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).
Car performance, particularly regarding dampers and suitability for high-speed use and special events.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 17\1\ Scan089 | |
| Date | 14th July 1932 | |
| X7410 SG.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} FROM R.{Sir Henry Royce} R1/M14.7.32. C. to WOR.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} HS.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} DA.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} X.7410 X.5410 X469 re. CARS IN GENERAL. We hear a good deal from those people who run their cars at a breakneck speed, and prefer rough springing and many other qualities which are hardly RR. characteristics. We must not expect to entirely please these people, and fortunately they do not constitute the bulk of the buyers of RR. cars. This small number of customers could have something specially fitted in the way of dampers, etc, which is not our usual standard, the equivalent of which our designing and experimental staffs have not had time to produce. For some time I have thought that our dampers and most others are not powerful enough for our flexibly sprung cars at even moderate speeds, especially for front ones. I think that with an ordinary chauffeur driven car such gadgets might cause more harm than good. The driver would probably have the control for strong damping when it should be light, and vica versa. Certainly the adjustable Hartfords that I have seen would come under this class, except on special occasions when we now fit them as auxiliaries for special journeys at high speed. Certainly it would seem that we could not cater with a standard car, without some special equipment, for such uses as the Alpine trials etc. Hancock says, probably very rightly, this would be more suitable for Bensport. R.{Sir Henry Royce} | ||