Loose spare wheel carrier, cracked dashbrackets, and significant steering column issues requiring modifications.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 12\3\ X704-0108 | |
| Date | 17th March 1928 guessed | |
| contd :- -7- was approximately 4 galls. in the tank. We have not experienced any faults with the system. The petrol gauge although reading 3 galls. low, throughout the test has given fairly consistent readings. SPARE WHEEL CARRIER. LOP. F.77916 N.S. 2492. The spare wheel carrier is very convenient, easy for dismantling and being carried inside the body is away from the dirt etc. The bolts holding the carrier to the frame became one turn loose during the test. DASHBOARD, DASHBRACKETS & FOOTBOARDS 'D' TYPE. LOP.F.78241 N.S. 2484. The dashbrackets F.77981/2 at a mileage of 2000 had started to crack at the bottom right angled corner. Thus lessening the support to the dashboard. The cause of the failure of the brackets is the whipping of the steering column. This being anchored to the top of the dashboard. The dashboard itself is not strong enough to steady the column and a whipping of the dashboard takes place. This causes the bad knocks and rattles from the bonnet as reported. It was necessary to fit additional stays to the dashboard to control the steering column. The footboards are not satisfactory. We find after a short mileage that shrinkage of the boards takes place leaving gaps as much as 1/4" between the boards. This gap at high speeds allows the wind to come through with such force as to lift the mat, making it uncomfortable. for the driver and passenger. STEERING - GENERALLY. The steering of the car for the first 1500 miles was good. There was a considerable whipping of the column up and down taking place, and on other than good surfaced roads kick backs of the steering wheel were felt. Holding the steering wheel lightly on the good roads there was no tendency for the wheel to oscillate and at no speeds was there any inclination to wobble. After arriving at Chateauroux(French test region) the conditions of the roads were entirely different most of the surface being broken and not tarmac. This quickly freed the initial friction in the pivots and caused signs of wobble to take place in the steering and as the mileage increased this got worse as also did the whipping of the column. The two combined made the steering bad. The friction load on the cross steering tube had also lessened by the springs taking a set. The friction load taken at the steering wheel had dropped from 7 lbs. to 3 3/4 lbs. We fitted washers behind the springs in the cross steering tube until the required friction was got. The steering then was considerably better, but the column was still bad for up and down movement. Stays were brought over and fitted to correct this, but it was found that to get the best results, rubber packings had to be placed between the top of the dashboard and the scuttle of the body to prevent the centre portion of the dashboard from whipping. This stopped all whipping of the column from taking place. 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).