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).
The difficulties of starting the Phantom II on magneto ignition, recommending a switch to a twin battery system.
| Identifier | Morton\M19\ img100 | |
| Date | 14th January 1931 | |
| To R.{Sir Henry Royce} From Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c. to Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} c. to Da.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} c. to By.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} X 6096 X 6098 PHANTOM II MAGNETO & BATTERY IGNITION. One of the points raised in Springfield was that as they had been supplying cars for a number of years with twin battery ignition that when the buyer saw the magnetos fitted (this is an unusual fitting for U.S.A. cars), also the elaborate scheme of controls and the oil relay, he would naturally ask and expect to be shown all the advantages that were to be gained by this. The obvious reply is that the car can be run without the battery. They asked to be shown this, and we found that on the left-hand car with the front bumper fitted it was quite impossible to start the engine on magneto only either hot or cold. We took the bumper off and found that with the hot engine you could sometimes start by hand. We also tried leaving the car in a warm garage all night and found that even with the bumper off we could never start the car on magneto. Since I have got back we have tried a number of cars here and we attach herewith a report ref: Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/Lid.{A. J. Lidsey}2/W.14.1.31. Springfield were obviously not impressed by the demonstration as regards the advantages of carrying a magneto and all the complicated controls. The increased compression ratio of Phantom II over Phantom I makes it a very much more difficult engine to turn by hand. It has been proved definitely that battery ignitions can be made reliable and therefore I recommend that we review the position as regards whether we desire or can afford to fit magneto and whether we should not be very much better off with twin battery ignition. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} | ||