BOOK REVIEW  by Peter Baker  MINI COOPER 1961-2000  From the outset it is necessary to point out that author of this little gem, Peter Barker, is in no way related to me, Peter Baker, book reviewer. However, as old friends we often joke about past acts of mistaken identity. Hotel rooms in Monte Carlo, booked and paid for by one, but slept in by the other. Rally championship ...

LAMBORGHINI COUNTACH  Book review by Peter Baker This is not the first book devoted to the Countach, but co-authors Thillainathan Pathmanathan and Anne Christina Peck, both deeply in love with all things Lamborghini, have attacked this 336-page history lesson with great verve, leaving no stone, or should that be flywheel, unturned. And with a retail price of just £60 it deserves a pla...

Colin Chapman: INSIDE THE INNOVATOR  Book Review by Peter Baker What kind of person was Chapman? Permanently irritable, twitchy, ruthless, unable to accept criticism. A pain in the neck. Unfunny. Or was he actually, not a bad bloke? It’s a good question. Guilt, maybe, brought about by a thousand Chinese whispers? In this 400-page book, composed by master craftsman Karl Ludvigsen, firs...

Click HERE - At the Checkout enter Discount code RETRO10  BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker  BREADVAN - A Ferrari to beat the GTO  Author Richard Heseltine, passionate Italian car enthusiast, and lover of a good juicy story, must have really relished writing this immensely enjoyable book. Most of us historic motorsport fans will have seen the ‘Breadvan’ in action. A ...

BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker  SAM’S SCRAPBOOK - MY MOTORSPORTS MEMORIES  The name Sam Posey to someone like me, who was deep into their American motorsport during the mid-sixties, immediately conjures up pictures of a young man with oil-stained goggles holding up yet another trophy. Not exactly poor, with a mother who owned part of Lime Rock Raceway, his first road car was a...

BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker CRUSADER - John Cobb's ill-fated quest for speed on water  I often feel cheated that I was born out of time, and not around during those early pioneering days when man risked life and limb, without a second thought, in his attempt to push forward the boundaries of science, looking to achieve just one more inch of height, or one more mile of speed. Of course...

BOOK REVIEW  By Ken Davies Blue Lemon - Rallying for the Buzz  This rather elegant coffee-table book tells the fascinating story of Phillip and Yvonne Haslam's induction into historic rallying, a hobby that subsequently beguiled and converted them into seasoned and serial competitors on some of the most exotic and daunting historic endurance rallies on the calendar. Some 100 rallies t...

Click HERE - At the Checkout enter Discount code RETRO10  BOOK REVIEW  ORIGINAL JAGUAR E-TYPE : Restorers' and enthusiasts' guide to 3.8, 4.2 and V12  As fellow members of the Guild of Motoring Writers, I’ve known author of Original Jaguar E-type, Malcolm McKay, for several years. He is passionate about all things Jaguar and actually owns his own E-type 2+2 that he imported...

CLICK HERE - At the Checkout enter Discount code RETRO10 BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker 9600 HP : The story of the world's oldest E-type Jaguar Philip Porter, owner of Porter Press International, long-serving Guild of Motoring Writers supporter, founder of the Jaguar E-type Club, hot-air balloon enthusiast, twice Chairman of the Sherlock Holmes Society, is a human dynamo. Philip is also the ...

BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker VOLKSWAGEN TYPE 4 - 411 & 412: The final rear-engined VW cars The Beetle was always going to be a hard act to follow. But by the mid-1960s Volkswagen needed to supplement its meagre range. Enter the 411. A straightforward, upmarket family car, still relying on good old-fashioned air-cooled power. There were two versions, a four-door saloon (a first for Volk...

Click HERE - At the Checkout enter Discount code RETRO10 BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker AUTOMOTIVE ART PROJECT: FEATURING THE N COLLECTION This is a large, coffee table-sized book published in limited numbers by Porter Press International on behalf of Claude Nahum, the 208 pages highlighting 25 important cars from his N Collection, each nicely photographed and well described. So far then, ...

BOOK REVIEW  By Ken Davies  CYRIL KIEFT and his RACING CARS 1949-1955 - The Definitive History  Unlike best-selling blockbuster novels, specialised books on niche subjects tend to trickle off bookshop shelves over a far longer period of time, so it was perhaps not unusual to receive a fresh new copy of Cyril Kieft’s definitive racing biography some 16 years after it was firs...

Click HERE - At the Checkout enter Discount code RETRO10 BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker NORMAN CONQUEST: One man's tale of the highflying adventures and a life in the fast lane  The title might be shorter than is usual, but it sums up Vic Norman’s approach to life nicely: For goodness sake, let’s just get on with it! Two hundred and seven-two pages copiously illustrated and...

BOOK REVIEW  By Ken Davies  Special: JACK FISHER  To the majority of readers, the name Jack Fisher will be unfamiliar, nevertheless this niche biography recounts the life of an intuitive, resourceful and versatile Scottish 'garagista', entrepreneur, prolific Special builder and racing driver. Born in Greenock, Jack Fisher (1921-2013) was educated in China before returning to Scot...

BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker Porsche 911 SC - Experiences & illustrated practical advice from one man's home restoration This is not an easy book to review. Don’t get me wrong. It’s well written, packed with coloured pictures and has a happy ending. But even trying to be kind, what we have here is simply, a restoration guide. And unless you’re a Porsche restoration exp...

BOOK REVIEW  By Ken Davies  D129OOE - The works MG Maestro 2.0 Efi  Despite its unusual title, this quirky book is nevertheless a fascinating read that chronicles the biography of probably the last ‘works’ competition car ever produced by the Austin Rover Group (ARG); a patriotically painted red, white and blue MG Maestro Efi with a truly eclectic and unique provenance...

BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker  FORMULA 1 - CAR BY CAR 1990-99  This book covers what many consider the most exciting decade in the history of Grand Prix racing. If in doubt, one only has to scan the chapter titles; Senna Regains His Controversial Crown, Mansell And Williams FW14B Dominate, Prost Returns To Claim His Fourth Title, Michael Schumacher In A Class Of His Own, and Damon H...

BOOK REVIEW  By Ken Davies  HOW NOT TO BE A PROFESSIONAL RACING DRIVER  Jason Plato’s enviable motor racing batting averages in the British Touring Car Championship speak for themselves. Two titles, 97 wins, 229 podiums, 50 pole positions and 88 fastest laps from 21 seasons in Britain’s premier saloon car league. Statistics that make the title of his book ‘How no...

BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker The Essential Buyer’s Guide - RELIANT SCIMITAR GTE (1968-1986) SE5, SE6, SE8 (1989-1990) MIDDLEBRIDGE Anyone contemplating the purchase of a classic Reliant Scimitar in the near future could do worse than first secure a copy of this book. For just £13.99 you get nearly 100 pages, crammed end-to-end with facts and figures, history, model weak points,...

CLICK HERE – At Checkout enter Discount code RETRO10  BOOK REVIEW  By Peter Baker  FORD MODEL T - AN ENTHUSIAST’S GUIDE - 1908 TO 1927 (ALL MODELS AND VARIANTS)  I love everything about this book, because Chas Parker, along with contributors Chris Barker (Archivist for the UK Register) and Neil Tuckett (UK’s top restorer), have left me wanting to own one. ...