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 development trends in the automotive industry, covering engines, chassis, and body design.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 173\3\ img097 | |
| Date | 4th April 1934 | |
| -12- TREND OF FUTURE DEVELOPMENT. Cadillacs have been running cars with independent rear wheel springing for some time but it seems doubtful if they will alter the whole rear end design of the car to incorporate this, for the time being at any rate. Olley is busy with rear-engined tests, but he has not yet got an allotment to enable him to build a number of cars. The large pressed steel body corporations such as Briggs are doing a certain amount of development work for the chassis manufacturers on rear engined cars; they have their own engineering departments who build up composite chassis from existing parts re-arranged, and then try and sell the scheme on improved accommodation and appearance. The tendency of the manufacturers of the large and medium sized cars is to come into the smaller class, as an example, the small La{L. A. Archer} Salle built by Cadillacs this year and the small Buick which is likely to be announced in about a month's time. This small Buick should appeal to the English market as the weight has been kept down to about 3500 lbs. and the engine is in the 25 HP. class. The general endeavour is to get the weight down which will tend to economy in every respect. Engines are definitely going further forward and may be expected to approach the position of the unit in the Chrysler Air-Flow, the object being to get a roomy body on a short wheelbase and make an approach 1. ab The straight eight engine is gaining in popularity at the expense of the Vee eight, Ford being the exception. We anticipate that Cadillacs will build a small Vee sixteen unit, in view of the desirable characteristics of the one they are at present using, and incorporate it in a chassis not bigger than 136" wheelbase. They admit that the present sixteen is really too large for the average owner-driver, even under American conditions. | ||