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).
Page 3 of a report detailing car performance issues, including braking, oil consumption, and an accident.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 27a\1\ Scan411 | |
| Date | 24th April 1936 | |
| To: "Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}". PARIS Sr23/Dn/24.4.36 Page 3. and, moreover, will not stay put. The fact that it will not stay put at times, helps to create the disturbance throughout the transmission. 3º There is, in my opinion, room for improvement in the braking. At least on my particularly light car, I cannot get sufficient braking at the front, with the result that as soon as I touch my brakes ever so lightly, my back wheels start screeching, as they generally do on most light cars, and stopping the car if one really had to do so, becomes almost an impossibility. I may be able to improve this by fitting weaker springs on the back so as to obtain a better road adherence. However, the car is so good as it is, that I am hesitating to do so. 4º The oil consumption is high, but I understand from George Hancock that this will become normal after several thousand miles. Incidentally, my rockers are not properly bored out - according to George, and will have to be changed. This, I understand, accounts for some of the high oil consumption. Finally, the impression created by my car has been far in excess of anything I have previously seen. They worked me day and night whilst I was on the road, and to end up, a customer at Marseilles slipped up on speed whilst rounding a mountain bend, and fortunately for "PB" and myself, took us on the rocks into the mountain, instead of over the precipice, which would have been a very easy matter. My trip therefore ended at this point, and I returned by train, and although we did a piece of very snappy work getting the car off the road after this most unfortunate mishap, just 20 minutes after the accident, into a truck by 7 pm., (accident occurred at 3 pm.) and getting the car to Paris by 10 pm following evening, i.e., last Friday, although nearly a week has elapsed, my car is still held up at Levallois, waiting for the parts from Derby. This, of course, is enough to make one sick. Incidentally, I wired "Wor{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager}" on this subject. I trust we shall have the pleasure of seeing you shortly with E.R.Hall, and hope that you will be able to trim up these frogs with their Delahayes and Talbots. Cheerio .. Sr. [Stamp] FRANCO-BRITANNIC AUTOS LTD 27 AVR. 1936 12, AVENUE GEORGE V PARIS | ||