Recommended Reading – Your Sports Car Engine

Books courtesy of Cornell Babcock. Photos by author.

First printed back in the late 1950s, this digest-size softcover book was part of the Modern Sports Car Series published by Sports Car Press in New York City. Written by well-known automotive author and historian Karl Ludvigsen, the 127-page book lightly details the maintenance, tuning and modification of both production-based and competition engines. While the information is not in-depth, it still provides plenty of solid, fundamental details that are both informative and entertaining.

Vittorio Stanguellini poses with a twin-cam Fiat engine modified by his company.

From the opening chapters Ludvigsen talks about the philosophy of performance and the origins of horsepower, then highlights the engine’s breathing followed by the advantages of supercharging. Fuel supply, ignition timing, cooling and lubrication are all addressed, as are the fundamentals of crankshafts, camshafts, pistons and cylinder heads, all easily understandable due to Ludvigsen’s clear and direct writing style.

Jaguar pistons.

Having been published in the Fifties, all the photos are black and white, but they’re all quality images. Best of all, the many photos of early Grand Prix cars such as Ferrari, Talbot-Lago and Vanwall, and their engines and internal components are fascinating. And for Triumph owners, there’s some good advice regarding modifications for TR2 and TR3 engines.

Today, these informative, compact-size Modern Sports Car Series books, of which there are several different titles, are easily found at swap meets all across the country, with prices rarely exceeding $5. The other books are Engine Tune-Up Guide, Sports Car Events, Grand Prix Cars, Getting Ready to Race, and Tricks of the Racing Trade.