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).
Secret memo from BJ to R regarding the introduction of improvements to the standard chassis and plans for a Sports Model.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 65a\1\ scan0146 | |
| Date | 1st October 1927 | |
| For enclosure with BJ1/E13/10/27 To R.{Sir Henry Royce} from BJ. SECRET. BJ2/E13/10/27 Re Sports Model. 1. All of us are most anxious to introduce into our standard chassis at the earliest possible moment all the excellent and useful improvements suggested by you, as we fully realise their urgency for the benefit of our sales and the Company. The object of our conference at Derby yesterday was to ascertain how the improvements could most quickly be introduced and we were very glad to find so many of them were already practically completed or under way. The Works people were all enthusiastic and we may safely depend on their not losing a minute in carrying the job forward. 2. We realise, as you have done, that it is inevitable in a large factory dealing with an output such as ours that there must be a considerable amount of material and work in progress always available to keep the works going and to prevent the chance of serious delays. This will be reduced to a minimum to permit the improvements to be introduced as early as possible. We have to face the fact that these stocks must take many months to use up and new stocks must be procured and manufactured before the improvements can be incorporated and delivered to the public. 3. Our main object is to finish off one or two of these chassis including all your improvements at the earliest possible moment and send it for a 10,000 miles test. What ever programme we arrange must not deter this for one minute. Our standard chassis must be considered first. It is our staple product and bread and butter. 4. For this reason we suggest leaving out any attempt to experiment with what we may call for the moment a [crossed out] super-sports car, until the improvements are introduced on the standard chassis, as it seems probable that the improved standard chassis will be practical all that is required for the super-sports car. 5. If the standard chassis with all improvements on is ready for 10,000 miles test in, say, 12 weeks, and has completed the test say, in 16 weeks, and if then it does not require further modifications, we should expect it to be in the hands of the public during the autumn. In other words, we should not expect to benefit by it during the next financial year. | ||