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).
Mr. Raymond Mays' feedback and the investigation into engine, brake, and clutch issues with his 4 ¼-litre Bentley.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 90\4\ scan0037 | |
| Date | 28th April 1936 | |
| -> S/W...Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} e.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} to Hd.{Mr Hayward/Mr Huddy} --- C1/C28.4.36 Re B.24.GA...Mr.Raymond Mays Mr. Raymond Mays has recently returned from about a 2,000 mile trip on the Continent with his 4¼-litre Bentley. He is extremely pleased with it and thinks it is the most marvellous motorcar he has ever driven. he says he drove it 'all out' from Monte Carlo to Paris and it behaved extraordinarily well. He had, however, a number of complaints to make, most of which were small and which K.{Mr Kilner} have attended to. As it may be of interest to you I am enclosing a copy of these. You will notice his chief points are the brakes losing their efficiency and a juddering clutch. He also complained about a thump in the engine. K.{Mr Kilner} attended to his various complaints and he now writes as per attached copy of letter dated the 25th. He has since telephoned me, however, to say that the thump, which had become very bad indeed, has now disappeared. K's report was that they could find nothing out of the ordinary but they lifted the cylinder head and examined the valves. They found them all to be distorted, the inlet valves being the worst. They refaced and ground them in and on subsequent tests performance appeared to be particularly good. They found no roughness in the engine. I promised to advise you of this mysterious happening in the engine and shall be glad if you will please let us have your views as to what you think it may be caused by.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} He suggests it may have been a temporary seizing up of the slipper drive. You will also notice with interest his remarks regarding the brakes and clutch. | ||