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).
Letter of complaint regarding the pro-rata cost of an engine repair.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 89\5\ scan0088 | |
| Date | 2nd April 1940 | |
| 261. Hives Teddington Works WINDMILL ROAD, SUNBURY-ON-THAMES TELEPHONE: SUNBURY-ON-THAMES 456. Rm{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} Please deal with this & reply me WMH/GN: HS{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} April 2nd, 1940. E.W.Hives Esq., Messrs. Rolls-Royce Ltd. DERBY. Dear Mr.Hives, I have given very careful thought to our conversation yesterday. You will recollect that although it was agreed that the damage was not caused by over-revving as originally suggested, you held that I ought to contribute to the cost of repair since I was getting a new engine in place of one which had covered 11,000 miles. As I told you I do not agree with this reasoning because I was content with the engine as it was, and it seems to me that it should be your misfortune and not mine that you are not in a position to give me a secondhand engine instead of building up a new one. I did not have a chance when I was with you of doing any calculations but having done them I cannot see how the price of £50, let alone the £75 originally suggested, can be arrived at. From enquiries which I made at your London Service Station when I first thought of buying a Bentley, I gathered that the average Bentley does in the region of 50,000 miles before regrinding is necessary. If, therefore, the charge which you are making is intended to be the proportion of the total charge for regrinding which is applicable to 11,000 miles running, I work out that the regrinding charge must be just over £227, which frankly I do not believe. If this really is the charge and other repairs are pro-rata, I am afraid that I cannot afford to | ||