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).
Experiments and conclusions on vehicle steering wobble.
| Identifier | WestWitteringFiles\J\January1923\ Scan25 | |
| Date | 1st January 1923 guessed | |
| Contd:- -5- on the Delage is practically the same as our own - 310 per min. The Marmon we can wobble but in order to get them to build up, it is necessary to have a considerable amount of slack in the cross steering rod. We should say the Marmon has a considerably less tendency to wobble than our 40/50 but we think this may probably be due to the increased friction in the front pivots due to the off-set wheels. There are one or two experiments we still have to complete before we arrive at our final conclusions. From the tests we have carried out on wobbles so far we have come to the conclusion that any steering which is self-centering and which is reasonably free with pneumatic tyres, can be made to wobble. It is possible for the steering to be made so that wobbles are not apparent to the ordinary user. Our tests up-to-date show that the following alterations absolutely destroy all wobbles. 1. Pivots leaning slightly forward. 2. Car run on the rims without tyres. The following alterations reduce wobbles to a negligible quantity. 1. Tyre pressure 120 lbs. per sq.inch. or 20 lbs. per sq.inch. 2. Removing the weight from the front of the car. 3. Fixing blocks between the front of the spring and the frame and bolting same solid. The following alterations reduce wobbles. 1. Straight side steering tube without springs is a definite improvement over the present standard. 2. Friction - either applied on the pivot or steering joints as far as the pendulum lever. 3. Anything to reduce the backward lean on the pivot reduces wobbles. 4. Any play on the cross steering rod joints or side steering rod joints will increase wobbles. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} | ||