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).
Bentley publicity, a proposed 100 m.p.h. endurance run, and addressing owner complaints about vehicle reliability.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 160\3\ scan0020 | |
| Date | 7th December 1938 | |
| 1260 Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} Har Bly{B. W. Bleaney - Bentley Sales} seen or sat in Paulin Car. 7th December, 1938. Re: Bentley Publicity. I have read with interest Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer}2/R.22.11.38 and Rml/R.1.12.38, and quite agree that it would be excellent propaganda if we could carry out a 24 hour run on the Bentley in the neighbourhood of 100 m.p.h. If successful, publicity of this nature in the near future, would come at a time when it would do considerable good to counter a feeling amongst some Bentley Owners that Bentleys do not stand up to the work they expected. If a run was undertaken I would prefer to see it carried out on a more orthodox type of body than the Paulin. I am sure it would be of much more commercial value to us, even although it may be necessary to sacrifice a few m.p.h. Photographs of a more or less standard type of coachwork on a car which had completed a run of this nature would be very impressive to Bentley Owners and other interested people, whereas photographs of an ultra-streamline car would not, I fear, gain so much credit as the extra few m.p.h. gained by this special coachwork. It is appreciated that it may be necessary to specially adjust the engine to suit such a run, namely carburettors etc., but this I feel sure can always be satisfactorily explained, also any special method of treatment of the headlamps, wings etc. for wind resistance. I would add that if we offered to the public a special Continental model with high performance and a streamline body, then in my opinion it would be a different matter and we could very well use an ultra-streamline type of car for the job. Concerning the question of the Bentley not standing up to the work expected, what I have in mind is the increasing number of knowledgeable Owner-Drivers and well-known car drivers who have had bearing trouble on their cars. An odd one or two can doubtless be accounted for and hushed up, but now it has become so frequent that I rather think they are talking amongst themselves, especially in view of the fact that the bearing trouble and re-bore are chargeable over 30,000 miles. A number of Owners have expressed surprise from time to time at the amount of money they have to spend on their cars and most of them hesitate to tell Rolls-Royce that they are of a different opinion as to whether the charge is justifiable. We probably hint that the car has been misused, but they will not tolerate this, usually backing it up by the fact that they are old motorists and have had cheap cars with considerable mileage to their credit without such troubles. | ||