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).
Road test of Chassis No. 53-LG, focusing on a steering wander issue and potential modifications.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 47\1\ Scan274 | |
| Date | 25th March 1926 | |
| Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} FLAYTT OWB5/DN25.3.26. TO OJ c. to K.{Mr Kilner}, EP{G. Eric Platford - Chief Quality Engineer} & Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} FROM OWB Re Chassis No. 53-LG - Mr. Charters. I tested this car on the 23rd March with EP.{G. Eric Platford - Chief Quality Engineer} The only specific departure from our standard steering on this series of chassis that I was able to find was a slight tendency to wandering. The car is certainly not positively dangerous on the road at anything over 40 m.p.h., and I shall be quite happy to drive Mr. Charters at any time at 70 or 75 wherever we can find a suitable piece of road. I have ascertained He, however, has been accustomed to driving cars which have particularly rigid steering columns and complete absence of back shock on the steering-wheel. Our system is definitely to arrange for more elasticity in the system which possesses certain definite advantages, but which has the disadvantage, from this owner's point of view, of transmitting back quite severe shocks to the steering-wheel, and in his particular case, owing to the isolation scheme between the chassis dash and body scuttle having been particularly well carried out so that the dash is receiving no support at all from the body (very advantageous indeed from the bodywork point of view) the steering column has a pronounced vibration and the actual dash itself is bending considerably. It was for the purpose of reducing the effects of road shock without sacrificing too much of the other virtues of our steering, the new lower gear steering was introduced, and in view of this customer's particular ideas, it is not thought it will be possible to satisfy him unless we fit one of these later model steerings to his car. At the same time it is essential that the dash itself should be stiffened up and I discussed the possibilities of doing this with Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} and Da.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} at Derby yesterday, when they agreed to get out a scheme of an angle bracket stiffener as soon as possible and to try it out so that it could be fitted in the case of this complaint. Also, at the same time the tendency to wander must be cured./// It is considered that we should advise Messrs. Eustace Watkins that we cannot consider the car is dangerous at all, that in particular there are no symptoms of road wheel wobble and that, in fact, the trouble complained of by the customer, is due PTO | ||