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).
Test drive report and description of the Denison-Burney Streamline Car.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 179\2\ img017 | |
| Date | 7th December 1931 | |
| R.{Sir Henry Royce} From Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c. to Wg.{Mr Gill - Financial Director} Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} c. to Da.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} Hy.{Tom Haldenby - Plant Engineer} c. to K.{Mr Kilner} HS.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}1/MA.7.12.31. ORIGINAL DENISON-BURNEY'S STREAMLINE CAR. X3531 FN. and myself tried one of these cars last Friday. We went from London to Maidenhead and back. A brief description of the car is as follows:- It is fitted with a Beverley-Barnes 2.9 litre 8 cyl. engine. The weight of the complete car is 40 cwts. It was geared direct on third and had an indirect fourth. All four wheels were separately sprung. The car we had had no shock absorbers fitted to it at all. The final drive was through a worm. The actual running of this car, its general performance and comfort, was sufficiently good to be very disturbing. Although we travelled in the car about 75 miles (I drove the car for about 20 miles), we are not in a position to make any comment as regards the engine actually. When driving the car it is difficult to realise that there is an engine. This is confirmed by the fact that when running on the low gears I ran the engine up to 4000 R.P.M. and it was only the driver sitting by my side who called my attention to the fact that the engine was being very much over-revved, that I slowed up. The ordinary details of an engine, such as piston knocks, and valve noises, simply disappeared. When sitting on the back seat there is more mechanical noise than there is in one of our cars. One appreciates that there is some sort of machinery close to the back seat, but one cannot pick out individual noises. In my opinion a considerable amount of noise was coming from the worm axle. The riding of the car was very good. There was a noticeable absence of 'pitching and 'rolling'. Compared with our standard the rating of the springs appeared to be high, the most discomfort was at low speed over pot-holes. Sir Denison-Burney stated that they had so far done no work experimentally on springs and shock absorbers, but were hoping to do so on the later models they were producing. At Maidenhead we went to a small works in which they are erecting these cars. Wherever possible they used bought out units. Altogether there appeared to be about six cars in process of development and being built. | ||