Customer Reviews

101 GM Muscle Car Performance Projects (Motorbooks Workshop)

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Unless you can get this book for a song, FORGET IT! The "projects" are, at best, extreamly vague. Each "project" is explained within two pages. When you add photos to those pages it does not leave much space for things like details. As an example, Project 3 "Removing, Inspecting, and Refinishing the Steering Column" consists of 12 short paragraphs on what is actually a pretty significant project (especially for an amateur restorer). One sentence states: "Then, remove the turn signal lever and the ignition cylinder lock." That is all the instruction there is. Whereas, removing the turn signal lever is quite simple, removing the ignition lock cylinder has driven experienced mechanics crazy. On the other hand, I liked the two pages dedicated to reinforcing floorboards using POR-15 paint, it's just too bad the authors failed to explain POR-15's dual coat painting system that requires waiting 15 minute between separate paint coats. One would have to read the POR-15 instructions for that information, and that requirement negates the usefulness (if there really is any) of this book. Motorbooks strikes out again.

I ordered this book along with How to Restore Your Muscle Car. Overall its a good book, with lots of projects that are broken down and organized well. The projects don't go as in depth as, say a factory shop manual, but give you an idea of what you need for parts, tools, and the like. If you have a muscle car and want to know about some upgrades you can do to the engine, or if you want to know how to take off some of the stainless trime, etc this is the book for you. Its a great supplement to any other "how to" books you may already own.

Let me lead off by saying that I bought this book used for $1.00 and all in it cost me $5.00 with shipping which was too much for what it offers.

I have restored my share of Muscle Cars over the years and I am fairly skilled when it comes to 68-72 GM A bodies. This book should have been titled 101 "suggestions" not projects. There is absolutely not enough information within any of these projects to give you a feel or guidance to what you are getting yourself into.

For example, there is one project titled upholstery. For laughs, it has a time frame indicator of a few hours (I don't have the book in front of me, but I think it quoted 2 hours labor) and the only pictures it shows is the bottom of a seat to show where the hog rings are and another to show you a pair of hog ring pliers. It is a total of two pages long. If anyone reading this has ever attempted replacing seat covers, you know it can take 2 hours to carefully disassemble a bucket seat, let alone clean, repair and begin replacing the covers. I have seen more in depth information in magazine articles. I didn't even bother reading the sections on engine and head rebuilding and I hope no one else gearing up for such a project does either.

I realize you may have another opinion of this book, but I can honestly say that of all the literature on restorations I have bought over the years, this was positively useless.

This book will help a novice in every area and give an expert some tips to help in many areas.