Ferdinand Porsche - Genesis of Genius: Road, Racing and Aviation Innovation 1900 to 1933 [Hardcover]

Karl Ludvigsen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2009

Winner of three International Automotive Media Awards, including:

• 2008 Best of the Year
• 2008 Best of Books
• Best Design of 2008

In Ferdinand Porsche - Genesis of Genius, author Karl Ludvigsen reveals a dynamic young innovator who helped to chart the course of the automobile through the first decades of the twentieth century. As early as 1900, at the age of 25, Ferdinand Porsche pioneered hybrid technology to power his automobile designs. Once gasoline gained dominance as the power-source of choice, Porsche became relentless in his goal to design the fastest and most durable automobiles in Europe.

Porsche's engineering brilliance did not stop at the automobile. He also made significant contributions to the early development of airplane engines and military transport vehicles. And in addition to his hands-on style of engineering, Ferdinand Porsche was a tireless managing executive in the automotive industry.

Ferdinand Porsche - Genesis of Genius explores in depth the unique combination of ambition, determination and genius that were the genesis of an automotive dynasty which has continued to thrive and expand for over a century.

Editorial Reviews

Review

So, the man who had such influence on our abiding passion is brought vividly to life, thanks in no small part to the huge amount of new material that Karl Ludvigsen has so painstakingly unearthed through sheer hard slog and weighty research. . . . This book meets all the criteria of written greatness and is without parallel. --Porsche Post

[T]his is not a book for casual perusal at bedtime. But if you want to know how it all started, explore the story of the fascinating man at the beginning of the Porsche saga, it is here in every detail . . . This one is for the serious student of Porsche history. --Porsche Panorama

This in-depth journey details the development of Porsche cars through many different iterations, various systems of propulsion, world records and hand built coachwork. This is the story not only of Ferdinand Porsche, but the early years of all motor car development and a fascinating, albeit technical read for the true fanatic. --All Torque

Product Details

• Hardcover: 496 pages
• Publisher: Bentley Publishers (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0837615577
• ISBN-13: 978-0837615578
• Product Dimensions: 14.4 x 10.3 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #720,027 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Biographical Background
Karl Ludvigsen

In addition to his motor industry activities as an executive (with GM, Fiat and Ford) and head of a consulting company, Karl Ludvigsen has been active for over 50 years as an author and historian. As an author, co-author or editor he has some four dozen books to his credit. Needless to say, they are all about cars and the motor industry, Karl's life-long passion.
Since 1997 Ludvigsen has been drawing on the photographic resources of the Ludvigsen Library to write and illustrate books on the great racing drivers. His first title in this series was Stirling Moss ' Racing with the Maestro. He followed this with Jackie Stewart ' Triple-Crowned King of Speed and Juan Manuel Fangio ' Motor Racing's Grand Master. Fourth in this series for Haynes Publishing was Dan Gurney ' The Ultimate Racer and fifth was Alberto Ascari ' Ferrari's First Double Champion. Next came Bruce McLaren ' Life and Legend of Excellence and Emerson Fittipaldi ' Heart of a Racer.
Also in the field of motor sports Karl Ludvigsen has written about road racing in America, the cars of the Can-Am series, the AAR Eagle racing cars, the GT40 Fords and Prime Movers, the story of Britain's Ilmor Engineering. His introduction to At Speed, a book of Jesse Alexander's racing photography, won the Ken W. Purdy Award for Excellence in Automotive Journalism. Other motors-sports titles include Classic Grand Prix Cars, a history of the front-engined G.P. racer, and Classic Racing Engines, Karl's personal selection of 50 notable power units.
Four of Karl Ludvigsen's books concern the Chevrolet Corvette, one of them an industry best-seller. He has written three times about Mercedes-Benz, twice about its racing cars. His books on the latter subject have won the Montagu Trophy (once) and the Nicholas-Joseph Cugnot Award (twice), both recognising outstanding automotive historical writing. In 2001 he again received the Cugnot award from the Society of Automotive Historians for his book about the early years of the Volkswagen, Battle for the Beetle, a Robert Bentley publication.
Karl Ludvigsen's Porsche history, Excellence was Expected, is considered by many to be a model of the researching and writing of the history of an auto company. He has updated it twice in a three-volume format for Bentley Publishers for the new Millennium. He is the author of a series of monographs on great Maserati cars. His book BRM V16 for Veloce Publishing tells the story of one of the most controversial racing cars of all time. In The V12 Engine for Haynes he describes the creation and consequences of all the cars ever powered by the iconic vee-twelves.
In 1997 Ludvigsen researched and wrote the catalogue for a special exhibition of Ferrari technological innovations on the occasion of the company's 50th anniversary and contributed a major section to the company's official 50-year history. He has updated this for the company's 60th anniversary. Karl's understanding of the Ferrari world combined with his Library's holding of the Rodolfo Mailander photo archive to produce Ferrari by Mailander in 2005, a Dalton Watson publication. In 2006 with Dalton Watson Karl has published The Incredible Blitzen Benz, the story of six great record-breaking cars.
In co-operation with publisher Iconografix, Ludvigsen has established the Ludvigsen Library Series of 128-page books drawing on the holdings of the Ludvigsen Library. The series now numbers 19 titles, including books on Indy racing cars of 1911 to 1939, the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, the Indy Novis, Chevrolet's Corvair and Corvette, the Mercedes-Benz 300SL of 1952 and 1954-1964, the 300SLR of 1955, Porsche Spyders, Porsche 917, Jaguar XK120, XK140 and XK150, Land Rover Defender the Ferrari factory and American sports-racers: the Cunninghams, Chaparrals and Can-Am racing cars. More titles are in preparation.

Status: December 2006

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars speedReaders.info Review, March 12, 2010

By 

Speed Readers (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ferdinand Porsche - Genesis of Genius: Road, Racing and Aviation Innovation 1900 to 1933 (Hardcover)

Electric cars may be on everyone's mind nowadays, but already around 1900 they were a then 24-years-young Porsche's main preoccupation. Says Ludvigsen, "For too long these early years of Porsche have been shrouded in ignorance compounded by myth." Porsche's eldest grandchild, Ernst Piëch, who wrote the Foreword, not only agrees but was the instigator behind this effort. For two decades and more Piëch has moved heaven and earth to find, collect, and restore some of his grandfather's most important Austro-Daimler cars. In chronological order and divided into themes it covers the Lohner-Porsche, Austro-Daimler work, the Sascha racecar, and Porsche's role in the Wanderer and Auto Union cars, trucks/military vehicles, and aero engines.

While the text makes frequent and detailed reference to family matters and inter/personal aspects this is the biography of an engineer and thus there is, as there must be, quite a bit of technical minutiae although not to the extent that it would frustrate the general-interest reader. The photo captions are very detailed and various sidebars further expand upon the text in the form of newspaper/magazine excerpts and extraneous bits such as Porsche's horoscope. (Readers who take stock in astrology will note with satisfaction that Porsche, a Virgo, was the walking embodiment of his chart.)

Photographically, too, the book is a treasure trove, with many new images of young Porsche's life and circumstances. All are in b/w, many of them full-page or even bigger. There are also several technical drawings and facsimiles of correspondence, patents, ads, and newspaper clippings. A special feature of the book are seven color 3D fold-out cutaway airbrush drawings of cars (plus one engine) by Swiss technical artist Wolfgang Franke.

Full review at <speedreaders.info>. Copyright 2010.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great automobile history book, December 29, 2009

By 

Neil W. Harman - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ferdinand Porsche - Genesis of Genius: Road, Racing and Aviation Innovation 1900 to 1933 (Hardcover)

One of the best produced, highest quality books i have seen - BUT you must be a Porsche buff - or it will just sit on your coffee table.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must for Porsche Fans, April 4, 2010

By 

E. Dean Butler (Worcestershire, UK) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ferdinand Porsche - Genesis of Genius: Road, Racing and Aviation Innovation 1900 to 1933 (Hardcover)

This the best book ever written about Ferdinand Porsche. Author Karl Ludvigsen is at his absolute best with this book. The Speed Reader review herein says it all with regard to the content of this book, so I will not try to repeat what is in that excellent review. If you are a Porsche fan, you really should buy this book while it is still in print. This is the sort of book that will go way up in value when the press run is sold out.