Automotive category: 1940 books

This is the first book to cover the little-known car production of the famous Birmingham Small Arms company (BSA). BSA had its roots in gun manufacture in Birmingham and then expanded to include bicycles, cars and motorcycles and the take-over of Daimler. In 1929 they built an innovative front wheel...

Coventry, home of the cycle industry, was also to become the birthplace of the motor industry when the Daimler Company became the first in Britain to mass produce cars in the late 1890s. Spearheaded by H.J. Lawson, Coventry soon became a hub of motoring activity, and by the early 1900s was teaming...

With their sleek and powerful looks, the big Austin-Healeys have always made an impression. In this revealing book, the author explores the development of the ʻBigʼ Healeys, as distinct from the smaller Austin-Healey Sprite, to produce a comprehensive and compelling account of one of the iconic...

From the horse-drawn trams of the nineteenth century to the larger electric models of the early twentieth, this reliable form of public transport revolutionised town travel by making it affordable enough for working people to use. From the 1930s, the rise of the trolleybus, which also picked up power...

Co-authors of Imagine That, Don and Nikki celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2009. Together, through a unique combination of corporate merger, corporate sponsorships and their close relationship with persons of influence, they were placed in a position, which afforded them both the timely, once...

“ So far as I know, there is no book in circulation that tells, in concise form, the story of the mechanical and commercial evolution of the automobile, mirrors its sudden leap into popular use, and shows how it has demonstrated, in a most amazing way, the power of money to make money, describes...

ORIGINAL DESCRIPTION (1934): The advent of the automobile brought a clash of industrial ideas. Should the new vehicle be high priced, obtainable only by the wealthy? Or should it be a vehicle of service to all humanity-within reach of the pocketbook of every family? Henry Ford's answer was the Model...

Commercial Cars Limited was the name of a new company set up in 1906 in south London to build a motor lorry, using what was then known as the Linley gearbox, which had degree of pre-selection in its use. The design was successful enough to require a relocation of the company to Luton and larger premises....

Hub van Doorne and his brother Wim set up a transport engineering company at Eindhoven, the Netherlands, in 1928. The official name was to become Van Doorne’s Aanhangwagenfabriek, which translated as ‘Van Doorne’s trailer factory’, and the company was subsequently known as DAF. In 1948, DAF’s...

Car production at Volvo began in 1926 in Stockholm with a prototype. By 1927 small goods vehicles based on the car designs were in production at Gothenburg, and heavier three-tonners were being produced by 1928. Already known for their robust cars, Volvo lorries first came to British roads in 1967...

Traditional Scottish liveries have long featured combinations of tartans, thistles, stags, piper and monograms on a strong background colour.Bonnie Scottish Trucks brings together 231 high quality photos of trucks operated by past and present Scottish companies, small firms and owner drivers who have...

AEC Lorries explores the story of lorry use in the last fifty years, showing the diverse use of the vehicles and their configurations for many different types of work, with a focus on one of the great British manufacturers – AEC. AEC lorries have always been held in high esteem at home and abroad...

In the market for a car? Here is the best guide out there for•finding (including figuring out exactly what you want, where to look and how to spot a good deal)•negotiating (from a former car salesperson) and•funding a used car purchase.The author, Jes Carey, started out as a new and used...

Many different stories, each involving a great automobile (or automobiles) and the trouble the vehicle(s) caused for the author, a self-described ‘gearhead' who tried to turn his passion into a business, and failed — miserably! Possessing far more cajones than skill, he has driven everything from...