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

The Hot Rod Reader

Edited by Melinda Keefe and Peter Schletty

As one should expect of a good anthology, this compendium covers a lot of ground. It encircles its subject from all angles by presenting various commentaries by practitioners and observers. Representative examples of news articles, essays, fiction, and interviews have been gathered to help the reader connect the dots about what rods and rodding are all about.

The Book of the Lamborghini Urraco: Includes the Silhouette and Jalpa

by Arnstein Landsem

The book jacket refers to the Urraco as a “future supercar classic.” Well, production of this lesser-known Lambo ended in 1979—and the 791 cars built still haven’t become classics. Or supercars. Today you could buy 10 for the price of a tired Miura or top-notch Countach.

British Car Advertising of the 1960s

by Heon Stevenson

The run from Land’s End in Cornwall to John O’Groats in the north of Scotland is the longest distance in the British Isles. No wonder that for years the British have had a hard time comprehending America’s wide open spaces. Their misperception of the space we occupy has, albeit indirectly, influenced the advertising that is the subject of this book.

American Automobile Advertising: An Illustrated History 1930–1980

by Heon Stevenson

American’s have a long-standing love/hate relationship with Madison Avenue. One minute complaining there’s way too much of it and he doesn’t pay any attention to it anyway. Then, almost without taking a breath asking Dilbert in the next cubicle if he happened to see the latest Miller spot and how about those cheerleaders outfits!

Differentials: Identification, Restoration & Repair

by Jim Allen and Randy Lyman

Part history book, part school book, part mechanics manual, part encyclopedia, and part sales guide for aftermarket alterations, this 394-page softcover book is a gearhead’s dream . . . if you want to dream about differentials, that is. If not, it could be slow going.

Hot Rod Garages

by Peter Vincent

Think of this book as a Shop Hop or Garage Crawl, a guided tour and look behind the curtain. This hot rod photographer/owner/builder doesn’t so much send you out for a look-see on your own but takes you along with him—all the while reminiscing and dispensing snippets of quotes and conversations, facts and factoids, and personal impressions.

Mustang: An American Classic, Yesterday – Today – Tomorrow

by Michael Mueller

Ford’s Mustang may have been the quintessential pony car but there is nothing pony about this oversize book—at over 14” tall it will tower over most anything else on the bookshelf. This lavish production is sort of a 45th birthday tribute to a wildly successful car that by then had sold about 9 million copies.

Classic Cars: How to Choose Your Dream Car

by David Long

At last you’re flush with enthusiasm, flush with money too, and everybody at the pub talks about “them classic cars” and that “they don’t make ‘em like they used to!” You too will have a classic car. But you know nothing about the species . . . You, dear fellow, are the sort of reader this book aims to enlighten.

Maserati: Italian Luxury and Flair

by Martin C Buckley

These days, Maserati is going strong and is poised to remain that way. It was rarely so in the 90-year history of the firm, thanks to a multitude of different owners with different ideas, and this book gives an account of that.

Porsche, A History of Excellence

by Randy Leffingwell

First published in 2008 in hardcover form, this book takes a fairly thorough look at the history of Porsche’s road and racing cars. The publisher, Motorbooks, routinely re-issues successful books a few years later, with a different binding and a reduced price.

James Allison: A Biography of the Engine Manufacturer and Indianapolis 500 Cofounder

by Sigur E Whitaker

You know rearview mirrors, four-wheel brakes, front-wheel drive, and maybe even balloon tires. But do you know that all these things, and many more, can be traced back to one of the businesses that sprang from the fertile mind of James Allison (1872–1928)?

Real Racers – Formula 1 in the 1950s and 1960s

A Driver’s Perspective

by Stuart Codling

The “driver’s perspective” alluded to in the title takes here the form of commentary by drivers who raced during those decades. This is a useful approach, and certainly lively, entertaining and direct—but it does not [want to??] put its finger onto the core of the issue.

Newer Entries »
« Older Entries