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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).
Customer complaints about insufficient dynamo output at high speeds on long night journeys.

Identifier  ExFiles\Box 70\3\  scan0350
Date  27th February 1928
  
To R.{Sir Henry Royce} from EFC.
c. BJ. R.{Sir Henry Royce}
c. EY. PN.{Mr Northey}
c. Hm.{Capt. W. Hallam - Head Repairs} Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager}

X8783do

EFC3/T27.2.28.

INSUFFICIENT DYNAMO OUTPUT AT HIGH SPEEDS. X8700

We have had several complaints (four, I think) all comparatively recently and two within the last few days, from a particular type of ~~40/50~~ customer who uses his car for long journeys at night, the complaint being, as might be expected, of insufficient dynamo output to keep going.

As is generally realized, the output of our electrical system is such as to be an effective compromise between low speed Town work and high speed touring or night journey work, but it is quite impossible with our present size and arrangement of machine to cater for both extremes in one machine.

In our Instruction Book we have for a considerable time had the paragraph :-

"Charging in the garage from an external source with the battery in position on the car is recommended where conditions are such that a heavy demand is made on the battery."

With a battery in proper order, with a full charge, and normal head lamp consumption, a man should be able to cover from 200 to 300 miles at night if he takes care to start with his battery fully charged. Apparently some customers find it inconvenient to arrange for such external charging and there is no doubt that they would be much more pleased if the dynamo would cover the load in the circumstances which they describe. In one instance a customer says that he drives through the night from Paris to Barcelona using very big consumption head
  
  


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