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).
Modification of chassis headlamps for use in France, specifically the dipping direction.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 61a\2\ scan0357 | |
| Date | 28th September 1934 | |
| S/W. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c.c. to Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} c.c. " Wst. WST 86116. See me Cx{Major Len W. Cox - Advertising Manager}9/KW28.9.34. Chassis Headlamps. You have stated that GWH{George W. Hancock - Head Chateauroux} reported that the headlamp reflectors on the cars he takes to France could not be made to dip to the right without structural alterations. Whilst that is correct at the moment so far as the P.100 headlamps are concerned, it is not correct with regard to the other model Lucas lamps which we use. I attach a leaflet on the latter which shows the electrically controlled reflectors are made so that it can be arranged for them to dip to the left or the right. It is however possible to obtain from Lucas' P.100 headlamps arranged to dip to the right provided that is specified in the first instance, and I suggest that you should arrange for all your experimental cars which go to France for prolonged tests to have the lamps with right-hand dippers. As you know, we are not always responsible for the equipping of experimental cars with headlights but we never have any difficulty with customers' cars because we provide them at the start with lamps suitable for the French conditions. These lamps with right-hand dippers are easily convertible to vertical dippers, so that when the car returns to this country they can be altered by the driver to dip straight down. We understand from one of our Agents who goes to France a good deal that what the French people really object to is not so much the dipping headlamps as the four lights showing forward, i.e. two headlights and two side lights. I believe I am correct in saying that French cars do not carry side lamps. Our Agent in question therefore gets over the difficulty, and never has any bother, by having a centre lamp fitted to his car so that when he dips his headlights go out and his centre light goes on, which, coupled with the two side lights provides him with a suitable equipment for meeting French conditions. This is an alternative which GWH{George W. Hancock - Head Chateauroux} might find more suitable, although we believe that the double dippers to the right in France would be quite practicable in his case. As regards the suggestion about double dipping lamps being all right if the beam had a sharp cut-off, we are in communication with Lucas about the possibility of (contd) | ||