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).
Future car model strategies, design changes, and production programmes.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 153\3\ scan0237 | |
| Date | 12th January 1944 | |
| -4- Ev.{Ivan Evernden - coachwork}1/JH.12.1.44. intended to mark the saturation of the starved market, and the serious competition of American Importation with possible design inovations. Whilst it is difficult and dangerous to place much faith in conjectures regarding conditions at this era, it is fair to assume the following :- (a) That the large and expensive R.R. cars will have to hold their own on merit with American competition, and therefore considerable design and development must be envisaged. Price reduction with an enhanced modern specification would appear to be indicated. (b) The Bentley will have to be cheapened and modernised. (c) Silver Ripple will have to be revised and drastically cheapened by introducing into its specification the maximum number of Myth components. (d) Myth will have to go into production in relatively large quantities to carry the major burden of the overhead changes. Chassis Design Programme. There is every chance of completing the outstanding designs and detail drawings of the Senior Range, as stated for immediate production, by Sept. 1944. Designs to enable the first prototype Myth cars are in existance, with only a few small items outstanding. When this amount of work is complete we have plenty of data regarding design innovation and cheapening to produced designs for the prototypes of the Stage II of the programme wanted for era "C" on the graph. We shall need the constant guidance of the Production Department if we are to get the most out of cost reduction and a central source for the feeding of this information into the design and development sections should be set up before the job is tackled. There is nothing more confusing and damaging to the design effort than to have all and sundry feeding their ideas into the Design Office, resulting in a plethora of contradictory evidence. Policy in design should be sorted out and settled prior to instructions being put into the D.O. Coachwork. Design Programme. As already agreed, prototype bodies for the Silver | ||