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).
Phantom II car (129-GN) with excessive vibration issues, deeming it unsuitable for trials or sale.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 18\3\ Scan147 | |
| Date | 24th September 1930 | |
| HS{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} *7960 To Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} from Eg. Copy to C. HY.{Tom Haldenby - Plant Engineer} Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} RP. PH. re 129-GN. Sg{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD}13/24.9.30 The above is the Phantom II car which was built for trials and which prior to my going away on holiday had to be rejected owing to what was considered to be excessive vibrations in picking up at speeds below about 25 m.p.h. I understand that this car has been the subject of considerable discussion and that the view is held by at least one important official at W. that the car is quite suitable for trials purposes. I have this morning tried the car myself and, in order to make a perfectly fair comparison, I took out at the same time a car with exactly similar rake of steering and type of body, which by the way is one of the most favourable types of bodies which we can expect to be fitted to the 40/50 chassis, i.e. leather roof and flexible front. The vibrations on picking up between 10 and 25 miles an hour are in my opinion very bad, and far from the car being suitable for trials, I would not think that it was even suitable for selling. It is very much worse than the car it was compared with, which is not particularly good in this respect but which is passable. I can hardly believe that any technical official who has actually tried this car could be of the opinion that it was a satisfactory example of a 40/50 RR car, and if one knew that this is what had to be expected in the ordinary way for sale to the public, then one would have to admit that we had lost our premier position as the makers of the best car in the world. I do not know whether you have tried the car yourself but I am quite satisfied that a short test would convince you of the correctness of my remarks above. The point now is: What can be done to make it passable and up to our normal standard? Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} | ||