Customer Reviews

Chassis Engineering: Chassis Design, Building & Tuning for High Performance Handling

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

A good book that has an excellent blend of the theory AND practice of the subject. I particularly liked the worked examples and the fact that it gave actual values to the concepts discussed. The diagrams and explanations are clear and easy to understand. The book is not too race oriented but also very applicable to those wanting to make their road cars handle better.

Two (small) criticisms: 1. Far too much space is given to the characterisrics and setting up of circle track cars ( left/right turn only ) which cannot be of general interest. 2. Pictures are included that do not add to the content in any way.

Herb Adams' Chassis Engineering is a good introduction to chassis and suspension design for the general reader. The book is easy to read and well laid out with lots of photos and diagrams. A cursory reading will reveal many of the intricacies, interrelationships, and compromises involved in designing components and subsystems to engineer a chassis for a given purpose. Anyone with an interest in automotive design with high school reading skills can certainly gain some insight and appreciation for the complexities of chassis and suspension design from reading Adams' book.

As entertaining and informative the book may be for the general reader, Chassis Engineering cannot in any way be considered a reference book. The informed reader, or anyone with an editorial eye, will quickly spot inconsistencies throughout the text. The definitions and use of fundamental terms vary from page to page and there are direct conflicts between essential portions of the text and the supporting illustrations. Those familiar with the subject can easily overlook the errors and get the gist of the wisdom Adams is trying to impart. For all others: take all information in Chassis Engineering with a grain of salt until it can be cross-referenced and confirmed by better reference material.

First, the not so good news. Like every other book in the automotive section, it is slightly dated. It is a fact in this subject, like a few others, and the nature of a technology-driven pursuit.

Now that we got that out of the way, i found this book to be a very good reference for those who have some experience and a fairly good grasp on the concepts behind it. Also, it comes across in basic, easy to understand language, explaining anything more technical then simple shop-talk. Clear, concise examples with practical, real-world numbers are used through out. A relaxed, yet informative tone keeps it more interesting than a textbook, while adequately explaining the underlying technical points.

i did feel that the book glossed over a few things however. Most notably in the section covering different types of front suspensions, it starts off with a well-balanced good point/bad point system. Near the end, it starts to feel as though the authors bias towards certain types shows through. Not to the point of comprimising the books authority, but it does show.

The book itself is well laid out, clear charts and graphs, black and white pictures provide good illustration. The index is good, and makes for easy location of particular points. The last page has a list of books (from the publisher of course) that provides suggestions for continued reading.

This book is useless for anything other than info about setting up solid rear axle systems. everything else in this book is either incomplete or filled with editing errors. A whole book about chassis engineering etc that at no point whatsoever mentions Ackerman angle is unbelievable. Mr. Adams says that to find the C of G position is difficult so he doesnt tell us how he tells us to assume where it is based on other cars hhhmmm Then how come in race and rally car source book mr staniforth explains how in less than a page. Save your money or buy staniforths book and see how its really done

I rated this book with 5 stars because it filled the gap between prints I have on the 1965 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C chassis and what I want to know to alter that design.

I am building a Cobra Replica from scratch and the chassis prints available do not include the suspension components. Before applying aftermarket or Ford Mustang components I needed to know why control arms where mounted the way they are on the latest technology.

The crash worthiness of current vehicles needs to be incorporated into my redesign. The information I have came from experience in tooling the autos and trucks in the Detroit area. The why's and wherefore's of chassis design was not part of that experience or engineering education.

Herb Adams approaches the subjects in a clear and concisely as well as covers the mathematics in a textbook fashion. The math is at a High School algebra level and very well supported with text and examples.

Before I begin to purchase steel and late model parts I will be able to lay out a revised design based on the original Cobra for authenticity, but have the greatest confidence that I have covered the bases well using the content of this book. Adjustments will be required to fine tune the chassis, but the building and testing of scale models (as illustrated in this book) will provide assurance that the welded frame will be correct and the tuning can be carried out easily by design.

I have Proposed and Engineered the tooling for the chassis that will replace the current Ford Explorer, as well as proposed several other chassis welding systems for the remaining companies of the big-3. This book is an excellant reference for my day-to-day engineering endeavors.

Adams' book is wonderful for learning the basics of suspension design. More important than only learning the concepts of suspension geometry is the application of that into practical use, which Adams shows concisely. His information is put out in a way that you can actually make a simple system, then understand the 'why' behind it enough to tune it. Very good for anything less than professional design.

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The Good News --- Mr. Adams does an excellent job of developing the key concepts of chassis performance and then ties them together using a computerized chassis modeling program. His book is very clearly written at the conceptual level and is well-suited for the semi-technical reader.

The Bad News --- To design a new independent front (or rear) suspension and check its effectiveness, the program the author advocates and uses in his examples is not available to the reader since its source is no longer in business. Further, there is no reference to, or explanation of, the coding or its formulary relationships needed to integrate the critical parameters of chassis design. Accordingly, we are left with a primer of suspension concepts that cannot be implemented with any degree of certainty or predictability.

In the absence of this program, or an explanation of how it integrates the principles Mr. Adams sets forth, this book would be more aptly titled "Basic Concepts of Chassis Design with Generalized Examples." Were this quintessential program or its commented coding still available, however, this book would nicely deliver what its title implies. In its absence, though, "Chassis Engineering" is of little help to anyone who actually wants to design chassis elements with any degree of predictability. Unfortunately, after reading this book, the chassis engineering process remains one of well-informed, well-intentioned trial and error.

I recently purchased this book and have read it twice from front to back. It had a lot of good solid information, however the title is decieving in the fact that it has the word "engineering" in it. This book touches lightly on the subject of engineering, however it stops there. This book is mainly designed for those with Camaros or Corvettes and doesnt really give much information regarding independent suspensions or anything else besides what may be found on those two vehicles. I am by no means an engineer but I do know a thing or two about mechanics and this book does not help me to understand the complete dynamics involved in a vehicle chassis. It barely goes into detail about shocks or springs and the only information that seems relevant to that is "How to cut your springs". This book is written more for the back-yard mechanic than for the aspiring automotive engineer.

Chassis Engineering, by Herb Adams is a great primer. When I bought the book it was exactly what I needed. Not too theoretical, more on practical. There are many rules-of-thumb that I thought were very helpful in guiding my decisions. The book provided me with about 80% of what I need to know about designing my own suspension. Don't expect everything from this book, it's the size a magazine. I was perfect for me, however, as I knew very little about the subject and I didn't want to get bored learning from a 400 page textbook. Very high recommendation for $14.

I purchased this book as a reference to build a replica of the Shelby Cobra. The prints I was able to obtain for the chassis did not include the independent front and rear suspension components. Since the designs have changed from 1965 to 2000 I wanted to update to current technology.

As a degreed Manufacturing Engineer, with a second degree in Mechanical Engineering, I knew how to start the design revisions, but the reasons for the the current design diferences are not intuitive or covered in my educational background. Herb Adams takes you from theory, applies High School level algebra along the way, and concludes with an integration of the all considerations you must apply in designing the suspension and the chassis.

The language and the education level of the text is clear and concise. A non-engineer with mechanical apptitude can understand and apply it. I feel the purchase was a wise choice on my part and a positive reflection on those that recommended the book to me.

I am currently a Proposal Engineer in a large automitive tooling company in the Detroit area. I will use the book as a reference for my daily work since I have Proposed and engineered the tooling the next Explorer chassis and I am active in the other Big-3 IRS chassis tooling programs.