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 Madrid describing a severe steering wobble issue on poor roads.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 28\4\ Scan124 | |
| Date | 3rd March 1914 | |
| C O P.Y. Piso 2, Calle Mayo, 23, Madrid. 3.3.14. Sir, There is a perfect fault of our cars which is very noticeable here in Madrid and to which I respectfully beg to draw your attention. The trouble I refer to is a bad steering wobble which usually occurs at comparatively low speeds, say, 5 to 25 m.p.h. - it seems to be entirely due to the freedom and reversibility of our steering and the bad roads. It is difficult for any one in England to realise the state of the roads in this City - the surface present a perfect honey-comb of humps and hollows - average depth from top of hump to bottom of hollow 8" - Unfortunately the surface variations of road as they present themselves to the two front wheels almost alternately invariably alternate seldom if ever synchronising. - one wheel is always in a hollow when the other is on a hump. This set up a terrific high speed wobble particularly on-a-high-speed when descending a slope - the driver is powerless to prevent this and has to let it continue or pull up. Several drivers here have mentioned this matter to me and have expressed a surprise that an R.R. should have a fault so obvious to the man in the street. To the most intelligent of the men I have explained that it is nothing and that this very freedom and reversibility is the salvation of our steering but I am quite sure they talk among themselves adversely criticise this to the detriment of our future sales. I have found cars here which wobble terribly with correct | ||