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).
Letter to Lord Curzon discussing the philosophy on high-speed performance versus comfort in their vehicles.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 71\3\ scan0410 | |
| Date | 23th January 1928 | |
| COPY. Rolls-Royce Ltd., 15, Conduit Street, W.1. C6/C23128 Viscount Curzon, 35, Curzon Street, W.1. Dear Lord Curzon, Thanks for your letter of the 18th inst. and we were all greatly interested to read your experiences and impressions of the "New PhantomCodename for PHANTOM I" we lent to you. Of course we were only too pleased that you should take the opportunity of trying this car, and are sorry we were not able to get you to try it earlier. My impression from your letter is that you were pleased with the car in every way and you like it better than other cars you have had, but you require a speed of 100 to 150 m.p.h. Generally speaking, I do not think our policy would induce us to make a car for those people who are willing to forego what you were good enough to describe as "The sweet and glorious running of the Phantom" in order to obtain 10 or 20 m.p.h. extra speed. Our experience has been that there are very few who are willing to forego the real beauties of motoring (which I think we are able to give them on our cars) in order to obtain these very excessive speeds, if this means foregoing the sweetness and comfort of motoring for 99% of the time, as the occasions upon which this excessive speed can be used are, of course, very rare, particularly in this Country. We agree that it may be found desirable by certain manufacturers who cannot give their customers the pleasures of motoring at reasonably high speeds such as we are able to give, to try and offer something which is capable of on comparatively rare occasions of giving very high speed, but it is not this class of business that we are seeking or are likely to seek. On this question of speed, I presume that the cars you get for purely speed purposes, are fitted with the sporting type of body upon which weight and wind resistance have been carefully studied, whereas the Phantom which you had was, of course, designed and intended solely as an ordinary luxury car, and a study of wind resistance and weight would easily make a very considerable difference in acceleration and high speeds, as you are, of course, aware. It would be interesting to ascertain what are the respective wind areas of the Phantom as compared with the other cars you mention. I do not know if you happen to have any particulars in this respect. | ||