Customer Reviews

Car Builder's Manual

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I'm looking into building a space frame chassis to suit a rather ambitious project I currently have in the works

I knew full well this book will be of basic fundamentals only and have very little to do with chassis design and engineering, but ordered it anyway for it to act as a sort of companion book to larger and more detailed textbooks

I'm quite well versed in how automotive systems work, such knowledge gained purely from interest and not through formal education. Unfortunately for me, this book contains nothing I don't already know. The topics are merely touched upon, explaining the basics of how and why various automotive component systems exist, and very little of how they actually work. Each topic is named, a purpose is explained, and any variation between different system design is noted, but thats it. I would've liked more depth in the topics. Most of the book's explanation is focused on old chassis design (body on frame) such as those made in the 1930's - and while interesting; have little useful relevance to modern chassis design.

This book would be great for breaking in someone who knows absolutely nothing about cars, if they were inclined to study it. It acts as a basic introduction to the critical component systems for your average vehicle, and nothing more. If you're reasonably knowledgeable when it comes to cars, and are looking to design and build your own, this book will not help you

So in summary, it will help those without basic understanding of how it all works, but for anyone with half a clue it's really not a wise purchase

In my opinion this books makes an excellent companion book to Ron Champion's book. I would have liked it to go into a bit more detail in a couple of areas, in particular front funders. It answered a number of questions I didn't even know I had. You can build one of Campion's cars without this book, but I think you'll be be glad if you buy a copy. if you buy a copy but don't have Champion's book, I'd advise you to get a copy.