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).
Page from a report discussing steering, wheel rim quality, and transmission knock.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 1\7\ B001_X15 20 46 50 59-page147 | |
| Date | 7th September 1920 | |
| Contd. -3- R6/G7.9.20. that these are fatal things for good steering at high speed. Also I have been pleased to see that Warland split detachable rims are so badly made that we cannot get a supply of good ones, these are things I detest and abominate, nothing is better than clincher rims and security bolts, and wire wheels for high speed cars of the speed and mightnof our car, which will weigh from two to three tons, and touch 60 to 75 miles per hour. These are no machines which we ought not to fit with Tom, Dick, and Harry's fancies, which are often prompted by sheer laziness. A slight rearwards lean of the upper end of the steering pivots is very advantageous for steady steering at high speed and has other advantages, but seems to be the chief causes of steering wobbles at low speed (strange, but these latter I have never experienced, probably because I do not grip the stee- ring wheel very firmly.) KNOCK IN TRANSMISSION. There appears little reason for this being worse on present cars. The cause is undoubtedly due to the bump and pot-holey state of the roads, combined with hard bumped resilient tyres before mentioned, the axle moving verticallynquickly and over a greater range. Undoubtedly it is very sensitive to the weight of wheels and axles, compared with the sprung weight of the body etc. and also to the softness of tyres and to damping te rear springing of the car. You will remember that I pressed hard for rear shock dampers to be fitted (from my own road experience), but Contd. | ||