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).
The Phantom III Demonstrator (No. 33-EX), detailing issues with tyre noise, steering, transmission, and gearbox.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 96\3\ scan0005 | |
| Date | 16th October 1935 | |
| COPY. To Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} (Rolls-Royce Ltd.) London. PARIS Sr24/Dm{D. Munro}16.10.35. re 33-EX. As requested by you during your visit to Paris, I am giving you hereunder a report on the Phantom III Demonstrator No. 33-EX. TYRE NOISE. To come straight to the most important point, I should, without hesitation say that the Tyre Noise was the feature most evident as far as customers were concerned. This noise, as you know, is very objectionable, and will certainly have to be dealt with very seriously. In this connection, I would point out that the Chateauroux car with 6 facing forward seats, which I tried with Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} was a vast improvement on 33-EX in various respects, but particularly so as regards tyre noise. From this point of view, there was no comparison between the two cars. STEERING The next item which customers found objection-able and which I also immediately noticed, was the Steering. This is quite good from a direction-al point of view, also from a gearing point of view, but there is a continual jagger which emphasises itself at certain speeds, especially on slightly undulating roads, and this is very objectionable. It is, moreover, difficult to explain away, especially with the independent front wheel suspension, and a lower geared steer-ing than on the Phantom II. TRANSMISSION On 33-EX the transmission was thoroughly bad from a jaggering point of view, and as this "disease" seems to be a feature of all R.R. cars, I was hoping it would no longer be present on this new effort. GEAR-BOX The gear-box, compared with that on the Bentley is remarkably Bad as compared with that on the later type Phantom II, it is still bad. By "Bad" I mean: (a) the effort required to get from one gear into another, even if, at that moment the gear-box is functioning normally. (b) On 33-EX the gear-box had to be handled in an anti-synchro-mesh manner, and even then when changing down from 4th to 3rd, it was impossible to do this on occasions without crashing the gears; also changing up from | ||