Once upon a time, there was a guy named Max Balchowsky who decided he wanted to beat Ferrari and Jaguar at their own game-road racing. The trouble was, he didn't have the cash for a factory racer. So he built his own. Using a Ford homemade tube frame, a souped-up Buick V-8 and running on recapped whitewalls, Ol' Yaller whipped them all. Welcome to "American Road Race Specials 1934-70." These were the glory days of road racing in the United States, from the first races between imported MGs to the world-winning Made-in-the-USA Scarabs and Chaparrals, and on toe the downfall of the Shadow. This is the story of the men who built and ran their own homemade cars in pioneer SCCA and Cal Club races on town streets, airports and then the first purpose-built American racetracks. Here is Jim Hall, Lance Reventlow, Ken Miles, Carroll Shelby, Ak Miller, Balchowsky, Troutman and Barnes, Phil Hill, Dan Gurney, Roger Penske, George Follmer, and all the rest. . . . And the cars: Ol' Yaller, Cunningham, Scarab, Chaparral, Kurtis, Devin, Zerex Special, Bocar, Caballo de Hierro, Pooper, Shadow, Ferraries with Chevy V-8s and every other possible chassis-engine combination a racer could think of. Some were crude, others deceptively homespun; most were half hot rod, half sports car-all of them were unique and built with passion. Historian Allan Girdler's straight-talking technical writing and colorful storytelling brings to life the home-builts' history as no other could. Girdler is a former "Car Life" and "Cycle World" editor and is currently an editor-at-large for "Road & Track." His other books include "Harley-Davidson Racing 1934-1986" and "Harley-Davidson XR-750."

In the forty-year period between 1951 and 1991, Canadian sports car competition underwent a massive change, transforming itself from an amateur recreational pastime to a commercialized profession and from an individual sport to a spectacle for mass consumption. The Chequered Past is the story of the struggle over power and purpose within the Canadian auto sport that led to this transformation. The first comprehensive history of sports car racing and rallying in Canada, The Chequered Past traces the efforts of the national governing body - the Canadian Auto Sport Clubs (CASC) - to bring its sports car competition up to a 'world class' level, and to manage the consequences of those efforts in the second half of the twentieth century. David Charters traces the social origins of the sport and the major trends that shaped it: professionalism, technological change, rising costs, and the influence of commercial sponsors. Charters argues that while early enthusiasts set the sport on a course toward professionalism that would eventually produce world-class Canadian events and racers, that course would also ultimately change the purpose of the sport: from personal recreation to mass entertainment. As technological innovations drove up the costs of competing at the top ranks, racers were forced to rely on sponsors, who commercialized and ultimately gained control of the sport. The end result, Charters argues, was the marginalization of the amateur competitor and of the CASC itself. Based on extensive research into the CASC's records and dozens of interviews with former competitors and officials, The Chequered Past opens a window into the rich but virtually unknown history of the auto sport, and claims for it a place in Canadian sports history.

The Model A Ford, one of the largest successes of the Ford Motor Company, improved upon the style and engineering of the humble Model T and continues to captivate car enthusiasts everywhere. If you are restoring a Model A Ford, this book will guide you through every step of the way. Model A Ford Restoration Handbook provides essential information that you need before you actually start doing any work, including instruction on how you can obtain the car you want. This budget-savvy handbook demystifies the restoration process and explains the step-by-step details of: Disassembly Engine overhaul and installation Restoration of the transmission and differential Rumble seat repair Body repair and reassembly Roof replacement Hydraulic brake valve installation Mechanical brake system maintenance Rewiring the electrical system Reupholstering, refinishing, and much more! Originally published in 1966, Model A Ford Restoration Handbook features 42 photos and 64 illustrations, and it covers the specifications on model data for different systems, colors, and trims. This classic handbook will help you get your Model A in the show or on the road.

Carrera Panamericana: the Mexican Road Race. In its day it was the longest, fastest and likely wildest international automobile race ever staged. A World Championship event along with Le Mans, the Mille Miglia, Nüburgring and the Tourist Trophy, most drivers considered it the best-and the worst-of them all. From 1950 to 1954, it was witnessed by ten million spectators along a nearly 2,000-mile course that featured deserts where the faster cars could reach 180 mph and 10,000-foot mountain passes requiring first-gear operation. Carrera Panamericana influenced engineering and marketing from Michigan to Modena. Ferrari designed and named a model specifically for the race. Lincoln emerged as a high-performance sedan and Porsche's Carrera was named in honor of its wins. The Pan-Am was so unconventional and fascinating that it came to hold the world's attention for a full week each year. It was one of the last of the great open road events and the first in which European and American cars could be compared and marked the return of US factory support to racing in America.

For the past fifty years and more, Harley-Davidson has been ruling some racing roosts. Its competition iron has always been significant, often supremely victorious and never without passion. To borrow a term from another scene, this is a book about "hog power."What were H-D's competition bikes? How did they fare? And who were the heroes who rode them? Allan Girdler, noted wordsmith, historian and straight-talking H-D enthusiast, digs deep to bring fresh perspective, technical analysis, and rider anecdotes to this substantial and fascinating story of America's most successful racing motorcycles. His "review" starts in the early 1930s, after the board tracks, after the overpowering success of the Wrecking Crew and its eight-valve twins, after the ear-splitting Pea Shooters, at the beginning of a new era of American racing organized by a reorganized AMA. A time ripe for a new style of Harley racer based loosely on production designs. Read of the XLR, CR, CRS, CRTT, KRTT, XR-750, XR1000, and many more. Learn about Len Andres, Bill Huber, Bart Markel, Jay Springsteen, Chris Carr, Scott Parker, Dick O'Brien, and other racing stars. This is an engaging, passionate story by acclaimed motorcycle and automobile writer, Allan Girdler. Allan is a former editor for Car Life, Cycle World, and Road & Track magazine. He has authored numerous books including Harley-Davidson Sportster and Harley-Davidson XR-750. Readers interested in related titles from Allan Girdler will also want to see: American Road Race Specials, 1934-70 (ISBN: 9781626549333), Harley Davidson Sportster (ISBN: 9781626549357), Harley-Davidson Xr-750 (ISBN: 9781626549340).

The Life of the Automobile is the first comprehensive world history of the car. The automobile has arguably shaped the modern era more profoundly than any other human invention, and author Steven Parissien examines the impact, development, and significance of the automobile over its turbulent and colorful 130-year history. Readers learn the grand and turbulent history of the motor car, from its earliest appearance in the 1880s—as little more than a powered quadricycle—and the innovations of the early pioneer carmakers. The author examines the advances of the interwar era, the Golden Age of the 1950s, and the iconic years of the 1960s to the decades of doubt and uncertainty following the oil crisis of 1973, the global mergers of the 1990s, the bailouts of the early twenty-first century, and the emergence of the electric car. This is not just a story of horsepower and performance but a tale of extraordinary people: of intuitive carmakers such as Karl Benz, Sir Henry Royce, Giovanni Agnelli (Fiat), André Citroën, and Louis Renault; of exceptionally gifted designers such as the eccentric, Ohio-born Chris Bangle (BMW); and of visionary industrialists such as Henry Ford, Ferdinand Porsche (the Volkswagen Beetle), and Gene Bordinat (the Ford Mustang), among numerous other game changers. Above all, this comprehensive history demonstrates how the epic story of the car mirrors the history of the modern era, from the brave hopes and soaring ambitions of the early twentieth century to the cynicism and ecological concerns of a century later. Bringing to life the flamboyant entrepreneurs, shrewd businessmen, and gifted engineers that worked behind the scenes to bring us horsepower and performance, The Life of the Automobile is a globe-spanning account of the auto industry that is sure to rev the engines of entrepreneurs and gearheads alike.