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 'The Autocar' magazine comparing the weight of American and British cars.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 90\2\ scan0088 | |
| Date | 16th June 1938 | |
| 261g. Rml/R.{Sir Henry Royce} 16th June, 1938. Geoffrey Smith, Esq., Managing Editor, "The Autocar", Dorset House, Stamford Street, S.E.1. Dear Mr. Geoffrey Smith, Here is an attempt to answer your letter of June 3rd. Any figures relating to the "S.S. Jaguar", I would rather you refrained from publishing without their permission. I daresay it would be better to refer to Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} if you wanted to publish any figures relating to the Bentley. I should be delighted to loan you the complete weight analyses of these two cars if the information I am now giving you is not sufficiently detailed. We have tried, however, to pick out the meat without a lot of irrelevant matter. With regard to your queries - (1) Why are American cars relatively so much lighter than their British opposite numbers ? We think it is very difficult to compare the American mass-produced car with anything made in England, because whereas all our quantity productions are about 10 h.p., the American quantity productions are about 20 h.p., and the seating capacity correspondingly greater. The two 3½-litre cars which I have quoted in the weight analyses are both produced in small quantities, and are made with the specific object in view of appealing to the sporting element. Apart from this, in fairness to the American mass-produced motor-car, a lot of their weight reduction is due to intense development and research. | ||