Car books...

[robertw]

Having an interest in sports cars I have numerous ones on Ferrari, Jaguar etc and many,  many on Corvette. Also have a number on concept cars and having developed an interest in the 1908 Great Race I eventually tracked down all books on this topic except for the two that were written in Italian and German. Seeing the reference to the Black Tiger by Leonard Wibberley I enjoyed his The Mouse........ series, and eventually found  all five of them (not car related but great satire). My book collection is almost as big as my unbuilt model collection and when going into a new city the first places I look for are model shops and book stores.

[Xingu]

I hate threads like this.....they always cost me money. A few new books are on the way.

[Richard Bartrop]

My big book addiction is mostly sci fi, especially old magazines and art books.  Kinda sorta relevant to this thread,  I have almost all of Syd Mead's books.

[Big John]

Late to the party as usual.  I recently got hold of a Dyke's Automobile and Gasoline Engine Encyclopedia copyright 1911>17. Has a vast amount of information and charts for many of the early autos, and a supplement on how to hot rod your Ford T and electric/ hybrid cars.

[Chuckyg1]

13 hours ago, Big John said:

Late to the party as usual.  I recently got hold of a Dyke's Automobile and Gasoline Engine Encyclopedia copyright 1911>17. Has a vast amount of information and charts for many of the early autos, and a supplement on how to hot rod your Ford T and electric/ hybrid cars.

Wow, that's really interesting, (and cool).

[Straightliner59]

On 2/16/2020 at 4:49 PM, Tom Geiger said:

Blue Highways, A Journey Into America -  William Least Heat Moon

I love that book! His "River Horse" is excellent, too.

[papajohn97]

My favorite auto racing books:

"Black Noon" by Art Garner - about the tragic '64 Indy race - fascinating read about Mickey Thompson, Dave MacDonald, Eddie Sachs, Jim Clark and many others. Would make a great documentary.

"Go Like Hell" by A. J. Baime, basis of the movie "Ford V Ferrari" but much expanded background history and additional interesting stories. Baime's other books (Arsenal of Democracy) are also excellent.

Someone needs to write a really good book and/or make a good bio-pic about Tazio Nuvolari, most interesting and some say the greatest race driver of all time.

Edited April 30 by papajohn97

[Racephoto1]

Tough subject. I grew up involved in auto racing , from drag racing to the Indy 500. Shaw's Gentlemen Start Your Engined , was a must. Joe Scalzo's Stand on the Gas, for sprint car racing. Also John Sawyer's The Dusty Heroes.  The Unfair Advantage. I'm reading Shunt right now. A biography on James Hunt. Nice book. Last but not least, for humor,  Stroker Ace. It's a lot better than the movie.

[rattle can man]

I don't recall the title, but in elementary school i read a children's book about Jimmy Murphy's 1921 Le Mans win many times.

[Brian Austin]

There are tons of 100+ year old automotive (and truck!) texts scanned by Google and others available online.  I've posted some from time to time, but the era seems too early for most people here to be of much interest.

One of my favorite books growing up was Automerica by the wacky Ant Farm collective.  There's a chapter describing the genesis and construction of "Cadillac Ranch" among other creative endeavors.  Fascinating look into the 1970s automotive counterculture.  One of the more well-known members of Ant Farm was Philip Garner (now known as Pippa) who has had numerous cartoons in the big automotive magazines over the years.

Edited May 3 by Brian Austin

[Brian Austin]

I am reminded of the Dykes Automobile & Gasoline Engine Encyclopedia I inherited from my late grandfather, along with a small number of WWII aircraft maintenance manuals.  Fun stuff!

[Bugatti Fan]

The Dykes book would probably be worth a facsimile nostalgia reprinting !

[mcs1056]

an old work buddy had a set of books from Germany, 1937. They had a picture of a '37 Ford frame inside the back cover. As you turned pages, which were transparencies, backwards toward the front of the books, you added layers to the previous pages. 

So, Bare frame on the last page; Rear and front suspension bits when you turn one page; Next page added shocks and some other stuff; And so on, through to the body panels. 

The absolute coolest automotive pieces I've ever seen.

 I offered hom $500 for the pair. He said he'd think about it. He retired, never addressing the issue again. These did not begin my interest, but definitely led my down a googlenet rabbit hole. 

[RSchnell]

2 hours ago, mcs1056 said:

an old work buddy had a set of books from Germany, 1937. They had a picture of a '37 Ford frame inside the back cover. As you turned pages, which were transparencies, backwards toward the front of the books, you added layers to the previous pages. 

So, Bare frame on the last page; Rear and front suspension bits when you turn one page; Next page added shocks and some other stuff; And so on, through to the body panels. 

The absolute coolest automotive pieces I've ever seen.

 I offered hom $500 for the pair. He said he'd think about it. He retired, never addressing the issue again. These did not begin my interest, but definitely led my down a googlenet rabbit hole. 

Ford did a book/brochure similar to that in 1938. It was called "X-ray Ford" or something along that line. It had several pages that were clear an laid on top of each other to build the engine, body etc. 

[RSchnell]

My interest in collecting books is pretty much limited to Ford & Ford Motor Company History 1903-1965.  Also collect books on Henry Ford with emphasis on books about him written during the era. Some are easy to find, some not so easy. But that's what makes it fun!

[Little Timmy]

Other than the usual magazines ( Hot Rod , custom craft, ect ) I also had a copy of Tom Swift and his Tri-fibian atomocar. I read it until it fell apart.

I also liked Cartoons magazine. 

 

 

[The Junkman]

19 hours ago, RSchnell said:

My interest in collecting books is pretty much limited to Ford & Ford Motor Company History 1903-1965.  Also collect books on Henry Ford with emphasis on books about him written during the era. Some are easy to find, some not so easy. But that's what makes it fun!

Similar: my interest in motor books began with what I consider a bible "Ford: the Dust and the Glory" by Leo Levine.  (I can't say the same for the later and much thinner sequel)  I later discovered the writings of Brock Yates, Ken Purdy and Henry Manney III; a selection of whose writings should be in any library.  I can't say anyone is filling the shoes of those giants currently.

Edited May 6 by The Junkman

[mk11]

These are a fantastic reference... came out annually with an updated forward every year written by Stirling Moss. Books covered everything from AC to Zil. These ones range from 1960-1969.

 

Another great Ford book is 'Ford-The men and the machine'. Covers the family and the products, warts and all.

Edited Wednesday at 09:51 PM by mk11