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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).
Letter from Barker & Co Coachbuilders to Basil Johnson regarding chassis vibration and testing.

Identifier  ExFiles\Box 3\1\  01-page125
Date  16th October 1924
  
BARKER & CO (COACHBUILDERS) LTD.

66, South Audley Street,
London, W.1.
October 16th, 1924.

Basil Johnson, Esq.

Dear Mr. Johnson,

Re Booming - Phillippi.

I regret the delay in replying to your letter of the 7th inst., which arrived during my absence at the Paris Automobile Salon.

Regarding your first paragraph, I am sure you would wish me to be quite candid over this matter. I cannot understand this chassis being called "normal", as from the opinions of your experts and our experts after the trial, this was considered exactly the contrary.

Re your second paragraph - I am at a loss to understand why it should not be possible to locate an abnormal vibration in any chassis, and I am still strongly of the opinion that this should be done by some mechanical instrument and not rest with the opinion of various experts.

When the Olympia Show is over I should very much like you to have a further test with the "Hoafinder" as I still believe this instrument would be most useful in demonstrating which unit in the chassis is the cause of the trouble. I may say that at the time the "Hoafinder" was tested it was given only a very rough test, neither the front or rear floor boards being taken up to enable the demonstrator to locate the trouble.

I think it is quite obvious that there was abnormal vibration in this chassis from the fact that when the second chassis was supplied, the car was altogether much quieter and more satisfactory, which would not have been the case had the first chassis been as you say - normal.

I should like you to fully appreciate that we are quite as anxious as you are to turn out a car which will be as silent as possible, as the trouble we have been experiencing has been a most serious matter to us, interfering with the organisation of our Works and output, and has also been very costly.

For years we have been doing our utmost to prevent chassis noises being transmitted to bodies and have made many
  
  


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