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 from Sir Henry Segrave providing driving feedback on a Phantom II and a 25 hp model.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 65a\3\ scan0184 | |
| Date | 28th December 1929 | |
| COPY OF LETTER FROM SIR HENRY SEGRAVE. +770. No (HS{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}) Please retain A.F. Sidgreaves, Esq., Messrs. Rolls-Royce Ltd., 14/15, Conduit Street, London, W. 1. Warren End, Coombe Warren, Kingston Hill. 28th December, 1929. EP{G. Eric Platford - Chief Quality Engineer} 7/1/30 My dear Sidgreaves, In returning you the Phantom II with closed coupled body which you so kindly lent me over Christmas it occurred to me that you might like a few notes as to how the car appeared to me to perform, and with the object of offering a little helpful criticism the following short report is submitted. At the same time I would like you to know that where the criticism may be adverse from my point of view, I am not, of course, letting anybody else have this information and it in no way represents information I am giving on the car to anybody who happens to ask for my opinion. The majority of people accuse me of fast driving, but as a matter of fact I only go as fast as the car will let me go when conditions warrant it, and perhaps when these conditions are satisfactory, I may go a little bit faster than the average driver might. I have always had the feeling that owners of Rolls-Royce cars do not habitually drive quickly, and I have often wondered what would happen to a Rolls were it to be driven fast for a long period of time under everyday give and take conditions. For instance I do not think that the Phantom you lent me has ever been driven in this way for long, but I would suggest that one of your drivers takes this car out and holds the needle on, say, the 85 mark for four or five miles without lifting his foot off - I think he will be surprised as to what happens! The car that impressed me most, viewed from every angle was the 25 hp. which is really an absolutely delightful job. I haven't lifted the bonnets of either of the two cars so I really do not know much about either of the engines, but it seems to me that you have some sort of a governor on the 25 hp. because the car feels that it wants to do more than its maximum on the speedometer, which is 65 m.p.h. | ||