year old, a lot of the racers used the hangers at the airfield to work on and repair their racers and I would climb over the fence and go nose around the hangers and watch the crews and look at the cars. Now I try to go back every year that I can and watch, my Dad is long time gone now and my kids are all grown up, Wendover has gotten much bigger in population and is not the same town of 500 people as it was then, I go back to Speed Week, sit on the salt, watch the cars and look at the stark mountains of the Silver Island range.....and I reminisce of the times that were and of a little boy that was was awestruck.........

Well researched, beautifully presented and narrated...thank you (PS thanks for NOT adding background music)

In 1977, I spent the afternoon with Captain Eyston in New Jersey. He and his daughter had come to visit America, and their first stop was Morristown, NJ. At the outbreak of WWII, Eyston sent his wife and daughter to Morristown, where they rented a house next door to my mother's grandmother. In the neighborhood, the girls were Betty A and Betty B. I was a few months out of college and I was about to start my first job. I knew Betty Eyston Elwes because I had spent a few days at her house in 1975 while I was backpacking in Wales. The "Pool House" was filled with plaques and trophies and she told me that her father was a race car driver. When they arrived in Morristown, my instructions were to take Mr. Eyston for a drive so Betty and Betty could have tea alone together. I took him to a local classic car dealer (The Stable, Ltd.) in my 1972 Mustang. He was very English and did not care for my car at all. I had no idea that one of the most famous drivers of all time was in my passenger seat. Captain Eyston moved with difficulty and didn't have much to talk about, so I did most of the talking. I don't think he cared much for me, either. When we arrived at The Stable, there were only 6 cars in the showroom. He went directly to the back of the room where a 1954 Aston-Martin DB2/4 sat in a corner. He didn't even look at the Mercedes, Ferraris or Lotuses. He turned to me with bleary eyes blazing into my forehead and said, "Now, that's a fine automobile." It was priced at $5,000. We drove back to Morristown and chatted about SU carburetors and the straight sixes which depended on them. And he knew a lot about XPAG engines. I bought the Aston two days later and enjoyed it until 1986. It became a "wife or car must go" situation, and I made the wrong choice. It was not until many years later that I learned about Captain Eyston.Thank you Internet. My mother had no idea that he was a land speed record holder and an OBE. Neither did I until I started searching with AltaVista that I realized that Captain George E. T. Eyston was a man of outstanding accomplishments. I have a guest room at one of my vacation houses in the Poconos which is a shrine to George Eyston. His books, posters, advertisements, relics are displayed proudly. I have hundreds of press photos on my hard drive, and dozens of framed pictures in the Eyston Room. I think Betty Eyston Elwes is still alive. She sent me a CD with some mpegs of the Thunderbolt at Bonneville, which I think are the ones on this video. She has a son whom I met when I stayed at the Pool House, and I hope that he will know that he has a special friend in America who has admired his grandfather for almost 50 years.

I think it's admirable that Campbell offered his own Rolls Royce engine as a spare for the endeavour. I think that speaks volumes about the character of these people, chasing after the feats of technology and engineering more than personal fame.

As a kid we had motoring playing cards and as soon as you had the one with a picture of "Thunderbolt" on it you were sure to win the round with "5000 h.p." ! And today, 50 years later, I discover that Thunderbolt was a real car and really did produce 5000 h.p. Thank you.

Sad sight to see Thunderbolt's burnt out carcass just thrown aside like that!

As a new Zealander, I'm shocked to hear this marvellous piece of engineering got burnt, chopped up and buried at Wellington Airport! I've unknowingly flown over the remains of this masterpiece numerous times!

What a superb video. 354mph in a 7 ton car in those days must’ve felt like a thousand! These people were daredevils doing what they did. 🇬🇧

What a sad and ignominious end for a wonderful piece of engineering and endeavour.

Well presented. Thanks for not having music.

Just a detail info correction for non-UK viewers here: The RR engines are narrated as costing £5800 ea in 1930, equating to approx £380,000 in today’s money. This is then misleadingly captioned as equivalent to USD $475,000 which sounds a lot but actually hugely understates just how expensive in global terms those engines were at the time. £1 sterling was equivalent to just under $5 in 1930, and £380,000 approximates to around 1.7 Million dollars, not 475,000.

and they all helped each other. I like that.

Wow, I'd never even heard of George Eyston and Thunderbolt, but that car has become my instant favourite of all the classic, old-school land speed record vehicles; what a brutal machine!!

Eyston was wise enough to move on to new challenges, likely realizing that someone would invariably best him, and he might possibly succumb to an accident. A fascinating story! The engines and the transmission were massive for that time - amazing.

These men must be just as respected for their ability to recruit sponsors and a technical team to help them achieve their goals as their guts to actually get in the thing and push the pedal to the floor.

A tale well told! That Rolls engine may be the best looking engine produced by Britain. MASSIVE.

A great documentary thanks! Says a lot for the spirit of record-breaking that Sir Malcolm loaned him an R-Type engine.

A fantastic era of gentleman racers! Even going so far as to lend engines to their competitors...... If only all RU-vid videos were narrated the same the world would be a better place!

What a great story. And how about the way the helped each other. You know someone is going to try and beat your record and your reaction is to lend them your engine as a spare.

I did know of George Eyston and "Thunderbolt" but this has filled in lots of gaps. Very informative. Thankyou.

I didn't know about Eyston or Thunderbolt before seeing this. Great video.

I love hearing about this era of engineering innovation, great competition and derring do. Fantastic vehicles driven by amazing characters. An excellent channel deserving of more subscribers.

having had the pleasure of working Bonneville and building the 3RT Racing car, I have to say that this is one of the best historical videos ever made. The story, video quality, engineering information and run tapes are just plain superb. What a great story. The Brits approached and practiced streamlining early in the evolution of land speed record runs. I ran an American racing team, but have a great deal of respect for what the Brits contributed in many ways, in many chassis, and many record breaking runs. So sad, that this machine, like so many others met such an ugly and unfortunate end. .

There's not too many videos on RU-vid that capture your attention and make you watch them all the way through. This is one of them, thank you :)

I have seen some of these early record breaking cars. Seeing them in person gives you a sense on how brave the drivers had to be. Those huge skinny tires in the 30s cars are just amazing.

Well done. A story that needed telling.

Thank you Scarf and Goggles for an incredibly fascinating technical documentary on this fantastic land speed car...the specs are mind boggling..!

Wool stores are notorious for spontaneous combustion and when they burn all the lanolin out of the wool makes them burn like a blast furnace.

My first hero - and my first proud achievement was constructing the model of Thunderbolt from the plan in my older cousin's handed-down pre-war Mecanno set during WW2. Also heard Capt.Eyston speak live on the BBC shortly after the War but sadly cannot recall his words. A true hero, dedicated to perpetuating the Nation's pre-eminence in Engineering achievement. Thanks very much.

I saluted throughout this video. When I worked at Hendon I walked past this engine everyday.

It's funny how most of us petrolheads, when thinking about land speed record breaking cars, the first thing that springs to mind is the Rolls-Royce Merlin when actually the R-Type is way more powerful and suited for this kind of application. Obviously its scarcity makes it harder to get when there are (or at least were at the end of WWII) loads of Merlins thrown around from Spitfires and Mustangs. Brilliant story telling, I'm really fond of how you make your narratives clear and straightforward. Always a pleasure to watch and to save! I'm eager for more! Honestly, who thumbs down such a great work??

Thank you for an excellent example of online documentary. I write as a retired academic, part of whose work was as an historian. And I'm pretty fussy. So well done.

Only just found this channel, got to say it,s now on my subscriptions. That between the wars era of land speed records is one that has fascinated me since being a small kid in the 1950s, I had Dinky Toys of Thunderbolt, Bluebird, Speed of the Wind and others. Those engineers, designers, manufacturers and designers were absolutely incredible and as for the drivers, how can a mere mortal express adequate admiration? I’m a regular at Goodwood and Brooklands and the Napier Railton that has been restored at Brooklands never fails to give me goosebumps.

A splendid story finely told.

Awesome history and Thunderbolt was an awesome car! Glad the video recording wasn't lost like the car!

As a kiwi guts me to see how it was treated in our country and left for scrap in the end..thanks for the video

Ok so Thunderbolt was no looker (unlike the gorgeous Railton Mobiil Special) but it is a testament to Eystons engineering prowess and those astonishing engines that such a heavy vehicle was so damn fast. Thanks for a brilliant look at this truly remarkable car and its legendary creator.

Man, to have been at Bonneville back in the day, when world speed records could be traded on a daily or hourly basis... what a thing to behold. If only we could see the same today.

Incredible the camaraderie between the land speed record holders at the time, sharing or loaning parts/designs from their own vehicles to competing drivers to enable their attempt at raising the LSR higher

As a kid I had the dinky toy and never knew what it was or its name or what it had done Thank you for enlightening me a sixty year old question finally answered

Open cockpit at that speed is insane! As a kiwi it saddens me to hear of the demise of thunderbolt in a warehouse in Wellington, New Zealand. And engineering masterpiece lost in the blaze.

Amazing story. Thank you.

These cars were dreams from the minds of dreamers

Congratulations, A very well done documentary and thank you for not spoiling it with unnecessary music. I wish that others would follow your example.

Wonderful documentary and history lesson on the underated Capt George Eyston. Thank you.

Another great story and forgotten one at that

A thrilling account of real racing and history--thank you.

Fascinating! As an MG enthusiast and owner, I’ve read much about George Eyston. Thanks much for posting this one.

what a shameful end to a magnificent machine,, thanks for the history...

Very well made and interesting video and thanks for not drowning the narration with music.

I really like the narration. He has great pronunciation. Very easy to understand, great story, too!

A fantastic story, many thanks for bringing it all together. These guys were amazing, they did not use wind tunnels,CAD, dynos, their knowledge of aerodynamics was limited by todays standards, but they knew the fundamental physics about how the power required changed with speed, doubling the engine for a limited increase in speed. The same approach was used for the current record using two engines.

As a child in the 1950's the dark blue livery Dinky toy of Thunderbolt was one of my favourites and frequently broke the world land speed record on carpet, assisted by a number of large rubber bands liberated from my father's company office. Sadly it too has disappeared, I suspect taken to a jumble sale when I was away at school. Thank you for the excellent video.

excellent story

There are so many tragic events related to these world speed records... Pure passion, anyways.

These documentaries are so well done. Excellent scripting, editing, and attention to detail. From one motorhead to another: Thank you!

Crazy to know that the remains of the chassis are buried under the runway I drive past daily......Awesome documentary and great work!

Hi my grandfather worked at the bean when this car was built as did my father and myself later on first time I have seen video of it running sadly bean has gone now pulled down and housing built on but my mother lives on the site now in thunderbolt way so some r embrace still there

Great story for a movie, really.

Great video and story. It was a real pity when the car was destroyed and the gearbox disappeared, luckily the engines remained.

Thank you so much for a really informative video that’s easily up to your usual high standard. Easton and Thunderbolt have always been somewhat overlooked, relative to the exploits of Campbell and the Bluebirds, so thank you for filling in the blanks. Especially interesting to see that although Easton was undeniably an excellent engineer, he wasn’t averse to adopting the ideas of others when the need arose. A sign of a truly talented engineer. As we’re currently social distancing, I’ve started building car models for the first time in 40 years. Your video has inspired me to see if I can build a Thunderbolt model. Thanks once again.

I think this is my favorite land speed vehicle. What a beautiful sound.

Loved this film. I have an old book that I found at an autojumble, "SPEED ON SALT" by George Eyston and W. F. Bradley. It says published in spring 1936 and the forward is by Sir Malcolm Campbell. One of the best books I have ever read, a true English battle of chivalry, persistence and innovation.

That was really cool well narrated I love history of old cars I'm 65 now years old and I've always loved cars since I was a little boy had a lot of fast cars I just love automobile Stories and memorabilia Thank you for the cool video

Excellent video, thankfully populated with original photos and devoid of silly animation. Great job ! 🇬🇧

Got them rubba bands man! Those tires do indeed look advanced for the era.

why would anyone dislike this video? what more could you ask for? This is an amazing channel.

The engineering is mind boggling,and the vehicle worked!

One of many other jewels they can be find in this excellent channel... THANK YOU very much !!!

Great tribute to a true sportsman.

A truly marvelous presentation. Every (gear)Petrol Head should visit Bonneville should time and resources allow. My Uncle Charlie ran Model Ts at El Mirage when he was young and some of my favorite days have been spent there as well.

A fantastic piece with a happy ending 👍🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Fantastic !I love your attention to detail and focus on engineering. Thanks

wow one of the few to make it to old age!

These mini docs are priceless. Thank you so much for creating these time capsules. The engineering achievements, the audacity of vision, and the courage to risk millions as well as life and limb all combine to make one feel quite inconsequential however. I've wasted my life. These men were giants.

You cannot beat British engineering to always lead the way, Eyston was another fine example of British excellence in all facets of engineering across the board.

You learn something every day All I new about was Campbell, had never heard of Easton On other great but forgotten English man 👍👍😍😍

Excellent video. I'm glad there wasn't any music added, your words were more than enough to keep me engaged.

Thunderbolt was gorgeous. So sad it was destroyed.

An amazing era for the LSR,thanks for taking the time to do these videos,i really look forward to them when they pop up!

Captured a great piece of history, well done and thank you.

What an absolutely fascinating story. And very well presented. Thank you so much. We owe much to these pioneers of yesteryear.

💥 Greatest Speed Story… Never Told💥

I like that Eyston quit pursuing record breaking, and lived until 1979. He invented superchargers, built a complex land speed record car, and won the record, which makes for a good career. He distinguished himself in the arena of good sense by NOT pursuing the water speed record. That is why he lived to a ripe, old age.

Fantastic, could listen to that all day, never heard of that car.

What a feat of engineering. The power of _two_ RR V12's is just beyond beyond. I love the wheels on it. They remind me of late model steam locomotive wheels. Such a sad end to such a magnificent machine.

This is a very well crafted video. The blend of ASMR worthy voice and music delivered the story beautifully.

Simply wonderful !!!

Best voiceover I've heard in a while-in quite a while, in fact! Very good indeed.

Ever the gentleman, when Cobb broke Eyston's record, he crowed, "An outstanding effort: John's done it!" He seemed almost as happy as Cobb and his team.

Just discovered this channel a week a go.this is an amazing beast,just imagine the sound of the two merlins.

Excellant and so informative thank you. I fondly recall the little 'Castrol books of Speed' in the 50's and how I used to claim them from my Dad, men such as George Eyston were legend.

Just seen this, not aware of G Eyston before now. Excellent presentation and narration. Thanks

I really really enjoyed the video the info the knowledge and the time put into the research I never knew about the car Thunderbolt until now and the Magnificent engineering that went into such a machine thank you for sharing

Outstanding video, Thank you for this detailed information. I had not heard of any of this before your video. Amazing engineering on display!

THIS is my kind of video. Thank you for making it so well.

Absolutely amazing channel and so happy I discovered it!! I shall be binging on videos here for quite some time I think! Your videos are put together beautifully. Great stuff!!

Fascinating story properly told, as usual! The video production and your narration style are fabulous! Well done!

Another excellent video... thank you very much

Absolutely fascinating and beautifully made video, thank you!