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).
Internal memorandum discussing the impact of motor tax on car sales, referencing an increase in Ford registrations.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 126\3\ scan0006 | |
| Date | 23th December 1932 | |
| Y3531 To Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} From Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c. to Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} c. to C. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}2/WJ.23.12.32. Re. MOTOR TAX. I dare say you have seen the Ministry of Transport's Registration of Cars for October. The interesting point we have been looking out for is to get some idea of the sales of the 30 HP. Ford. The latest list shows that whereas in October 1931 there were only nine cars registered in the 30 HP. cars, in October 1932 there were 194. We think it can be safely assumed that the increase in sales are entirely Ford. We think this is positive evidence that customers are prepared to pay for performance and disregard tax. One special point is, a Ford car only costs £260 to £275, therefore the tax is a very big percentage of the original cost and therefore we should expect the high tax to effect the cheap car more than the expensive one. If a man pays £1500 for a car, whether the tax is £26 or £28 cannot influence him to any extent. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} | ||