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).
Road test comparing the noise and smoothness of Michelin Comfort tyres against Dunlop tyres on a Phantom and Silver Ghost.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 158\1\ scan0038 | |
| Date | 27th November 1927 | |
| CHFS seen CWS H.{Arthur M. Hanbury - Head Complaints} copy to GAB. C. Bt{Capt. J. S. Burt - Engineer}5/LHS.{Lord Herbert Scott}11.27. As reported elsewhere, I took the ex Hartridge car - 29-NK. to Sandwich yesterday. It was fitted with two new Michelin 6.2 Comfort tyres on wellbase rims at the back, and two practically smooth Dunlop high-pressure tyres on the front. The car gave an extremely good impression for smoothness for a Silver Ghost. I drove the car back to town fitted as to the back with Dunlop traction tread balloon tyres, which had been fitted to Mr. Hartridge's Phantom car. The contrast was remarkable. The car now appeared to be unpleasantly rough; one even received the impression that the engine was rough. Whilst there was a great deal of noise at all speeds under 30 m.p.h. the impression of roughness and noise proceeding from the car was such that undoubtedly a normal owner would consider that the noise arose from the axle or the gear box. This has, in fact, been the case, because, as you are aware, Mr. Hartridge has been complaining ever since he first received his Phantom of harshness in the engine and noise from the axle. We had done our best to re-assure him that these features arose from the tyres, but it was not until yesterday that he had the opportunity of trying his Phantom with Michelin Comfort tyres, which are almost silent. Altho' he is extremely critical, within a mile he had said there was an astonishing improvement, and within two miles, said quite frankly that he was now entirely satisfied with the Phantom and considered it very smooth. I am bringing this matter forward in this way, because I feel that we must be giving to a large number of our owners a very unsatisfactory impression of our car. Most of the expense and trouble that we are spending on our axles is being wasted owing to the noise which arises from the Dunlop tyres, which, I repeat, I think any normal owner would assume came from the chassis. I do not quite know how to express myself strongly enough on the importance of an immediate change of tyre tread. It seems to me that if Dunlops cannot give us a tread which is silent, we should use some other make of tyre. I consider that now we have front wheel brakes, the advantages, if any, in non-skidding of the present Dunlop tread, are quite outweighd by the dis-advantages of the excessively unpleasant noise which arises from it. | ||