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NEWS
Bluebird sports EV set for delivery mid-2014
High-tech EV enters limited production to mark the 50th anniversary of Donald Campbell's golden yearIt's coming up half a century ago that Donald Campbell set land and water speed records, in 1964 becoming the only person ever to hold both in the same year.
To mark his golden jubilee, Bluebird Speed Records, the enterprise started by his father, Sir Malcolm, a century ago and run by their descendants to this day, has announced a limited edition sports EV.
Badged DC50, the two-seat coupe (pictured) was conceived by Don Wales, grandson of Sir Malcolm, nephew of Donald and chief pilot of today's Bluebird Electric record setters.
The car will be released in two versions. Little in the way of tech detail is available, save for claims pointing to a high-tech, lightweight milestone. The company says it will weigh in under 1000kg with 45/55 front/rear weight distribution. On top of a base variant rumoured to put out between 180 and 208kW will come a high-performance version good for 265kW.
Range extends to a claimed 320km while acceleration will "match a Porsche". Whether that's a diesel Cayenne or a 918 Spyder remains to be seen – the nearest they've gone to a figure is "less than six seconds" for the 0-60mph (97km/h) dash.
No one's mentioned price, but with a total build topping out at just 50 units, don't expect a bargain. It will be manufactured by Bluebird at a purpose-built plant in Oxfordshire.
The car was set for official launch late this month, but Bluebird has been left hanging by the postponement of the Sustainable MotorExpo, the alt-power show at the National Motor Museum in the English town of Beaulieu.
The company has yet to announce whether it will wait till next northern spring for the show, or launch earlier elsewhere.
Wherever it debuts, Bluebird has told Autocar DC50 deliveries will begin in July 2014. It has also told pundits not to expect a foray into the consumer market beyond the car's very limited production run.
With around half the build already spoken for, roughly 60 per cent will go to collectors. Half the remaining 40 per cent will be base-spec, the other half the high-performance variant.
"This is being done for a special reason and to celebrate a significant part of the Bluebird story," project director Martin Rees told the magazine. "If that proves that the brand can be expanded into this market then that's something we will look at.
"We would have to look seriously at taking this forward into the future, with this technology and with the design qualities that we hope we could bring. Fundamentally Bluebird is about pushing technology boundaries."
Although the company's history is tied in with the consumption of vast quantities of fossil fuels, it's proving its alt-power mettle on several fronts. Alongside DC50, the company was planning to pull the wraps off the Bluebird GTL, its contender for next year's FIA all-electric Formula E series.
Don Wales set his first UK national speed record for an EV reaching 116mph (187km/h) in Bluebird Electric in 1998. By 2000, he had edged the bar up to 137mph (220km/h).
Wales and his team have begun preparations for an assault on the current record of 308mph (495km/h), set by US rival Buckeye Bullet in 2010. It's scheduled for Bonneville Salt Flats in September 2015.
In 2009, he also broke the steam-powered land speed record with a 148mph (239km/h) run at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
Stretching back to 1912, the Bluebird name (originally Blue Bird) is synonymous with the Campbells, Britain's first family of speed. In all, Sir Malcolm Campbell broke nine world land speed records between 1924 and 1935, in the final year becoming the first person to crack 300mph (480km/h). He went on to break four water speed records as well, and was knighted for his efforts.
Following in his father's footsteps, Donald Campbell broke one land speed and seven water speed records. Donald Campbell was killed 1967, in a bid to exceed 300mph (480km/h) on the waters of Lake Coniston. But speed lives on in the genes. Daughter Gina has twice broken the women's world water speed record. Don Wales and his son Joseph, 22, maintain the family tradition.
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Written byJeremy Bass
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