Letter from a customer comparing a new 25 HP car with their current model and cancelling their order for the new type.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 107\1\ scan0115 | |
| Date | 12th June 1932 | |
| COPY. Thurlaston, Nr.Rugby. 12.6.32. Dear Major Cox, I want to thank you for the opportunity you have afforded me of trying out your latest type 25 h.p. car, and while I consider the new car to be a very fine production, I do not think the improved performance is sufficient to induce me to change my present 25 h.p. car for one of the new type, and for this reason I would ask you to cancel the chassis you were kind enough to reserve for me. I am very fond of my present 25 h.p.Rolls, and it would have to be an outstandingly better car to induce me to make a change. The following comparisons of the two cars may be of interest to you for what they are worth. (1) As regards performance, from actual tests I made with Gardner my car is faster on acceleration from 20 m.p.h. to 50 m.p.h. than the new model on top gear, and from 20 m.p.h. to 40 m.p.h. on 3rd speed. Above these speeds the new model is of course superior, but I find that for ordinary traffic driving on English roads it is more useful to have good acceleration below 40 m.p.h. rather than above, although I must admit the higher max. on 3rd speed is an advantage in some cases. I found that the higher max. on top speed of the new model was not of much advantage, as it takes a long time to build up its speed above 65 m.p.h. and in fact I could not find a road free enough of traffic to exceed 70 m.p.h. (2) As regards springing and road holding, I prefer my own car. The new car is too soft for my liking on the springing. I know the Works can alter this, but I have yet to try it. (3) As regards steering, here again I prefer my own car which is much lighter and more positive. The new model strikes me as rather heavy on the steering and feels more like a Phantom II. (4) The new gearbox is, I admit, very nice, and easy but here again I rather like making a clean change with the old type of gear - it gives one some satisfaction. The new box is of course quicker, which is an advantage in traffic. (contd) | ||
From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).