Automotive Books

If you enjoy hearing how an engine was developed for CART by some of the team members which developed the Honda engines that took Senna and Prost to F1 championships, then you will enjoy this book. It details info from the engineers at Honda and in the US and how they underestimated the complexity of CART and had to re-group and re-design the engine after failing to qualify for Indy. It is a book about the "inside" story. Not quite enough pictures about the engine or its internals (top secret I suppose), and a few too many of CART cars, but the text is where it's at with this book. An enjoyable read if you are a Honda racing fan.

This publication is of a very high standard in both content and production. Make sure you have a sturdy coffee table as it is a weighty volume.
Not only does it cover the Honda years in CART, but also gives an excellent overview of Honda's determination to succeed in all forms of motorsport both past and present.
Absolute value for money and a must for anyone who appreciates Honda's dedication to quality and winning.

There are chapters of SAH throughout the USA and in Britain. They vary in size and interests; some are primarily social and others have regular historical programs for their members. A few, like the Wisconsin chapter, carry on chapter-wide research and writing projects. This work has culminated in the publcation of their first book, timed to coincide with the state's sesquicentennial celebrations.

Wisconsin Cars and Trucks is neatly organized into ten chapters plus an appendix listing over 80 automotive marques built in the state, and an index. Seven of the chapters cover vehicle manufacture; steam cars, trucks, major car and truck manufacture today, and four regional summaries covering vehicles built in Racine, Kenosha, southeast Wisconsin, and the Fox River Valley. Complimentary chapters concern component manufacturers, related auto topics (mostly Wisconsin license plates). The authors of several of the chapters are authorities on their subjects; most are chapter members. coverage of Wisconsin vehicles is exhaustive, from J.W.Carhart's 1871 steam-propelled "Spark" to present day Chrysler production in Kenosha, including the "mainstream" Nash, Kissel, Case and Mitchell, the not so wellknown Harris Six and Wausau Flyer, and the very obscure Ballard and Radford.

The book is nicely produced, with generally good quality photo reproduction, and a smooth-reading text, that belies its origins on the keyboards of 16 authors. Editor Quandt, who wrote a good many of the chapters himself, is to be congratulated on this book, which will tell you just about everything you could want to know about the automobile industry in Wisconsin.

I like to read books like this! Many of the articles, oops, chapters, may have been printed before in a local newsletter, but who cares? They seem well researched and are presented with a good deal of respect. Surprise!

Kenosha built automobiles make up only 10% of the pages in Wisconsin Cars and Trucks. There could have been more pages dedicated to the largest and longest-lasting manufacturing plant in Wisconsin, but there was so much more to cover, and besides that story is better covered in a book of its own.

The list of 183 brands of vehicles built in Wisconsin in the last 100 years is impressive. Kissel Kar, Mitchell, National and Rambler were the big ones during the brass era, but there were others and many of them are covered quite nicely. Harley-Davidson is not covered at all but, then again, has never been accused of making a car or truck.

Chapter 9 covers manufacturers of automotive components and it is quite interesting.

Wisconsin Cars and Trucks is not a coffee table book. It is something to read cover to cover and to be thankful for.

John C. Meyer III

In this context, a woodie is a car partially constructed of wood. While such cars were never a dominant component of the American auto market, they are now a significant section of the auto collection and restoration genre. This book contains brief descriptions of some of the more interesting and beautiful examples of such cars.
The photography is superb, and the quality of the subjects has a lot to do with it. These cars are beautiful, the combination of steel and precisely finished wood makes for some of the best looking cars you will ever seen. It is clear that restoring and refinishing these cars is a passion, and from the end product, one can see how that can be the case. If you have any interest in cars with wooden components, then this is a book that you must read.

Woodies by Han Halberstadt, is the best coffee table book on these rare, wonderful, cars published to date. The text is well researched and the book is loaded with high quality photographs. The author not only relates historical facts about this golden age of automobile history, but he also relates stories and events that shaped the lives of the owners of the beautiful woodies that are featured in this book. The book is not an in-depth look at all the wonderful wooden bodied cars produced by all the various automobile manufactures.....that book still waits to be written. It is however a must have for any woodie owner or lover of these beautiful automobiles. This book will bring back many fond memories of a time long past or perhaps introduce you to the wonderful world of woodies!

This is a great book for anyone who loves cars made with wood. It covers everything from the earliest Pre-World War One cars to Ninties vehicles with fake trim; from beautifully restored originals to hot rods and even custom-built one-offs; and not just wagons, but sedans and convertibles, too. If you want to know how to build or restore a Woody, this is not the book to by (although it's great for inspiration), but if you just want to enjoy looking at these beautiful cars, and finding out more about them, it's a definate must-buy.

If you enjoy looking at vintage woody automobiles this is the book to read. There is even a 1951 Chevy wagon that has painted wood that is so good you can't tell the difference between the real thing.

If you love cars, buy this book!

If you're restoring a zwitter or an oval beetle, this book will tell you all you ever wanted to know, it's extremely descriptive and packed with illustrations. The book covers everything from replacing a door handle, to an almost complete rebuild of the engine. This book is one companion you don't want to be without.

The big blue book for the 52-57 vw's is the best there is out there, plenty of pic and excellent explanation of all the procedures. Perfect for the person wanting to do a good restoration to one of these 45+ year old cars, a must have.

This is an excellent repair manual and was helpful when it was time to change the oil filter. I have not performed any other repairs because the V-Star has performed flawlessly so far.

This book is better than any (car) guide I have ever used. It is comprehensive, has photos and illustrations that actually match the bike exactly, and is written very clearly. The book enabled me to do two fairly major repairs on my bike (the dealer wanted big $,$$$). I would consider my skill level going in a beginner.

I just received for 20 minutes ago, and i think This is the best book I ever have. Nothing like this. Very complete, very details, very user friendly, and offcourse very cheap for me, than you have to trial and error for your vmax. But, i think Haynes should be input the Historial of This Bike from beginning to presents.

I'll buy it again if you made it haynes....

Has everything I expected from a repair manual and more. Makes an every day Joe like me seem like a competent and skilled mechanic. Please note that a certain aptitude is required to perform even the basic tasks, the book is really a step-by-step idiots guide and any novice should research before attempting to perform maintenance for the first time. The book will help diagnose issue but in the field, unless you have experienced the cause of a fault or breakdown, it could be something else. It's a great book; all V-Max owners should have one. As all V-Max owners know, these bikes were built to last, the engine is a work horse and will keep running with good maintenance as laid out in the book. I hope this helps you budding V-Max owners.

GOTTA HAVE IT.A MUST FOR DIEHARD ENTHUSIAST

First, allow me to level-set. Although I've had Ron Wright's manual only one day now, I see it'll provide years of helpful technical detail, plus I can hardly put the book down! You see, I've enjoyed the privilege of owning, and thus maintaining/repairing and even restoring about two dozen motor vehicles in my lifetime: cars, street and dirt bikes, and Personal Watercraft. Plus I've before worked 7 years in basic auto service.

I can see Wright's book will be a favorite manual, nearly up there with a personal favorite: Robert Bentley's phone-book-sized repair manuals for British cars. Already, I see Wright is more thorough than the factory service manuals for my 1965 Corvette!

I bought the '97 XT-350 with missing owner's manual a month ago; I've searched for a decent manual ever since. The dealer could order the small owner's manual, but could not locate the factory Yamaha service manuals. I later located both Ron Wright's and the factory Yamaha service manuals on the web. The two factory manuals required by Yamaha gave me sticker shock!! In contrast, Wright's manual appeared a bargain. I just hoped it was not similar to some after-market repair manuals, which leave me baffled, for example, I've read a section of a car repair manual under "A/C" which basically says "Charge it. If still inoperative take car to an A/C mechanic." Real helpful!

My XT came in superb condition with low mileage, except it became apparent the bike was never serviced (yes, I mean *NEVER*). Anxious to take out the bike for a thrashing in the dirt, I had to service it by a mix of memory of repairing my ex-1981 XT-250, combined with plain old instinct. (Heh, it's a simple bike after all.) Fluids, filters, lube, new battery, carb. clean, etc. I procrastinated the rest, waiting for specs and procedures from a decent manual.

Now, Ron Wright's manual arrived and it has everything I'd been looking for, and MUCH more. There are so many extensive, detailed photos (black-and-white), hints, and plain-language explanations of each step, part and tool. It appears nothing is left out.

Bravo!

Andy DiSario

I own a 40HP 4 Stroke Yamaha engine and even though I owen the Factory maintenance manual This book goes into much more detail and gives better drawings

This was the first time trying seloc manuals,I have used clymers in the past and the selocs are organized much better and give a lot better info. From now on its strictly seloc manuals.

This book is a good read. Anyone planning on trying a project like this must read this. Even if you are just curious and want to know "how'd they do that", you will be entertained with a wealth of information and you don't have to be an engineer to understand it.

This 544 page book captivated my attention and drew me in. On numerous occasions I found myself wanting to "high-five" the author for candid observations that hit the mark. The Zero-Carbon Car is a modern alternative to the EV books of yesteryear. Those interested in information about and solutions to today's transportation challenges will appreciate its depth of coverage.

The first 250 pages are loaded with sobering charts and facts about energy challenges in the transportation sector. Kemp and his team of contributors poured in a ton of research effort and it shows. The book discusses everything from the political, environmental, financial and health ramifications of oil dependency to the hype surrounding fuel cells. The Zero-Carbon car provides the best situational overview that I have seen to date.

The Zero-Carbon Car is uniquely special because it offers up a workable solution to the problems identified in the first few chapters. As far as I know, this is the first title to describe steps necessary to convert a gasoline vehicle to a plug-in series hybrid biodiesel-electric. A full 137 pages of detailed photos and information document the process of transforming an old 2000 Mazda Miata into a futuristic car similar in function to GM's Volt concept car; primarily electric with additional power supplied by an engine when necessary. The biggest difference is availability. Using guidance found in the text you could commence production of your own Zero-Carbon car today. Why wait years for Detroit to do it for you?

Anyone contemplating a DIY hybrid or electric vehicle should definitely get a copy. The details will inspire, guide and shave weeks off similar efforts. Quite often books like this get tangled up in theoretical academia or political dogma. Unlike those, The Zero-Carbon car does a good job of balancing theory and practice. Readers will find before and after dyno test results, torque curves, ladder logic, circuit diagrams, info about battery charging algorithms and cycle life. Important engineering considerations are presented which could make the difference between a rolling science project and something you'll enjoy.

Even if you're just curious about the nuts and bolts of a modern electric vehicle conversion this would be a good book to add to your collection. Older electric vehicle titles are still in print but in dire need of updates. Pure electrics like the Tesla Roadster, Commuter Car Corporation's Tango and Myers Motors NmG are mentioned, but not high-powered racing electrics like the Killacycle, the Buckeye Bullet, or the Current Eliminator.

The book crosses the finish line after another 100 pages of biofuel info. It provides solid lessons on zero carbon electricity and especially biodiesel. The author has published other books on renewable energy and has a knack for presenting these issues from a practical engineering perspective.

Kemp's book and his Zero-Carbon Car project are shining examples of what can be done when teams of talented individuals roll up their sleeves and get busy. They've thumbed their noses at hesitant automakers and blazed a trail for others to follow.