Archive for Items Categorized 'Automobiles', only excerpts shown, click title for full entry.

Karl Ludvigsen’s Fast Friends, Stars and Heroes in the World of Cars

by Karl E. Ludvigsen 

If you’re around car books at all there’s really no way you’d not know this award-winning author’s name. He’s been around, he’s seen things, he’s forgotten more than you will ever know. Here are 23 examples of people that left an impression on him—not least his father.

70 Years of Porsche Sports Cars

by Josef Arweck

Porsche began as a maker of sports cars, and it turned 70 the year this book came out. True that. But no matter what the title may imply, the book is not about sports cars.

Studebaker Avanti Operation Airlift, May 1962

by John Hull

Studebaker planned to sell 20,000 of these luxury coupes in its launch year, 1962. It had radical styling, was the fastest production car of the time, and the world clearly wanted this type of car. A year later Studebaker threw in the towel. But no one would forget the flying circus that was this airlift.

The Ford that Beat Ferrari: A Racing History of the GT40

by John S. Allen and Gordon J. Jones 

Seen the movie? (Do!) Now read the book—or, rather, re-read this 34-year-old classic now in its 3rd and yet again improved edition.

Porsche Milestones

by Wilfried Müller

These days, Porsche claims to have the highest profit per unit sold of any car company in the world. That won’t make buyers feel good but this book shows what Porsche does with all that loot—develop more stuff that stretches the envelope.

Gaston Grümmer: The Art of Carrosserie 

by Philippe-Gaston Grümmer and Laurent Friry

French coachwork from the golden era, from the utilitarian to the unbelievably exotic—and not always practical or even attractive! But the world is a better place for this sort of creativity, and this sort of book.

Langdon Clay: Cars – New York City, 1974–1976

by Langdon Clay 

Taking one clever photo is easy. Taking hundreds, not so much. Sure, you’ve seen cars on city streets—but surely not this way.

50 Years Porsche 914

by Jürgen Lewandowski

One of those misunderstood cars (think Dino, Montreal, NSX) that only later in life is getting the attention it deserved all along. Thorough and colorful, this book might awaken a whole new tier of collectors.

Ballot

by Daniel Cabart and Gautam Sen

The fastest cars in the world right when they came out (1919). Innovative. Good-looking. Other makers were inspired by them. Today: obscure. Now this monumental 920-page book is a most proper 100th anniversary present.

Never Stop Driving: A Better Life Behind the Wheel

by Larry Webster, Zach Bowman, Jack Baruth, Brett Berk

For anyone for whom the car is more than an appliance. Finding, owning, using, repairing, the fellowship of other car people—life is better with a car!

Niki Lauda: His Competition History

by Jon Saltinstall

He won two of his three F1 championships after the fiery crash in 1976 that almost killed him. The courage and willpower this takes defies description. So does losing the title one year by one point and winning it another by half a point. Racing is about so much more than car control; this book paints the picture of a driver who applied himself with unprecedented commitment.

Swedish Coachbuilders – A Story of Craftsmanship

by Jan Ströman

You may not know the names, you may not even know how to pronounce them but Sweden is more than Saab and Volvo (or Koenigsegg)! This book shows how early Teutonic influences gave way to more original expressions.