Makes › Bluebird › Proteus CN7 · Historically significant · 1960–1964
Bluebird
Proteus CN7
Donald Campbell's wheel-driven land speed record car, Lake Eyre 1964
Still being researched: identification guide. Everything shown is checked against the cited sources. Know more? Send us a source.
Photo: kitmasterbloke · CC BY 2.0
Contents
01Overview
At a glance
- Built
- 1 Built
- Years
- 1960–1964
- Engine
- Gas turbine (Bristol Siddeley Proteus 705, modified with a drive shaft at each end)
- Power
- 2,980 kW / 4,060 PSFactory: 4,000 hp · converted
- Top speed
- 648.783 km/hFactory: 403.135 mph · converted
- Body
- Not yet verified
- Designer
- Norris Brothers Ltd (Ken and Lewis Norris)
- In this archive
- Not yet verified
- Surviving
- Not yet verified
Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.
Why it matters
Donald Campbell's turbine-powered car was the first wheel-driven car to exceed 400 mph for the mile, with a two-way mean of 403.135 mph on Lake Eyre in July 1964. The project is often remembered as a failure even though it achieved the record it was built to beat.
How rare is it?
Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.
Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.
Photos
Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.
Bluebird Proteus CN7 (Wikimedia Commons: Category:Bluebird-Proteus CN7)
Photo: kitmasterbloke · CC BY 2.0
Bluebird Proteus CN7 (Wikimedia Commons: Bluebird-Proteus CN7)
Photo: Auge=mit · CC BY-SA 4.0
Bluebird Proteus CN7 (Wikimedia Commons: Bluebird-Proteus CN7)
Photo: Auge=mit · CC BY-SA 4.0
02Production & history
Production
Every figure says what it counts.
| What is counted | Figure | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total model productionIndividual Land Speed Record car (built 1960, rebuilt with high tail after the 1960 crash), shown at the National Motor Museum: “The first car to (officially) set a Land Speed Record in excess of 400m | 11 | Factory production | Independently researched |
Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.
History
Bluebird CN7 was built by companies of the Owen Organisation to the design of Norris Brothers Ltd, and took almost nine years of design, construction and rebuilding to beat John Cobb's 17-year-old record by about 9 mph. It crashed on its first outing at Bonneville in September 1960, rolling across the salt from around 350 mph, and a further attempt at Lake Eyre failed in 1963 because of bad weather.
The record fell in July 1964 under poor conditions. Less than 16 months later Bob and Bill Summers raised the official wheel-driven record to 409.277 mph.
Variants
How each version differs from the standard Proteus CN7.
No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
03Specifications
Technical specifications
Engine
| Engine family | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Engine code | Bristol Siddeley Proteus 705 (modified for shaft drive at both ends)2 |
| Layout | Gas turbine (Bristol Siddeley Proteus 705, modified with a drive shaft at each end)3 Registry reported |
| Displacement | Not yet verified |
| Bore | Not yet verified |
| Stroke | Not yet verified |
| Compression ratio | Not yet verified |
| Valvetrain | Not applicable (turbine): 12 axial-flow stages, 1 centrifugal stage, 8 combustion chambers3 Registry reported |
| Fuel system | Not yet verified |
| Power | 2,980 kW / 4,060 PSFactory: 4,000 hp · converted3 Registry reportedSource states bhp. |
| Power at | Not yet verified |
| Torque | Not yet verified |
Transmission & drivetrain
| Gearbox | Direct drive to front and rear axles, no clutch3 Registry reported |
|---|---|
| Gears | Not yet verified |
| Final drive | 3.6:1 (spiral bevel axles front and rear)3 Registry reported |
| Driven wheels | All four wheels3 Registry reported |
Chassis, body & dimensions
| Chassis | "Aeroweb" sandwich of two light-alloy skins around resin-bonded alloy honeycomb3 Registry reported |
|---|---|
| Front suspension | Independent, ball-jointed transverse wishbones with Girling oleo-pneumatic struts3 Registry reported |
| Rear suspension | Independent, ball-jointed transverse wishbones with Girling oleo-pneumatic struts3 Registry reported |
| Brakes | Girling inboard disc brakes (air-reservoir operated) plus rear air brakes3 Registry reported |
| Steering | Burman recirculating ball, quick-thread3 Registry reported |
| Body construction | Aluminium bodywork by Motor Panels Ltd3 Registry reported |
| Wheelbase | 4,110 mmFactory: 13.5 ft · converted3 Registry reported |
| Length | 9,140 mmFactory: 30 ft · converted3 Registry reported |
| Width | Not yet verified |
| Height | Not yet verified |
| Front track | 1,680 mmFactory: 5.5 ft · converted3 Registry reported |
| Rear track | 1,680 mmFactory: 5.5 ft · converted3 Registry reported |
| Kerb weight | Not yet verified |
| Dry weight | Not yet verified |
Performance
| Maximum speed | 648.783 km/hFactory: 403.135 mph · converted4 Registry reportedTwo-way mean record speed, not a maximum. |
|---|---|
| 0–100 km/h | Not yet verified |
| Fuel tank | 114 LFactory: 25 gal-uk · converted3 Registry reportedSource does not say which gallon; British car, so presumably imperial. |
“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.
04Colours & options
Factory colours & interiors
Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Factory options & codes
Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
05Individual cars
Chassis register
Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Competition history
Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Auction & sale history
Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
See one in person
Museums where an example of this car can be seen.
No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
06Reference
Identification guide
How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Sources
Each number links to the exact facts it supports.
-
1
National Motor Museum, Beaulieu – Proteus Bluebird CN7 Level B
- 1 Individual Land Speed Record car (built 1960, rebuilt with high tail after the 1960 crash), shown at the National Motor Museum: “The first car to (officially) set a Land Speed Record in excess of 400mph and the last to be wheel driven”
-
2
Proteus-Bluebird Campbell-Norris 7 (CN7) Level B Bluebird Supporters Club
- Bristol-Siddeley Proteus 705
-
3
Bluebird CN7 specification Level C Bluebird Supporters Club (bluebirdteamracing.net), via Wayback Machine
- Proteus 705 gas turbine aircraft engine (modified to give drive shaft at each end)
- 12 axial-flow stages, 1 centrifugal stage, 8 combustion chambers
- 4,000bhp at 11,000-11,800 power turbine rpm
- Clutch none
- final drive 3.6 to 1
- spiral bevel at front and rear
- Aeroweb sandwich 2 skins 0.048in thick light alloy
- independent by ball-jointed transverse wishbones
- Girling oleo-pneumatic suspension struts
- Girling disc brakes, inboard mounted ... Air brakes to rear
- Burman recirculating ball quick-thread mechanism
- Manufacturer Motor Panels Ltd. Material aluminium
- Wheelbase 13ft 6in
- Length 30ft
- Track front 5ft 6in
- Track rear 5ft 6in
- Fuel Tank Capacity 25 gallons
-
4
The four-year mile Level C Motor Sport Magazine, July 2002 · 2002-07-01
- two-way 403.135mph set on Australia's remote Lake Eyre
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