[ROVERNET - UK] Slightly OT but not quite

[iudkuy wcygiohs]

Paul

The actual date of transfer of the jet engine work to
Rolls Royce was 1st April 1943. Rover were completing
contracts for Cheetah aero engine parts and so were
able to take up the tank engine work. 

This info is from a fascinating book on the
development of the Whittle engine published by the
Rolls Royce Heritage Trust entitled "Vikings at
Waterloo". Rover were supposed to just do what Whittle
wanted but "our boys" saw better ways to do it and so
built their own design in secret in parrallel with the
Whittle engines. After the RR takeover it was the
Rover design that went on to be the RR jet engine
right through the fifties. The story hints at company
and government department rivalries with not a little
snobbery on the RR side.

Peter B


--- Paul Smith <Paul.Smith at auroraenergy.com.au> wrote:

> Apparently:
> RR was doing aircraft engines and dabbling in tanks.
> Rover were doing tanks and dabbling in aircraft
> engines.
> The story earlyish in WW2 is that the CEO of each
> met for dinner and agreed
> RR would pursue aircraft, Rover land craft.
> So they signed the respective divisions over to ech
> other and presto.
> Have not verified this, but eh seems possible.
> 
> PVS
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rovernet-bounces at lyris.ccdata.com
> [mailto:rovernet-bounces at lyris.ccdata.com]On Behalf
> Of Mike Shaddick
> Sent: Tuesday, 7 March 2006 10:44 pm
> To: rovernet at lyris.ccdata.com
> Subject: Re: [ROVERNET - UK] Slightly OT but not
> quite
> 
> 
> >I have just bought the February edition of the UK
> mag 'Classics'. Yes, I
> >know we get it about 2 months late seeing as though
> we are on the other
> side
> >of the world and it has to come out by Tea Clipper
> etc etc.
> >One of the articles concerned a Rolls Royce Merlin
> V12 (from a WWII
> >Hurricane fighter) put into RR Phantom based
> chassis and handmade bodywork.
> >Very interesting. It made mention that the engine
> was a genuine Rolls Royce
> >and not a Rover built version. Can anyone expand on
> this? Did Rover make
> >these engines in wartime? And were they only used
> in fighter planes? I've
> >not researched this topic extensively but I do know
> of a Rod Hadfield from
> >Castlemaine here in Oz who put a supercharged
> Merlin V12 in a custom built
> >'55 Chevvy which was supposedly the most powerful
> road registered car in
> the
> >world! The website is
> www.rodshop.com.au/project55.htm.
> >It would be interesting to hear of Rover's
> involvement with these engines.
> >
> >Cheers,
> >
> >Ray Wilkins
> >Melbourne, Australia
> >1976 P6B
> >
> 
> I've got a working Centurion tank.  Interestingly
> it's got an engine 
> which is a downrated Merlin built during the war by,
> you've guessed 
> it, the Rover Company of  Solihull.
> 
> kanjane
> 
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