This book is a beautiful volume filled with outstanding photos of the best of the Cadillac line-up from 1909-1993 with special emphasis on styling. Each book is signed and numbered by author Richard Lentinello, one of the towering figures in the old car hobby. Lavish photography and a compelling text make this a book you’ll read over and over again
This book is a beautiful volume filled with outstanding photos of the Chevrolet Corvair line-up from 1960-1969 with special emphasis on styling. Printed in a limited run of just 2500 books, each book is signed and numbered by author Richard Lentinello, one of the towering figures in the old car hobby. Lavish photography and a compelling text make this a book you’ll read over and over again.
70 races, 70 days that in 70 years have marked the history of the Imola racing circuit.
From the mid-1950s, the track on the backs of the Santerno river, dedicated to Enzo and Dino Ferrari, has been one of the authentic cult attractions for the enthusiasts of motor racing on two and four wheels. The facility has seen events such as the Coppa Shell, the motorcycling 200 Miles, the 500 Kilometres reserved for covered wheel cars and, of course, the San Marino Grand Prix, part of the blue ribbon Formula 1 World Championship since the early 1980s.
Tracing the history of this fascinating circuit means reviewing the history of motorcycle and car racing at the highest levels, history featuring the greatest manufacturers, drivers and riders.
The painstakingly researched historical texts are accompanied by hundreds of black and white and colour photographs, the majority of which were previously unpublished and many drawn from the archive of photographer Franco Villani.
This commemorative book has been compiled in close collaboration with the Imola Autodromo to celebrate the circuit’s first 70 years.
Bunker Hill is the highest point of downtown Los Angeles, both literally and figuratively. Its circle of life has created a continuous saga of change, each chapter rich with captivating characters, structures, and culture. In Bunker Hill Los Angeles: Essence of Sunshine and Noir, historian Nathan Marsak tells the story of the Hill, from the district’s inception in the mid-19th century to its present day. Once home to wealthy Angelenos living in LA’s “first suburb,” then the epicenter of the city’s shifting demographics and the shadow and vice of an urban underbelly, Bunker Hill survived its attempted erasure and burgeoned as a hub of arts, politics, business, and tourism.
As compelling as the story of the destruction of Bunker Hill is―with all the good intentions and bad results endemic to city politics―it was its people who made the Hill at once desirable and undesirable. Marsak commemorates the poets and writers, artists and activists, little guys and big guys, and of course, the many architects who built and rebuilt the community on the Hill―time after historic time.
Any fan of American architecture will treasure Marsak’s analysis of buildings that have crowned the Hill: the exuberance of Victorian shingle and spindlework, from Mission to Modern, from Queen Anne to Frank Gehry, Bunker Hill has been home to it all, the ever-changing built environment.
With more than 250 photographs―many in color―as well as maps and vintage ephemera to tell his dramatic visual story, Marsak lures us into Bunker Hill Los Angeles and shares its lost world, then guides us to its new one.
The Last Lap is a gripping inquest into the fast life and mysterious death of racing driver Pete Kreis, infamously killed in practice at the celebrated 1934 Indianapolis 500. In a compelling narrative that reads like a novel, author William Walker’s lifelong obsession with Kreis’s mysterious demise has created a rich story line that takes readers back to the glamorous and dangerous times that marked the beginning of automotive competition.
Much more than a motor racing story, The Last Lap is the tale of a boy who rises from the obscurity of back country Tennessee roads to compete in the world’s fastest and most celebrated races, and the parallel tragic collapse of a rich and powerful Southern family.
Piloting a front-drive race car in practice, Kreis crashed into the wall of Turn One, rode along the top of the retaining wall for seventy-five feet, and careened down an embankment at the south end of the oval. As the car smashed into a tree in the backyard of a nearby house, both men were killed. The next year, an impromptu “coroner’s jury” of Indy drivers and Speedway experts held an intense review of the accident, and they concluded that Kreis’s demise was “the strangest death in all racing history.”
Lifelong racing fan and acclaimed historical author, Walker’s (Betrayal at Little Gibraltar) search to solve the mystery surrounding Kreis’s death has spanned three-quarters of a century and too many miles to count. Walker’s fascination with the mysterious crash is driven by more than a love of racing–Kreis is a distant cousin. The dynamic, nonfiction narrative is the result of a decades long quest in search of the truth—the real story of Pete Kreis, his colorful racing career, and his tragic death.
71st YEAR – First published in 1951 – The longest running motor racing yearbook. Independent and authoritative editorial combined with the sport’s finest photography Despite the pandemic, AUTOCOURSE celebrated its 70th year of publication in 2020, a year turned on its head by Covid-19. Thanks to the FIA and racing’s management, F1 was rescued, with a compelling 17-race championship spanning Europe and the Middle East. For 2021 a record 22-race schedule was planned, and despite changes to venues, the F1 championship was very much up and running by March 2021. Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton – now the winningest driver in history – broke more records. The Briton smashed through the 100 pole-position barrier, and moved inexorably toward a century of Grand Prix wins in the face of a real championship challenge from Max Verstappen. Red Bull Racing and Honda seemed to have all but matched Mercedes to provide the fans with a thrilling wheel-to-wheel battle, which would end up with some controversial collisions as the season reached boiling point. Authors Tony Dodgins and Maurice Hamilton, combining almost 80 years of F1 expertise, examine each round in depth. Full race reports are backed by detailed results, including lap charts and tyre strategies. The nuances of F1’s designs and development are analysed team by team by the much-respected Mark Hughes, enhanced by Adrian Dean’s handsome F1 car illustrations. Motor racing’s other major categories are also fully covered: Toyota’s WEC and Le Mans sports car successes; the closely-fought F2 and Formula 3 championships, featuring emerging young talent from around all continents the world; and Nick de Vries emerging victorious in the tight fought Formula E series for electric powered single seaters. AUTOCOURSE includes all the hectic action from the top Touring Car series – the World Touring Car Cup and the British Touring Car Championships as well as the reconfigured DTM Series now running GT cars from Audi, Mercedes, BMW and Ferrari. From America, Gordon Kirby recounts a thrilling Indycar series, featuring a mix of youthful talent such as Alex Palou and Pato O’Ward, both of who were vying to overturn the established veterans who have dominated proceedings over the past decade. In an emotional return, Helio Castroneves took record equalling fourth Indy 500 victory, whilst an appreciation is made to paid to the legendary three-time Indy 500 winner the late Bobby Unser. The ever-popular NASCAR stock car series ran from February to November with barely a weekend’s break, to feature more than forty races before the final championship play-off round at Phoenix, Arizona. In a single essential volume, AUTOCOURSE provides the most comprehensive record of world motor sport, complete with full results not found anywhere in a single volume. It is required reading for all motor sport fans worldwide
A glorious and nostalgic celebration of a defining period in American car culture—the 1950s to the 1970s, the golden age of Detroit’s icons of the road—when automobile design was at its peak and the car itself was synonymous with a vision of success in America.
Auto America offers a compelling look at three decades (the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s) of America’s fascination with the automobile. At a time when self-driving vehicles and climate change are transforming driving around the world, John G. Zimmerman’s pictures capture the optimism and even utopianism of a beloved period in American car culture.
Many of Zimmerman’s photographs were originally taken for Life, Time, and Sports Illustrated magazines and highlight diverse aspects of America’s auto industry at its zenith; they feature not only iconic cars of the era, which Zimmerman chronicled comprehensively at car shows and in studio assignments throughout the period, but also a behind-the-scenes look at the people who designed, built, collected, exhibited, and raced them.
With more than 200 photographs and drawing on the John G. Zimmerman Archive’s collection—including his best-known photographs of Fords, Chryslers, and GMs in their heyday alongside ephemera, tear sheets, and outtakes from his assignments—the book celebrates the automobile’s central place in American culture during those decades when the timeless silhouettes of classic cars ruled the roads.
In Porsche 75th Anniversary: Expect the Unexpected, the full story of Germany’s fabled marque is revealed through a richly illustrated account of its most surprising moves and successes.
Few other sports car manufacturers can match Porsche’s success in the showroom or on the world’s race tracks. In this stunning volume, automotive historian, photographer, and recognized Porsche expert Randy Leffingwell focuses his attention on the key moments and models that have created the Porsche legend, from the original Gmund coupe to today’s 911, Cayenne, Panamera, and all-electric Taycan.
Leffingwell’s recounting of Porsche’s history is accompanied by rare images from Porsche’s own archive and punctuated with quotes and observations from key personnel. It’s a thorough, compelling, and revealing look at one of the world’s premier car makers.
Created with Porsche’s cooperation, Porsche 75 Years takes you behind the scenes of Stuttgart’s most famous cars as well as its key players. This book offers something for all Porsche enthusiasts, whether they are rear-engine loyalists, race fans, or followers of contemporary vehicles like the Cayman, Boxster, Macan, and Taycan.
Celebrate 75 years of Porsche excellence!
Following the success of four titles in the Nuthin’ But Mech series, Lorin Wood pivoted skyward to his passion for space travel. Inviting the work of 51 artists, Wood has curated a collection of imaginative inventions sharing one common theme: Traverse. This compilation draws on each artist’s proven ability to design an aesthetically pleasing mode of transportation, a clear narrative, and a stunning backdrop. Be it rustic freighters, streamlined sentries, or a fleet of modular ships, every original piece portrays an exceptional vision. Traverse celebrates an impressive lineup of contributors—from a range of industries including video games, animation, film, and transportation design—each recognized with their own unique biography. Featuring some familiar names from the Nuthin’ But Mech series, Traverse also celebrates the work of dynamic new talent—delivering an exciting collaboration of innovative and inspired passion projects. Delve into the world of Traverse with this trove of intricate and compelling works, each as immersive and engaging as the next.
As Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc battle it out head-to-head in the most hotly contested championship in years, this in-depth book, with a foreword from Haas team principal Guenther Steiner, tells the story of how the sport evolved into the exhilarating high octane spectacle it is today.
The new rules introduced in 2022 signal the greatest change to F1 in a generation, cracking the field wide open and seeing some of the most compelling and competitive races in the last 25 years.
Technical changes aimed at levelling the playing field for the teams combined with the sport’s tightening budget cap have made the races closer than ever. There will be more sprint races – trialed in 2021 – and greater fan interest driven by Netflix’s hugely successful ‘Drive to Survive’ series.
So, how did we get here? How did F1 become the acknowledged ‘Pinnacle of Motorsport’? Simon Arron and Tony Dodgins have identified the 100 most significant changes to the series since its inception in 1950. Formula One is unrecognizable from its debut season, where drivers raced around on old bomber training aerodrome in Northamptonshire with oil drums to mark the corners and straw bales the only concession to safety.
New fans will welcome a complete and highly illustrated guide to the history of F1, while older fans will be able to compare their own views of what were the pivotal moments of change, in a book written by experienced motoring writers with two lifetimes worth of knowledge of the sport.
The book will link technical progress with the personalities involved, indeed many of the swiftest changes have come about as a result of accidents or tragedies – the death of Roland Ratzenberger at Imola in 1994, the same weekend as Ayrton Senna, could have been avoided by the HANS safety device. The introduction of the halo saved Romain Grosjean’s life in Bahrain last year, but only came about because of the tragic accident that claimed Jules Bianchi in Japan.
Along with changes to circuits and the technology of the cars, this book highlights the commercial changes and the controversies that threatened to split the sport apart – such as the threat of breakaway series proposed at various times by teams.
A must-read for completists or for those new to the sport, F1: The Pinnacle is a fascinating insight into one of the most exciting and dangerous sports in the world.
Blast down the quarter mile in the first two generations of Ford’s legendary pony car across all drag racing classes in Quarter-Mile Mustangs!
Since first becoming a mass-market success in mid-1964, the Ford Mustang has made millions of passes down the quarter mile on sanctioned drag strips. With styling flared toward the youth, aftermarket parts manufacturers saw an enormous opportunity to produce go-fast components to aid in propelling Ford’s pony car down the 1320. The success of these cars was immediate.
In the hands of successful and seasoned pros, such as Gas Ronda, Bill Lawton, and Dick Brannan, Ford unleashed the devastatingly potent 1965 A/FX Mustang fastback, which was built by Blue Oval stalwarts Holman & Moody with the 427 SOHC (Cammer) engine that unleashed havoc on mother Mopar.
From those very first factory drag cars through the fabled 1968-1/2 Cobra Jets, drag racing historian Doug Boyce highlights the many successes of pioneers, such as “Dyno” Don Nicholson, Les Ritchey, Phil Bonner, Hubert Platt, and Al Joniec. However, it’s not just all doorslammers. As A/FX transitioned into Funny Car, a whole new chapter in Mustang drag racing was written with Mickey Thompson taking the reins and steering Mustangs to success throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s.
The muscle car-era Mustangs joined the Mustang II and soldiered on the best they could as ever-changing rules hampered Ford’s new pony body, with drivers Bob Glidden and Nicholson trying to squeeze every bit of performance out of the diminutive pony.
Quarter-Mile Mustangs: The History of Ford’s Pony Car at the Drag Strip 1964-1/2-1978 brings forth the most in-depth coverage of these cars at the drag strip. Don’t get caught sleeping at the light!
In a compelling memoir of World War II, the author recounts his adventures as a fighter pilot with the RAF Eagle Squadron and USAF Fourth Fighter Group, a prisoner of war, and a survivor of a torpedoed ocean liner.
The Key 2021 is both a book and a valuable document. A book because it presents in-depth and compelling stories such as the parallel between the evolution of the automobile over the last 100 years and that of architecture, art, fashion and music. Over 80 unique pages that tell a magnificent story. Then, the history of the Scuderia racing teams which, from an idea of Enzo Ferrari, have become the symbol of an authentic passion for racing. Also of great interest is the discovery of the new dimension of the Classic car experience, revived in a Club called “The eClassic Club”, where real cars are joined by exquisitely crafted simulators by Zagatoand Pininfarina. The past brought to the levels of today’s Formula 1. And much, much more, more besides.
From the pages of the book, 280 in all, we then move on to those of the document: here you’ll find in-depth studies on the various trends of the Classic car market based on the meticulous analysis of the results of global auctions, a very important survey on the opinion of young Europeans, Asians and Americans on the future of the car and on the importance of its past. Statistically representative results on just how very much alive and loved the object that gave humanity its freedom still is.
Finally, a unicum: the ranking of the world’s top 100 collectors. How could you not know it?
The Key 2021. Not to be missed.
SIGNED
Since the late nineteenth century neon signs have inspired devotion and derision, drawing people to them and transforming the American landscape in the process. In Neon: A Light History Dydia DeLyser and Paul Greenstein unite the approaches of scholar and signmaker in the first book to detail neon’s rich history and geography from the inside. Lavishly illustrated and invitingly designed, this short book’s compellingly written expert analysis dispels long-held myths and misunderstandings about the inventors and technologies, the art and commerce, and the cities and communities that have made neon signs such iconic parts of the American landscape.
Revealing neon signs as active agents in sweeping cultural, economic, and political changes nationwide, DeLyser and Greenstein introduce readers to inventors and “tube benders,” business owners and customers, politicians and passersby, sign detractors and sign afficionados, architects and restoration specialists—a compelling cast of characters, many of whom, they show, continue to keep neon vibrant today. Taking readers inside the signs themselves, the authors show how each sign, whether historic or contemporary, is made by skilled hands—today just as they were over one hundred years ago.
Drawing from over a decade of in-depth archival and ethnographic research as well as more than four decades of experience in the sign industry, DeLyser and Greenstein use Los Angeles—not New York or Las Vegas—as focal point, showing how neon signs have catalyzed urban change, and how they continue to hold appeal for our changing communities—developing with the automobile and car-and-consumer culture in the twentieth century, expanding from cities to towns, and along highways to remote roadside outposts. From the earliest luminous tubing in the 1890s to the artistic creations of today, from community-funded restorations of historic signs to ordinary-seeming business signs that have become community icons, DeLyser and Greenstein show how, just as neon signs lit our past, they can now light our shared future.
Renowned as one of the greatest creative forces in the world of the automobile, Lotus’s Colin Chapman (1928–82) left a mixed legacy. Was he an unparalleled innovator or an uninhibited exploiter of the uncredited ideas of others? In this landmark book, celebrated author Karl Ludvigsen gets to grips with the legend, digging deep beneath the skin of Chapman and his cars to explore and expose the motivations that drove this mercurial and controversial genius. Interviews with key figures in the Chapman story mesh with information from the author’s extensive archives to make this book a unique and compelling encounter between the engineer-innovator and the historian-investigator.
- Conceiving concepts: assessment of the man whom Keith Duckworth described as ‘the most brilliant conceptual engineer I’ve known’.
- Engine enterprise: recognising that he was, in his words, ‘not an engine man’, Chapman made the best of engines available to him, whether Ford 1172 side-valve, BRM H-16, Cosworth DFV V8 or Pratt & Whitney gas turbine.
- Transmission topics: this chapter moves through Lotus-designed ‘Queerbox’ transaxles, four-wheel drive, automatic clutch actuation and much more.
- Suspension sagas: from makeshift suspension ingenuity on his first Austin-based special to espousal of active suspension just before his death, Chapman gained and exploited an advanced understanding of a car’s underpinnings.
- Structure stories: Chapman’s accomplishments in this field are numerous. Best-known among them are his monocoque innovations, in glass-fibre for the Elite road car and aluminium for the F1 Type 25.
- Whittling weight: obsession with lightness was a Chapman mantra throughout his life. It contributed hugely to the success of his cars, occasionally at an expense of strength and safety that scared off some drivers.
- Aerodynamic adventures: Chapman enjoyed aerodynamics — ‘a very absorbing subject’ — and was at the forefront of major F1 developments in this area.
- Discovering downforce: early insights with wings and wedge-shaped bodies, exemplified by his Types 56 (Indycar) and 72 (F1), led ultimately to the pioneering breakthrough of traction-enhancing ground effect, which reached full flowering with the F1 Lotus 79.
- Ludvigsen gives special attention to Chapman’s exploits at Indianapolis, where he and his cars transformed the nature of America’s premier race with stunning innovations far from the safety of home.
