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).
Steering wander issues in a GUL-16 car fitted with a new Marles's steering column and box.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 130\2\ scan0065 | |
| Date | 9th July 1936 | |
| COPIES SENT TO E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} Sft.{Mr Swift} COPY. To G.W.H. Chateauroux. Cricklewood. 9.7.36. Further to my last report on GUL-16 car's Marles's steering: The car was delivered to the owner complete with new column and box. In less than an hour he brought the car back and again complained of the car wandering at speed. Now I felt the steering wheel myself and there was no slack in the box whatsoever. I tried the car on the road and gave it a good hard run for about 30 miles. The owner was quite right, the car did wander, but it was an entirely different kind of wandering to what we have experienced in the past. It was tight: the car would go a bit to the left and try to stay left. A slight pull on the wheel to bring the car straight again, and it would go to the right and try to stay to the right, and so it went on flip the wheel one way and another to keep the car straight. The trouble here is that the box is over preloaded. All the ball pins and steering gear were checked over and found to be O.K. The steering was free on both locks, which rather proves the point. It goes to show that a very slight variation either way from the correct setting of the worm and wheel can put the steering right out. It certainly looks as though it is going to be a difficult job to turn out a correct box. I have now tried on the road six different 30 HP. cars, and not one of the steerings have been absolutely correct. They have all tended to wander. Five out of the six have had backlash in the box and the sixth, as mentioned above, was tight. They could do nothing about it here. They told the driver to run the car about for a while and see if it gets any better. Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/K.F.Scholes. | ||