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).
Confidential memo on chassis problems regarding acceleration for passing and potential engine improvements.
| Identifier | WestWitteringFiles\R\October1927-December1927\ Scan071 | |
| Date | 31th October 1927 | |
| ORIGINAL CONFIDENTIAL FROM R.{Sir Henry Royce} C. to H.S. R3/M31.10.27. X 523 X5050 X1725 X8420 CHASSIS PROBLEMS. ACCELERATION FOR PASSING. There is an increasing demand for more rapid acceleration, but which cannot be met with a lower top gear. So that a gear, or acceleration, equivalent to our 3rd, must be easily available without the usual change gear, and the loss of time, noise etc, which it at present involves. There seems to be three ways of meeting this - (1) Supercharger. (2) Freewheel side shaft on gearbox. (3) Epicyclic gear or its equivalent. (1) has been done, and is noisy, but has other advantages. (2) we did many years ago, but owing to brakes being less reliable, feared responsibility. (3) has always been attractive, and we have had many schemes, but none quite good enough. Progress with brakes, hydraulic appliances, etc, makes (3) more possible. If (1) and (2) prove inefficient I am in favour of again studying (3). ENGINE IMPROVEMENTS. From many points of view 6 cylinders are sufficient, because more become fussy, like driving with four ponies instead of a pair of good sized horses. Though I have always been in favour of small and many cylinders, as our past work (aero and chassis) will shew, I doubt if there is any advantage in going further than we have done, especially as we know there are known disadvantages in the next move of 8 or 12 cyls., but we are carefully testing what is done by others. R.{Sir Henry Royce} | ||