Multiple faults with a car, including the servo fabric, a fuel stoppage, and radiator shutter issues.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 107\1\ scan0141 | |
| Date | 15th September 1932 | |
| 16 x7960 RECEIVED 14 SEP 32 From Mr. Hives. GAU-14. My use of this car in Scotland recently was not without some anxiety arising out of the behaviour of the servo fabric. This car had recently been to W. for a new servo fabric to be fitted, the old one having been found in an extremely bad condition, it having become disintegrated. Soon after this car was taken on by me with the new fabric certain groans and squeaks were apparent when the brakes were used, coming from the servo, also the brakes appeared to come off smartly owing to friction in the servo. hot I feared that I should have to instruct for a man from W. with a new fabric, but we watched this trouble carefully and made certain adjustments with the result that no further trouble occurred and the noise tended to go off, but I do not consider the position a safe one and I am asking Hs. {Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} to look very carefully into the matter of these fabrics because I have reason to believe that they are not satisfactory. Also, when in Scotland there was a stoppage on the road owing to the failure of the petrol to get to the carburetter. This was subsequently traced to the small restriction valve which is a standard Rolls-Royce fitting on the top of the Autovac, the piston of this fitting having become stuck, and in this way preventing any suction to occur in the Autovac. This was a simple matter to put right when the cause was found, but a very annoying delay which might take quite a time to diagnose. On this car also the thermostat control of the radiator shutters was very unsatisfactory. On tests made by me the shutters failed to close even when the temperature fell practically to the temperature of the outside air. I am taking this matter up with EP. {G. Eric Platford - Chief Quality Engineer} Also, a considerable amount of vibratory irritating noise could be heard from the movable shutters themselves, having too much clearance up and down. By lightly hitting the radiator tank with one's hand This is the second restriction valve which has failed on this car | ||
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).