The MGA truly marked a revolution in MG sports car design, with its appearance quite unlike any previous production car from the celebrated British marque. Entering production in the summer of 1955, it broke with the time-honoured tradition of narrow-gutted, flat-sides, upright styling, with the distinctive large grille, exposed headlamps, separate wings and sharply cut-off tail that had serviced the majority of MG sports cars for well over thirty years. Many die-hard MG enthusiasts of the time were understandably outraged, but the decision to break with tradition proved to be a good one: over 100,000 cars were produced over the model's seven-year lifetime. This book, from celebrated author David Knowles covers: the circumstances that led to the momentous decision to amek such a fundamental design change; the production, publicity and evolution of each and every MGA variant from launch in 1955 to the end of production in 1962, with specification tables for each model; profiles of the people who had crucial roles in the development of the MGA and finally, the largely untold story of overseas assembly in Australia, Ireland, Mexico and South Africa.

The American automobile industry has been called the favorite child of capitalism. Four decades of exceptional earnings allowed Henry Ford, William Durant and Alfred Sloan (both of General Motors), Walter Chrysler and their companies to make developments in production, design and marketing that have set the standard for consumer products and industrial firms. Four men, the subjects of this book, are primarily responsible for these concepts and for the formation of "the big three." New research lends important insight into the relationship of Walter Chrysler's business career to the careers of the other three. The first four parts detail the career histories and visions of each of the men. Part 5 discusses each man's commitment to and belief about the potential of the automobile market and the sheer luck that was such a factor for all of them.

Ford's rear-wheel-drive Escorts achieved legendary status through their amazing success on roads, rally stages, and racetracks. Millions were sold worldwide, as they proved to be winners in the hands of the car-buying public and motorsport champions alike. Today, Mk1s and Mk2s (1967 to 1980) have become collectable classics, and values continue to rise, often equalling traditionally more desirable marques. The "Ford Escort Mk1 & Mk2" handy, quick-reference guide is for anyone considering buying, owning, or restoring an early Escort. It aims to aid the purchasing process and help to avoid the potential pitfalls of a car that's not only simple to work on, but also easy to bodge for an overpriced sale. Written by a motoring journalist and long-term Escort enthusiast, this one-stop package of great advice is the ideal accompaniment to sampling and assessing a Mk1 or Mk2 on sale privately, at a dealer, or an online auction. It includes at-a-glance tips, illustrated in-depth inspection guidance, valuation data, specifications, notes on modifications to avoid, real-world cost considerations, and even checks on how to spot an Escort claiming to be something it's not.

Want to upgrade/update your cars electronic systems, but don't know how? Here's the solution! Cars of the 1990s and 2000s are from a golden era - they've got sufficient electronic systems to achieve great outcomes, but they're not so complex that they're impossible to modify. The missing link, until now, has been a hands-on manual on how to achieve those results. Well, here it is! This book covers everything from cheap modifications that allow you to adjust engine fuelling and ignition timing, to modifying car systems like power steering and even stability control. Easy upgrades to lighting, sound systems and the dashboard - right through to fitting and tuning programmable engine management. Photos and circuit diagrams guide you each step of the way. All the car modifications are practical, and have been tried and tested by the author. From a 660cc turbo front-wheel drive screaming to 8500rpm on standard engine management but with big injectors... to a DOHC V8 rear-wheel drive with modified traction control... to a twin-turbo all-wheel drive with a custom torque split controller. Even modifying the re-gen braking on a hybrid! This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to exploit the true electronic potential of their 1990s-2000s cars.

Until now there has been no in-depth book about the Austin 12/4. This most worthy of cars epitomised Herbert Austin's philosophy that his cars must demonstrate longevity, robust construction, sound engineering and represent good value for money. Here we have the story behind the model's introduction, contemporary press reports, early advertisements, from the first brochures issued up to 1934-35, the various body styles available. Those which were exported as chassis to New Zealand and Australia and then bodied locally are also included. The taxicabs have a section to themselves, as does the different coachwork available from various coachbuilders - including the work they undertook during the war. When many cabs dating from the thirties were pensioned off in the early fifties, they took on many other roles, and Jim details some of them. Separate chapters are reserved for 12/4s which have earned their own special place in the Austin Twelve's history; these include "Peggy", the cab featured in the film Carry on Cabby, and "Gumdrop", the tourer immortalised by the late Val Biro. The Austin 12/4 has survived in respectable numbers, and if you are wondering why, Jim's book will leave you in no doubt. Everything you need to know about the Heavy 12/4 Austin, including stories of restorations, is in this book. In 2022 we celebrate the centenary of the addition of this model to the Austin range

Live and let drive. Bond Cars: The Definitive History is a lavish celebration of the cars that also became the stars alongside the world's most famous fictional spy. Featuring exclusive and priceless assets such as the original call sheets, technical drawings and story-boards, accompanied by previously unpublished photography and exclusive interviews, we put you behind the wheel of every car driven by 007 on film. With insights from the producers and keepers of the Bond flame, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli as well as Daniel Craig and special effects and action vehicles supervisor and veteran of 15 Bond films, Chris Corbould, this is the story of cinema's greatest icon, told through the prism of the legendary cars he has driven.

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. Originally published in 2010, the book has become a standard text, not only on the man but also on the evolution and design of racing cars. Thus it is being reissued to meet continuing popular demand.

The original Land Rover evolved for almost seventy years, from the ground breaking Series I model in 1948 to the final Defender in 2016. Now there is a totally new Defender for the 2020s. Land Rover charts the history of the authentic bloodline in striking, carefully compiled and, in some instances, very rare photographs. It presents the memorable mileposts - and bizarre diversions - in an astonishingly long life. This is a rich visual tribute to the genius and guts of these legendary vehicles.

This is the history of the Ford Motor Company's achievements and products during World Wars I and II. It demonstrates how, in addition to well-known contributions like jeeps, Eagle Boats and B-24 Liberators, Ford also produced key items ranging from squad tents and the ultra precision gun director to tanks and aircraft engines. Details on each product and how Ford produced it are included. During both wars, the automotive giant used precision manufacturing methods and innovative designs and procedures to increase quantity and quality while lowering production costs.

The Jaguar name is synonymous with style, power, performance, luxury and an intangible element of Britishness. It's hard to imagine its humble origins in a Blackpool backstreet as the Swallow Sidecar Company. Jaguar Cars was formed in 1945, and the metamorphosis began: superb engines, knockout design, epic racing victories and thrilling sports saloons followed. Over the years it has become a living legend. Here, Giles Chapman captures the astounding story of this iconic car company with a collection of beautiful pictures.

The book includes contributions on the latest model-based methods for the development of personal and commercial vehicle control devices. The main topics treated are: application of simulation and model design to development of driver assistance systems; physical and database model design for engines, motors, powertrain, undercarriage and the whole vehicle; new simulation tools, methods and optimization processes; applications of simulation in function and software development; function and software testing using HiL, MiL and SiL simulation; application of simulation and optimization in application of control devices; automation approaches at all stages of the development process.

The Range Rover's designers intended it to be a more comfortable and road-friendly passenger-carrying Land Rover, but customers quickly saw something much more in it. During the 1970s, while its immense practicality and capability were appreciated and acknowledged, a Range Rover became a sought-after and prestigious possession. It went on to change the face of Land Rover for ever. Range Rover First Generation - The Complete Story delves into the real story of the Range Rover, examining what lay behind the multiple changes in its twenty-six years of production. The book covers the full development story; custom and utility conversions; Range Rovers for the US market; full technical specifications and Range Rovers assembled overseas. If ever a car deserved the over-used epithet 'iconic', the first-generation Range Rover is it.

In this long-awaited follow-up to the best-selling first edition of "How to Draw Cars Like a Pro," renowned car designer Thom Taylor goes back to the drawing board to update his classic with all-new illustrations and to expand on such topics as the use of computers in design today. Taylor begins with advice on selecting the proper tools and equipment, then moves on to perspective and proportion, sketching and cartooning, various media, and light, shadow, reflection, color, and even interiors. Written to help enthusiasts at all artistic levels, his book also features more than 200 examples from many of today's top artists in the automotive field. Updated to include computerized illustration techniques.

In July 1965, an Artesian Turquoise Chevrolet Biscayne rolled off a General Motors assembly line destined for a dealership in Utica, New York, where it caught the eye and the imagination of the author. When he and his father purchased it on August 11, little did James Ward know that this car would become a member of the family, playing a role in his honeymoon, years of graduate school, the birth of his daughter and her first driving lesson, among countless other memories. Four decades - and a lot of history - later, the author still owns and drives this rolling historical artifact dubbed Phoebe. Using the family car as a narrative thread, this first-person account explores American history over the last forty years as experienced by the author. From Lyndon Johnson to George W. Bush, from the automotive industry to fast food franchises, it chronicles American life since the mid - 1960s. In his faithful Phoebe, the author witnessed a KKK cross burning, took part in a civil rights march, passed through the eye of a major hurricane and drove across the back roads of twenty-first century America, he and the car aging together. Photographs accompany this unique memoir.

In the 1930s, Bentley's Derby factory supplied only chassis, without bodies, and customers for these refined, fast and enormously desirable cars would then select and turn to one of the many coachbuilders to design and construct a body for them to meet their tastes and requirements. This book covers both British and overseas coachbuilders, and reviews the bodies they built on the 31/2-litre, 41/4-litre and Mk V Bentley chassis. Coachbuilders are dealt with in alphabetical order, with details of the different types of body they supplied - saloon, coupe, drophead, sports, sedanca, etc - and photographs showing the wide variety of their creations. Bentley aficionados will particularly appreciate the inclusion of chassis numbers for all the cars bodied by all the coachbuilders, which makes this a truly definitive work.

This book provides comprehensive and integrated approaches for rigid and flexible object assembly. It presents comparison studies with the available force-guided robotic processes and covers contact-state modeling, scheme control strategies, and position searching algorithms. Further, it includes experimental validations for different assembly situations, including those for the assembly of industrial parts taken from the automotive industry.

Anyone who assumes that a car is simply a means to get from point A to point B, or who even thinks that they know what a car is, should read this book. Profoundly shaped by culture, the car gives rise to a wide range of emotions, from guilt about the environment in the UK to aboriginal concerns with car 'corpses', to struggles to keep the creatures 'alive' with everything but the proper spare parts in West Africa. Cars and their landscapes prove central to human life from its most intimate to the widest sense of global crisis, and are capable of inspiring epic passions.From road rage in Western Europe to the struggles of cab driving in Africa to the emergence of Black identity in the US, this book examines the essential humanity of the car, which includes the jealousies, gender differences, fears and moralities that cars give rise to. Firmly grounded in detailed ethnographic and historical scholarship, this is the first book to provide an informed sense of cars as one of the most familiar and significant forms of material culture.

Ever since its launch in 1959 the original Mini has been a stalwart of the motor racing scene. Even today, there is a bewildering array of formulae that it can compete in. This book explains how to prepare a historic mini to the original pre-1966 Appendix K standard, which provides the racer with the largest choice of national and international events to compete in. The contents include regulations and safety; sourcing a suitable car; every aspect of preparation including body, engine, transmission, electrics and ancillaries; setting up and race preparation and testing and racing.

The X300 was the first serious model development in collaboration with Ford and the cars benefited in quality terms as a result. Problems do exist, however, especially with the X308 models which followed in 1997. Though they are excellent value today, it is still important to buy the right car if expensive problems are to be avoided. This handy book will help you decide which car to consider, and having chosen your model it will help pick a sound car from amongst those you locate and inspect. High mileage need not be a deterrent, but you need to avoid neglected cars and know exactly what to look for. Giving you have the insight and expertise to select the best example within your budget, the book has a dedicated evaluation section in which each aspect of the vehicles is given an objective numerical score reflecting the car's condition. The points are added up to give an overall score supporting a decision to buy or leave. There is no safer way to avoid buying a bad car short of paying for a professional evaluation. In helping you choose the right car this book will surely pay for itself.

Great Small Fiats is a tribute to some of the best small Fiats ever produced. In deciding which models to include in this book, Phil Ward concentrated on three criteria - greatness, size and emotion. Where size is an easy parameter to qualify, greatness is more complicated because it is a combination of of both the manufacturer's and the public's opinion. A car that is highly regarded by the public may not have been a commercial success and vice versa. A truly great car is one that works well for both parties. Emotion may be considered to be an element of greatness in that the public's 'love' for a car is a fantastic benefit for a manufacturer and must be treasured. Fiat have made the mistake of 'improving' an icon on several occasions only to find that public opinion went against them. Fortunately Fiat has been magnanimous enough to respond by giving the car-buying public more of what it wants. As long as they continue to do so then Fiat's reputation as the world's greatest small car manufacturer is set to continue. The author chose the Topolino as the starting point, as it fulfils all the criteria, and was the first Fiat built in the late 1930s to satisfy the Italian public's new-found desire for mobilisation. The old conventions of car production were turned upside down with the arrival of the 600 which revolutionised car production techniques and maximised on passenger space and performance at minimal cost. These principles continued via a succession of models which include the 500, 850, 126, 127 through to more recent models like the Cinquecento and Seicento. Running in parallel with these cheeky Fiats, this book covers a range of slightly larger cars that were built in huge numbers. Though rather staid in appearance, the 1950s Millecento was family transport for millions of Italians covering three decades, four when the Indian-built cars are included. Similarly the 128, Panda and Uno were 'the' Italian small cars of the '70s, '80s and '90s. Nuova Panda carries the banner through to recent models.

The first MGs were a small number of cars sold with special bodywork by Morris Garages, but by the 1930s the MG had come to be recognised as the archetypical sporting car. The rapid development of the marque, and the cars' domination in their class of competition entry lists, is down to the energy, enthusiasm and skills of a small number of key personalities. Here, as well as in-depth studies of all models produced, there are biographies of those most involved with MG development, record breaking and motor sport. This book sets out to recount, in the form of a series of articles, the story of the marque from 1923 until the Abingdon factory closed in 1980. At that time this small market town housed what was probably the world's largest producer of sports cars. Many of the competition efforts by both factory-supported entries and private owners are covered in detail and help show why MGs became so well known. To illustrate the text there are both black-and-white archive photographs from the author's collection and a great many modern colour pictures of restored cars. Period advertising material has also been included. The wide range of topics covered gives the reader a real insight into the evolution of the company and its cars, and into the unique character of MGs that is the reason why they remain so popular.