Tony Vandervell's company produced Babbitt bearings — known in Britain as white metal bearings — under licence from an American firm, marketed under the trade name Thinwall. The Vanwall name was a portmanteau of "Vandervell" and "Thinwall," reflecting the team's origin as a personal venture by its founder. Vandervell had been one of the original financial backers of British Racing Motors, but grew frustrated with that project's slow progress and decided to build his own car.
His first step was entering a succession of modified Ferrari road and racing cars in non-championship Formule Libre events under the banner "Thinwall Special," gaining experience of what made a competitive Formula One machine before committing to construction.
The first true Vanwall cars, called Vanwall Specials, were constructed in 1954 at Cox Green, Maidenhead. The chassis was designed by Owen Maddock and built by the Cooper Car Company. The engine was conceived by Norton engineer Leo Kuzmicki and drew directly on motorcycle racing technology: in essence it combined four Manx Norton single-cylinder units into a common water-jacketed straight-eight, retaining the Norton cylinder head design and motorcycle carburetors. The capacity was progressively enlarged from 2.0 to 2.5 litres as the team gained experience. Goodyear disc brakes, built by Vanwall, were fitted from the outset and proved effective.
The initial cars suffered from handling deficiencies, and at the end of the 1955 season Vandervell engaged Colin Chapman to redesign the car. Working alongside aerodynamicist Frank Costin, Chapman produced a space-frame chassis with reduced unsprung weight and improved front suspension. Costin's body design was aerodynamically superior to any rival, giving the Vanwall a decisive top-speed advantage. Bosch fuel injection, obtained through Vandervell's influence with Daimler-Benz, replaced the original carburettors.
Stirling Moss joined as lead driver for 1957, alongside Tony Brooks and Stuart Lewis-Evans. As the season unfolded the cars became progressively faster and more reliable. Moss and Brooks shared Vanwall's first Grand Prix victory at the 1957 British Grand Prix at Aintree — the first World Championship race win by a British-built car. Moss went on to win the Pescara and Italian Grands Prix that year, while the team established itself as the principal challenger to the Italian constructors.
For 1958, all three drivers returned. The fuel regulations changed: alcohol was banned in favour of 130-octane aviation gasoline, which reduced Vanwall's power advantage owing to the car's large-bore engine design. The team compensated with superior handling and braking. Moss won in the Netherlands, Portugal and Morocco; Brooks won in Belgium, Germany and Italy. Vanwall secured the Constructors' Championship — awarded for the first time that season — with Moss finishing second and Brooks third in the Drivers' standings. Moss lost the Drivers' title to Ferrari's Mike Hawthorn by a single point.
The season ended in tragedy when Lewis-Evans was fatally injured in an accident during the final race in Morocco, dying from his burns shortly afterwards.
Vandervell's health had been deteriorating and his doctors urged him to rest. The 1958 season was the last in which Vanwall competed fully. Tony Brooks made a single appearance at the 1959 British Grand Prix in a lighter, lower revised car but was unable to match the new mid-engined Coopers. The team attempted once more at the 1960 French Grand Prix before effectively withdrawing. A final project, a rear-engined machine for the 3.0-litre Intercontinental Formula of 1961, showed promise when driven by John Surtees but was abandoned when that formula failed to attract widespread European support.
Vanwall's achievement in winning the 1958 Constructors' Championship was the culmination of a deliberate national programme to prove British engineering could match the established Italian and German marques. The team's success directly preceded the era in which British constructors — Cooper, Lotus, BRM and later Brabham — came to dominate Formula One entirely.