Francis Birtles' Bean 14 car, which he named 'The Sundowner'
Object type
Motor cars
Object number
1988.0121.0001
Description
A four cylinder 14hp motor car with a long engine cowling and boat tail. The car seats two and is righthand drive. It has a low two-panel glass windscreen. The side covers of the engine cowling are missing and there is a large diameter exhaust pipe without muffler running along the left side of the vehicle. It has a full steel channel chassis, which has been drilled for lightness, leaf sprung suspension, and four wheel drum brakes. It does not have mudguards or running boards so its wheels are exposed. The headlights have also been removed. With the exception of the lefthand rear wheel which has cast metal spokes, the wheels are wire spoked. The car has an impressive patina. There are only minimal traces remaining of red and green paint, and many people have scratched their details into it. 'Bean' is handpainted in white on both sides of the engine cowling. 'ENGLAND TO AUSTRALIA', a map of the globe indicating an overland route, and 'SMITHS INSTRUMENTS' are engraved in a rectangular brass plaque, which is attached to the left side of the passenger's compartment. It commemorates a famous transcontinental journey made by the vehicle in 1927. 'HOLDER ACROSS AUSTRALIA / RECORD' [in 1926] is painted in white on the upper left side adjacent to the windscreen. Sponsor's advertisements for Shell Spirit and Dunlop Tyres are painted on both sides, and so is an Arabic symbol and text in yellow, which translates as 'Shell Benzene and Oils'.
Collection name
Francis Birtles collection
Collection statement of significanceThe 'Francis Birtles collection' collection consists of a 1925 Bean 14hp two-seater racing car known as 'The Sundowner' and several pieces of associated ephemera. The era of this car's construction witnessed the rise of the automobile industry and the growing use of increasingly sophisticated vehicles for recreational and practical purposes. Australian, British and American manufacturers competed to produce a car especially suited to the rough Australian terrain. Fabricated by the Bean Car Company of Staffordshire, England, this car was imported for promotional purposes by Bean's Australian agents, Barlow Motors of Melbourne. It was driven by overland explorer Francis Birtles (1881-1941) on two sponsored record-breaking journeys between Darwin and Melbourne (1926) and London and Melbourne (1927-1928).
This collection has strong relevance of several areas of Australian history including the growth of the early motor car industry, the use of cars for recreation and exploration of the continent and the promotional opportunities such journeys offered. The Museum's motor car-related collections are one of its greatest strengths and this collection lends particular insight into the extraordinary achievements of Francis Birtles and early motor cars. Foreshadowing the importance cars would assume in later popular culture, in 1929 the car was presented to the Australian government on condition that it be placed in a National Museum. The collection offers significant research potential in an examination of the social, economic and engineering context of the 1920s.
Manufacturer
Bean Car Company
Restorer
Transport Branch, Department of the Interior
Garth Fisher and Des Rees
Place madeDudley, Staffordshire, EnglandPlace of restorationCanberra, Australian Capital Territory, AustraliaDate made1925
Date of restoration1962 - 1963
UserMr Francis BirtlesDriver
UserAlec BarlowCo-driver on Darwin to Melbourne trip
Associated organisationBarlow MotorsSponsor of Darwin to Melbourne trip
Associated organisationGovernment of AustraliaRecipient of the car in January 1929
Associated organisationBirdwood Mill National Motor MuseumOn display from 1974-1977
Associated organisationNational Museum of AustraliaBecame part of the collections of the NMA in 1980
UserPercy StolleryCo-driver on London to Melbourne trip, between India and Australia
Place usedDarwin, Northern Territory, Australia22/10/1926 departed Darwin
Place usedKatherine, Northern Territory, AustraliaPlace usedDajarra, Queensland, AustraliaPlace usedCunnamulla, Queensland, AustraliaPlace usedBourke, New South Wales, AustraliaPlace usedSydney, New South Wales, AustraliaPlace usedAlbury, New South Wales, AustraliaPlace usedMelbourne, Victoria, Australia30/10/1926 arrived Melbourne
Place usedLondon, England19/10/1927 departed for Melbourne
Place usedEurope1927
Place usedMiddle East1927
Place usedIraq1927
Place usedIran1927
Place usedIndia1927
Place usedBurma1927
Place usedMalaysia1927
Place usedSingapore1927
Place usedDarwin, Northern Territory, Australia1928
Place usedBrisbane, Queensland, Australia1928
Place usedSydney, New South Wales, Australia1928
Date of event22/10/1926 - 30/10/1926
Sets record for Darwin to Melbourne of 8 days, 13 hours
Date of event19/10/1927 - 25/07/1928
England to Australia in 281-days
Date of event1929
Presented to the Government of Australia by Bean Cars Ltd
Date of event13/03/1963
Driven in the first Canberra Day procession
Period of use1974 - 1977
On display at the Birdwood Mill Pioneer, Art and Motor Museum in South Australia
Date of event17/10/1977 - 22/10/1977
Displayed at Woden Plaza, Canberra, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Bean's expedition from England to Australia
Date of event1980
Became part of the collections of the NMA
Materials
Steel, Rubber, Wood, Leather, Paint - non specific, Brass, Petrol, Mineral oil, Water
Dimensions
Length: 4300mm
Width: 1600mm
Height: 1400mm
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