books

Porter Press International marked its 15th anniversary in style in 2020, publishing more books than ever before and enjoying its most successful year. Far from resting on his laurels, however, founder Philip Porter is looking forward to continuing that growth.

The last small car to be designed, developed and engineered by Rover Group celebrates its 25th anniversary this month, marked by the publication of a fascinating new book telling the story of the car’s development from the people who were there at the time.

A landmark new history from design journalist Nick Hull, Land Rover Design – 70 years of Success offers a detailed insight to the company’s design story, from the early days of Land Rover in Solihull to the latest generation of the Range Rover Velar in 2018. The Land Rover was born from a desperate need by the Rover Company to develop a stop-gap model to provide cash flow in the post-war years. The original aim of a simple 4×4 agricultural tool soon developed into a multi-purpose vehicle that became the mainstay of the British Army and produced numerous offshoots for the emergency services, police, forestry and aid agencies worldwide.

Veloce Publishing has announced a new book that may be for interest to our readers, “How to Restore & Improve Classic Car Suspension, Steering & Wheels“. This comprehensive manual provides professional but easy-to-follow know-how on how to restore, improve and maintain your classic car’s suspension, steering and wheels. This book will familiarize you with the components of your car’s suspension and steering systems and their construction, it also takes a detailed look at refurbishing wheels and the choice of tires. The relevant restoration techniques are fully explained and illustrated with detailed step-by-step photography. The book is a new title in Veloce’s Enthusiast’s Restoration Manual series, and is based on articles from Europe’s leading classic car magazine OLDTIMER MARKT. The translator of this work is Julian Parish. Parish is a motoring writer and translator, and is a member of the Guild […]

An Austin Anthology by James ‘Jim’ Stringer is an entertaining collection of true stories that feature just a few of the products manufactured by the Austin Motor Company from 1906 until the outbreak of the Second World War, including the people who helped to make them, those who drove them, and even those who flew them. Although the history of the Austin Seven and Taxicabs have been covered before in much greater detail elsewhere, you will find within these pages the stories of many other Austin creations: the Austin 12/6 which could be won by smoking Kensitas cigarettes; the Austin 20 which competed in the 1914 Austrian Alpine Trial; the remarkable racing car named ‘Pobble’ which went on to serve as an ambulance during the First World War, and the Australian couple who, in 1926, decided to drive their Austin […]

Just received notice of a new book by Quentin Spurring title “Le Mans: The Official History 1930-1939” published by Evro Publishing Limited. Officially licensed with the ACO, the organizers of the annual Le Mans 24 Hours race, this beautiful book is the seventh title in this decade-by-decade series and completes coverage of the endurance classic from its very beginning to the end of the 20th century. This title covers the nine races of the 1930s (no race was held in 1936) in which honors were divided between Italian, French and British manufacturers. Each race is exhaustively covered in vivid photographs, an insightful commentary providing more detailed information than has ever been published about the period, and full statistics. It includes great stories such as: The 1930 race Bentley achieved its fourth consecutive success, Woolf Barnato and Glen Kidston the winning […]

Before reviewing Robert Morey’s delightful new book, The Philosophy and Psychology of British Car Restoration, allow me a moment of transparency and honesty:  I am a big fan of the Little British Car, henceforth known as LBC.  I’ve owned and lovingly cared for several Triumphs (two and four wheel) an MGB and played caretaker to a range of LBCs including an Austin Healey, TVR and even a V12 Jaguar (four carburetors!!)  So even if the book were the result of a dozen monkeys pounding keyboards for a month, I am likely to be favorably drawn to any book with the words British Car in the title. So with that mea culpa out of the way, Morey’s creation is a positive, cheery and satirically refreshing collection of reflections that perfectly mirror the author’s upbeat personality and automotive experience.  His use of […]

An Estate Car Named Desire: A Life on the Road by Martin Gurdon, is a delightful collection of short memories of various cars and motoring folk. Or at least that is how the publisher describes it. I would say it is an amusing trip in a series of cars all connected by personality. The personality of the owners, the drivers, the passengers, and of course, the cars themselves. The personality of one of those cars was strong enough to be used in a video on “How to Irritate People”. Even as a toddler, Martin Gurdon was obsessed with cars. Before he could read or write he could distinguish a vehicle passing in the street from the purr of its engine. His first car – not strictly legally – was as a fifteen-year-old, parked round the corner from his boarding school, and driven […]

Motoring fans keen to expand their libraries, and maybe get an autographed copy too, should head to the inaugural Classic & Sports Car – The London Show at Alexandra Palace this autumn. That’s because the show will feature a host of world-class literary exhibitors, offering visitors everything from historical bestsellers to one-off coffee table books and, of course, a wide selection of motoring magazines. Some of the event’s Interview Stage guests will also be on hand to put pen to paper with some exclusive book signing sessions.

At Sir Stirling’s suggestion, Porter Press have reprinted their most popular Scrapbook on the 60th anniversary of his amazing 1955 year which of course included the Mille Miglia win and first GP victory. The first editions are already going up in price; they have limited it to just 900 second edition copies. The first of a series of Stirling Moss scrapbooks which now includes as separate volumes 1926-54, 1956-60, and 1961, the 1955 Scrapbook evokes memories of the heyday of classic motorsport. Stirling Moss is a national treasure. Arguably the world’s greatest all-round racing driver, he was a hero to several generations of schoolboys and enthusiasts throughout the world. Moss is now so iconic his name is often used as a metaphor for “racing driver” – the name alone invokes mental images of speed, bravado, the jet-set lifestyle and a […]

British Leyland – The History, the Engineering, the People is a book for those of us with a love hate relationship with the ubiquitous British Leyland. During the 1960s vehicle makers all over the world were looking to expand and amalgamate as at the time it was considered the only way they could survive. As a major manufacturing nation Britain at the time had a large number of makers of all kinds of vehicles and gradually many of them joined together to form two large companies. The first of these was the Leyland Motor Corporation which was principally involved with the manufacture of commercial vehicles although they had also recently diversified into cars. The other major concern was British Motor Holdings, owners of some of Britain’s iconic car makes including Austin, Morris, Wolseley and Riley to name but a few. […]

The spirit of the British sports car tradition is reflected in the aesthetics of Schlegelmilch’s photography and in Lehbrink’s knowledgeable text in British Sports Cars. I am not sure whether to classify this book as a coffee table book because of the beautiful photography or a reference book due to the exhaustive cataloging of the cars and their features. Whichever way you go though, the works is both fascinating and of very hight quality. Without reading a word, I can sit and stare at the imagery for ages. Of the authors, this is said, “There is a persistent rumour that Rainer Schlegelmilch’s birth was initiated on the back seat of a Mercedes Benz 170V. Whether or not this is the source of his ongoing affinity to anything that has four wheels, his fascination with cars is vividly expressed in his […]