The Art of the Sports Car: The Greatest Designs of the 20th Century (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Auto buffs will be in raptures over this lusciously illustrated history of the sports car. Adler, editor of Car Collector magazine, provides a highly detailed account of the evolution of small cars with big engines, recounting the travails of famous auto designers, the engineering and styling innovations they pioneered and the races and road rallies at which cars proved (and advertised) themselves. His narrative dwells mostly on European makes such as Jaguar, Porsche and Ferrari, but also discusses the American Corvette and muscle cars like the Ford Thunderbird and the Dodge Challenger. Sounding a frankly erotic note, Adler writes that "this book is, then, about passion" and "lust" and "about whatever fuels your desires when...you whisper to yourself, 'I want one.'" Hard-core aficionados will derive much gratification from the detailed descriptions of mechanical design and performance ("the engine developed 105 horsepower at 4,800 rpm, with a 72mm x 100 mm (2.8 inch x 3.9 inch) bore times stroke and 7.5:1 compression ratio"). But just about anyone will be entranced at the pictures of classic cars meticulously restored, polished to a sheen and photographed on opulent country estates. It's a "high-speed tour" of the greatest sports cars in history, enthuses the famously car-collecting Leno, and while this volume is a kind of car porn, many of these machines are indeed beautiful enough to merit the term "art."
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

There are great cars, and then there are sports cars, those that have not only withstood the test of time but steadfastly defied it -- cars that have remained desirable and valuable for more than 50 years, to become the most treasured automotive artifacts of our time. Many of the automobiles pictured in this book are stunning examples of the motorcar and require no further credentials. Others have been selected because they were benchmarks in the history of the sports car in this century. Illustrated throughout, with more than three hundred color photos, this gorgeous profile of the most highly coveted cars on earth is sure to evoke the dream of all car enthusiasts: speed and adventure.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1 edition (October 22, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060188855
• ISBN-13: 978-0060188856
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 9.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #654,152 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, beautiful!, January 17, 2006

By	S. Kochel "Sam K" (Ventura, California) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a great book of historical sports cars, with lots of information and beautiful pictures. This is a neat reference and a great coffee table book, very informative and very very classy too! I really recommend this for a car person, of just someone who loves the history or simply the art of beautiful cars.

Sam Kochel: STi driver

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, August 2, 2005

By	M. K. Gilreath-Thomas - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is a beautiful. You do not have to be a car enthusiast to enjoy this book, where art and beauty come together in a well-detailed book. An excellent edition to any coffee table collection.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect balance great photos and text, June 24, 2003

By A Customer

The author does it again! This time he captures 50 of the best sportscars with purpose made photography, done especially for the book, and writes simple but very informative text so everyone can relive the best of the best.
Bravo!