In the shops back in England, work was progressing on a long, low spike of steely resolve called the Golden Arrow. Segrave, having shattered the records, set his sights on doing it again with a totally different approach. Instead of only brute power and mechanical fortitude, the new J.S. Irving design focused more on slicing a clean hole in the air. Of course, brute power didn't leave the scene. The engines in the Sunbeam 1000 produced a combined 1000 hp, whereas the single 24 liter, W12 Napier Lion aero engine in the Golden Arrow would produce 930 horsepower on its own. The body may have been the first to take advantage of aerodynamics by way of underbody shaping, generating 450 lbs of downforce at speed. When completed, the car was packed up and shipped to Daytona Beach. Segrave made two test runs at up to 180 mph and set his hood's telescopic sights on a record attempt. On March 29, 1929, in front of 100,000 spectators, Segrave crushed Keech's record with a run of 231.56 mph. With only about 20 miles under its belt, the car had set a record that would stand for nearly two years. Upon returning to England, Segrave was Knighted for his feats of daring. Unfortunately, this would be the last land speed record Sir Henry would ever attain. After this triumph, he turned his eyes to setting speed records on the water. He died shortly thereafter, in an accident in that pursuit—during which, of course he had achieved a run of 96.76 mph. In 1930, the Segrave Trophy was established in his memory. It is awarded annually to the Briton who demonstrates the most outstanding achievement on land, at sea or in the air.

The car that Sunbeam produced was a twin-engined machine capable of a total output of 1000 hp at 2000 rpm. The Sunbeam 1000, as it was known, had two engines driving a central gearbox, with an output shaft located to the rear. The finished car was shipped to Daytona Beach, where on March 29, 1927, in front of a crowd of over 15,000 spectators, Seagrave took his shot at the record over a nine-mile course. His brakes melted and he was unable to stop at the end of the course, so in order to slow down, had to drive—dramatically—into some nearby shallow water. All was well in the end, though, as he had set a new record, at 203.79mph, the first person to travel faster than 200 mph on land. [Daytona Beach Land Speed History]

The organization decided the best way to serve the duty and keep operational firetrucks ready for emergencies at the same time would be to set out to purchase and refurbish a classic pumper truck. Seagraves were the predecessor the the later dominant Mack offerings, but at the time the Detroit Fire Department owned about 80% of the Safety Sedans ever made. The example we see here was one of the early Seagraves in the DFD fleet of 87 total.The original chassis has been replaced with a modern one from Mack, and Chrysler was generous enough to contribute a new Detroit Diesel power plant. Nearly four years of labor and dedication have gone into getting the truck to this point and the craftsmanship is unbelieveable. We're sure when it's finished, the hours of hard work from countless volunteers will be well worth the effort. If you'd like to contribute the effort or just want to know a bit more, you can go directly the Detroit Firemens Fund website.