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).
Article by Laurence Pomeroy, Junr. from 'The Motor' magazine, reviewing the new Bentley Mark V and comparing car design to architecture.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 160\5\ scan0297 | |
| Date | 16th April 1941 | |
| April 16, 1941. 213 The Motor ATION in Motorcars and Architecture By Laurence Pomeroy, Junr. style, but to trust our own architects to produce buildings worthy of our age; to combine external beauty and proportion with inner cleanliness, convenience and modern facilities. The modern feeling in architecture is by no means confined to the rather slabby, ferro-concrete structures with monotonous horizontal or vertical accents which were very much the mode in the late twenties. All over the country one can see, if one cares to look, modern houses, offices and civic buildings which are first-class architectural examples. There is certainly no need for the 1940's to emulate the 1640's or any other century. By placing buildings conceived in a purely 20th century spirit adjacent to those of previous centuries we should be following an English tradition which can be seen in many places, notably in the Universities. At Cambridge, for instance, many college extensions have been built in the past decade, also the great University library. One can see, also, a continuous growth in building style from Tudor times onwards, so I thought it might be interesting to revisit the University on the Bentley and to select some specimens. As most ex-students are aware, the road from the Thames to the Granta forms a very satisfactory test for a high-speed car, and although we did not propose an attempt on the Whitney Straight time, we looked forward to a very pleasant journey. Leaving a concert at the Queen's Hall, which, itself, was evidence that great works of art are not the product of any special age (it contained works by Mozart, Beethoven and Vaughan Williams), we motored, four up, steadily out to Stevenage, and then began to see what the car would do. A Ready Ninety As compared with the data obtained on the previous run, it appeared as though we had either a new engine or a new speedometer. Ninety was readily obtainable on direct gear, to be comfortably maintained and exceeded on the overdrive. The road was pleasantly free from traffic and, although not the semblance of a risk was taken nor was the Rolls-Royce servo called upon to exert full power on the Girling brakes, a highly satisfactory time was realized, showing that the gains in performance were real and not due to speedometer flatter. During the week-end the quietness and tractability of the car reinforced the appeal they had made so strongly on the previous occasion on which it was used. On the way home it was turned over to an ex-member of The Motor staff—Gordon Wilkins—who is now engaged in helping with the war effort. He has tested practically all the fast cars in the world, and, as I have in a previous issue recorded my general impressions of the car, I think the views of this observer may well be reproduced. ATTRACTIVE MODERNITY—This picture shows the extension of Clare, designed by Sir Giles Scott, which forms an attractive background to the new Bentley V, the performance of which is further reported upon in this article. “After a brief run of 49 miles covered in as many minutes, it would be difficult to attempt an exhaustive analysis of the Bentley's behaviour, but it is possible to record some very vivid impressions left by the car.” Making Speed Unexciting “ To be clocking 95 on a slight down grade, with four up and luggage, within the first six or seven miles suggests in some measure the assurance it breeds in the driver. In the pursuit of an ideal the Bentley designers have succeeded in making speed unexciting.” “ It was known that a certain stretch of 28 miles had been covered by the Technical Editor in 23 minutes. To attempt to compete without knowing the car would have been foolish, and our object was not to start another average speed controversy, but to savour the run to the full. To journey was definitely better than to arrive.” “ The suspension provides a superb combination of softness with security. There is very little roll and almost complete freedom from pitching and diving. Even a vicious hump-backed bridge taken really fast failed to set the occupants of the car bouncing. Steering; delightfully light when parking, yet equally stable and responsive at high speed and not unduly low geared. Occasionally on a sharp corner it was necessary to take a firm grip on the wheel, but I could not decide whether this was due to the more forward engine mounting or to the fact that the car was deceptively fast and I had been neglecting to steer at all. Certainly no other car with such spacious coachwork handles so well. And the car is really roomy. No concessions to pure speed; walk in and sit down. “ The gearbox seems to call for little comment, as it is so rarely used. When called upon, it is virtually foolproof. Start off in direct drive if you will. The change between direct and overdrive can be snapped or leisurely as the mood dictates. One of the passengers inquired about the ease of changing into second gear and without any attempt at double-declutching; second was engaged and then direct drive was resumed at about 40 m.p.h. without his being aware of the fact. Such is the general degree of mechanical quietness. Only when flat out is it possible to discern any slight noise from the power unit, and then only a critical ear can detect it.” “ In speaking of the brakes, it is difficult not to use superlatives. I believe the braking on the Mark V is the best that has so far been achieved on a motorcar. It gives the utterly smooth and progressive retardation found in a first-class passenger lift. I had not consciously appraised the braking qualities until we surmounted a rise at about 80 and found the road blocked by a lorry passing some parked cars. This seemed a most suitable opportunity to use the brakes. There are other cars on which one could have stopped, after some finesse with steering wheel and brake pedal, but with the Bentley there was rather a sensation of running into a mass of cotton wool. Motion was quickly and gently eliminated and it was only when pinning the car down to a dead stop for the last 10 ft. or so that there was any | ||