The petrol pump's inability to lift fuel from the reserve tank under certain conditions.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 11\4\ 04-page011 | |
| Date | 4th May 1932 guessed | |
| -2- reproduce it, but during our run out here it has been most pronounced. Re Petrol Pump The cause of running short of petrol when the tap was changed over from main to the reserve was not due to the pipes being connected up wrongly. We find that the petrol pump will not lift the reserve petrol in the tank, i.e. 3.5 to 4 galls, with the speed the engine turns by the starter motor which we have checked and found to be 56 revs/min with the engine dead cold, and 88 revs/min with the engine hot. This is under the conditions as similar to that which I had personally, i.e. running right out with the tap turned on to main, and having to get out of the driving seat to turn on the reserve. We have found that if there are two men in the car and one is able to turn on the reserve before the car comes to rest, the speed of the engine is then sufficient for the petrol pump to lift the petrol before the car comes to rest, and it is possible to carry on with the reserve petrol, but if the petrol line becomes dry and you have to rely upon the starter motor to turn the engine, you are definitely let down. We may mention that the A.C. petrol pump had not this feature. With a cold engine it is necessary to have 4.5 galls of petrol in the tank before there is sufficient delivery to start the engine up in reasonable time without running the battery down. C.H.H. G.W.H. | ||
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).