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

Silver Ghosts of Australia and New Zealand

by Ian L Irwin

Unlike books written “on spec” for commercial gain or a misguided yearning for immortality, this 2-volume opus is the proverbial labor of love of one enthusiast’s lifelong unwavering interest.

Hot Rod (Perry)

by David Perry & Barry Gifford

If, when browsing the magazine rack, you would automatically pass by Old Skool Rodz and Hot Rod Deluxe in favor of Classic Motorsports, Collectable Automobile or Road & Track—or even Rod & Custom (there is a fine line there, but it exits)—you would no doubt pass on this book also. There is a certain shame in that…

Rallying in a Royal Rolls-Royce

Preparations, Pitfalls and Passion on the 1997 Peking to Paris Motor Challenge

by Jeanne Eve

If you are a Rolls-Royce enthusiast seeking information on compression ratios and piston stroke, then this one may not be your cup of tea. However, if you have a pulse, if you have ever felt the call of the open road, and you don’t treat your car like a trailer queen, then you must read this!

A Reliable Car and a Woman Who Knows It: The First Coast-to-Coast Auto Trips by Women, 1899–1916

by Curt McConnell

McConnell’s two related earlier books about transcontinental trips are supplemented here by the story of pioneering women drivers who tackled great distances just to show it could be done. None of the three books makes reference to the others and we continue to be puzzled by this odd bit of marketing strategy.

Road Racing: Drivers of the 60’s and 70’s

by L. Weldon & J. Heimann

Once upon a time motor racing was purely a man’s sport. With rare exceptions, women weren’t allowed near the cars during the race. In photos from the ’30s it’s always raining and cold, and the men in the pits, invariably clad in long overcoats and ties, all seem to resemble Humphrey Bogart or Alfred Neubauer.

Sunshine, Speed and a Surprise: The 1959 Grand Prix of The United States

by Joel E. Finn

Expository writing: somewhere here or in the hereafter there is a school teacher who takes pride in their former student, Joel Finn, for his clarity of expression. He marshals data, and interweaves anecdotes and his first-person observations into a compelling narrative of the first US Grand Prix.

The Forerunners of Jaguar in Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia

by John Clucas & Terry McGrath

British Jaguar expert Paul Skilleter, who is the publisher of this book, introduces it on the flyleaf by stating “If you thought you knew all about the forerunners of Jaguar, think again. . . . Extraordinarily comprehensive and full of fascinating new details.”

W.O. Bentley: The Man Behind The Marque

by Malcolm Bobbitt

Bentley is one of the most storied marques in British history. Despite its racing successes, more precisely because of them and their drain on the corporate coffers, Bentley did not survive the Great Depression as an independent marque but rather found itself the neglected stepchild in the Rolls-Royce family.

Pistons to Blades
: Small Gas Turbine Developments 
by the Rover Company

by Mark C S Barnard

A gas turbine-powered Bentley in the late 1940s? Could have happened! The background to this book is the swap of Rover’s jet engine work for Rolls-Royce’s Meteor tank engine program in 1943.

Carriages Without Horses

J. Frank Duryea and the Birth of the American Automobile Industry

by Richard P. Scharchburg

This small hardcover history book focuses on which of the Duryea brothers, Charles or Frank, contributed the most to the design and construction of the first US car put into series production. Charles always claimed credit for the design of the car, thanking his younger brother Frank for being “his indispensable helper.”

Corvair Affair

by Mike Knepper

If you wanted but one book in your collection on the Chevrolet Corvair, Mike Knepper’s book would be a wise and logical choice. It is obvious that Knepper is a seasoned, professional automotive journalist, and it is equally obvious that his flair for language goes beyond many informative but dull books all too often found.

My Life and My Cars

by W.O. Bentley

The autobiography ends with a gathering of the Bentley Drivers Club at Bentley’s home in Shamely Green, in 1959; he then was in retirement and had kept close ties with the BDC. The last paragraph of the book is nearly wistful—that of a man looking back over an exciting and distinguished career. There seems to be a smile on his face.

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