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).
Professor Dodds' ongoing engine performance issues, including extracts from his letter.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 90\2\ scan0132 | |
| Date | 15th September 1936 | |
| x 261 S/W To Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/Rm.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} re Professor Dodds. Sg{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD}2/E15.9.36 from Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} B-34-GA. With further reference to mine of yesterday, Sg{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD}12/E14.9.36, I have had a letter from him to-day, from which the following is an extract:- '......If you remember, the car was sent to Derby on July 27th. I had got a new set of plugs in, which I tried out on the 24th when I made a fast run to Oxford and back. The missing occurred at first at 3,000 revs. but passed off very quickly and one had no difficulty at all in reaching maximum revs. in all gears, even after idling in traffic.' 'The car came to you, as already stated, the next week. It was not used again until my return a few days ago. I made my first long journey over the week-end and regret to say that it is still bad. Normally it misses at low speeds and also at the customary 3,000; if one stuck to it and kept one's foot down and revved it up to gears, the missing passed off and the rest of the run was all right. Starting out from cold again one experienced the same trouble'...... This of course is written after the week-end and the former note was prior to it when he had not apparently given the car a long run since it had attention from you in August. I hope you will be able to let him have the plugs/ that were asked for in my memo. of yesterday. Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} | ||