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).
Engine performance, crankshaft deflection, and the importance of reducing vehicle weight.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 19\7\ Scan060 | |
| Date | 20th July 1922 guessed | |
| contd:- -2- surprising that it is as quiet as it is, and wears as well, as between 2000 and 3000 revs. For such an engine is quite fast, and even light connecting rods, and aluminium pistons exert enormous forces, and the bending stresses in the crank chamber due to the 2 middle cranks is so great that it has shewn the necessity of altering the water connection pipe so as to give elasticity for the crankchamber deflection. That other people use low gears does not justify us in departing from the lessons of our own experience and the conclusions that our senses dictate to us. It will be understood that I am quite with CJ. and BJ. in my anxiety to maintain the RR. impressions and qualities in our cars and I am definitely against the noisy, harsh, and tiring car, no matter how fast it is or what acceleration it has, and even though I am extremely fond of rapid acceleration, and sometimes where safe like a spell of real speed, but I should certainly obtain these features by definitely reducing the weight and windage where-ever possible by the avoidance of carrying anything weighty which is unnecessary on a car as large accumulators, heavy bodies, Warland rims, excessively large tyres and wheels, heavy tools and spares, and that the coachfittings should have that same degree of care in regard to their weight as is exercised in the chassis. This has not been done. R.{Sir Henry Royce} | ||