Powered by Porsche - The Alternative Race Cars

Hardback

Main Details

Title Powered by Porsche - The Alternative Race Cars
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Roy Smith
Physical Properties
Format:Hardback
Pages:464
Dimensions(mm): Height 250,Width 250
Category/GenreCars
Motor sports
ISBN/Barcode 9781845849900
ClassificationsDewey:629.2285
Audience
General
Illustrations 700

Publishing Details

Publisher Veloce Publishing Ltd
Imprint Veloce Publishing Ltd
Publication Date 1 August 2017
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

Powered by Porsche - the Alternative Race Cars is a detailed account of the racing cars that were powered by Porsche engines, but where the chassis and development of the car was carried out by others.The Porsche company in Zuffenhausen, Germany, can probably be said to be the most successful marque ever for victories in the motor racing scene. Likewise many firsts in innovation have come with the name Porsche attached. Then there are the builders of racing cars, some major producers, such as Elva, Lotus, Lola, March, all at some time featured a Porsche engine in their chassis. In the late 1970s and into the 1980s, the demand for the services and supply of cars, chassis, and parts from Porsche, outstripped their ability to deliver. Plus with many new projects in the rapidly expanding Porsche organisation, race car projects had to be prioritised. This would lead to the creation of the replicas, as opposed to the factory built works race cars, even Porsche was building 'replica' 935s to supply to clients, this was to continue into the 962 era. In turn a whole new highly specialised high quality industry grew up to meet the demand for Porsche-powered racers. In this book we see the racing cars, the teams and the people who turned to Porsche to utilise the power from, perhaps, the greatest of all engine makers.This is thought to be first book on the subject, covering the entire history of Porsche engines, detailed engine specifications, non-Porsche chassis, and race details, as well as team history with anecdotes from drivers. It is illustrated with many previously unpublished photos, and provides fascinating reading for the enthusiast and newcomer alike.

Author Biography

Roy Smith retired from business in 2003, and with a lifetime passion for motor sport entered the world of motoring writing. He was not new to this field, having written in the 1960s for several club magazines. A 40-year business career developed an attention to detail that is crucial to writing works such as this. He is an award winning member of the Guild of Motoring Writers. Roy has also had work shortlisted for the Historic Motor Sport Publication of the Year. He regularly writes specialist articles for websites and magazines in the UK and internationally. His previous books include: Porsche - The Racing 914s; Amedee Gordini - A True Racing Legend; Alpine & Renault - The Development of the Revolutionary Turbo F1 Car: 1968 to 1979; Alpine & Renault - The Sports Prototypes - Volumes 1 and 2, and The Porsche 924 Carrera - evolution to excellence.

Reviews

Porsche must be the most over-catered-for marque in motoring literature. However, this makes Roy Smith's stunning 466-page, meticulously-researched tome one in effect, Porsches that arent Porsches, thoroughly welcome. It takes an unusual decade-by-decade A-Z format, which cause timelines to ping about a bit, but finds itself dividing naturally into two halves - the Porsche-engined specials from the earlier days of Ferdinand's engineering consultancy and nascent marque, and the further developments of its super-successful sports-racers of the Seventies and Eighties. In many ways its the American Porsche-based cars that make for most interesting and colourful reading, and which help to reinforce the understanding that often what were seen as factory efforts by the public owed much to the ingenuity of the likes of Brumos, Kremer and Holbert. Theres also plenty of madness in here, with twin-engined racing cars, Porsche-engined aircraft and road going Group C cars. An expensive book, limited to just 1500 copies, but beautifully presented and an incredible feat of research.- Classic Cars. At 468 pages and boasting 799 pictures, the Powered By Porsche- The Alternative Race Cars book is a hardback your coffee table will feel as it lands with a mighty thud. The first book to cover those non-works cars that raced with Porsche engines, the book has been put together by Roy Smith, a man with a passion for historic motorsport tales. Spanning the birth of the hybrid car in the 1890s, to the Daytona Prototypes, it is full of encyclopaedic detail. It includes lots of unpublished images, anecdotes and insight you won't have come across before, it might even answer a few during questions you may have.- GT Porsche. This hefty tome is a comprehensive account of all the cars that were powered by Porsche engines, but where the chassis and development work were carried out by others. Sounds interesting, and it is. The 466-page hardback covers everything from the dawn of motoring via Ferdinand Porsche and Cisitalia through to '60s endurance racing and beyond, with an understandably heavy bias towards the Group C era. Packed with captivating information, in-deapth driver interviews and high-quality period photographs, there's enough to keep you occupied for hours, including a fascinating closing chapter focusing on Porsche power on land, sea and air. The book has a limited print run of just 1500 copies, and is a must-buy for true aficionados of the Stuttgart marque. - Classic & Sports Car. Powered by Porsche can probably be filed under the 'books we didn't know we need.' The premise is simple: document as many cars not built by but powered by Porsche. There's little flourish in the writing, and it's all rather matter of fact, but there's some genuine interest here: the Glockler products, which started it all, and Peter Lovely's Pooper, for example. The Kremer era and the '80s become rather bogged down, and the book often falls into the realm of information rather than entertainment. But the photo research has been done meticulously, unearthing some fascinating shots; it's yet another work that has used Porsche;s copious archive to great effect. All the right names are on board: Jurgen Barth and Reinhold Joest are among many who provide forewords, and the investigation has been through for every car. They're not all pretty, but they're all here. - Motor Sport. In his 15 years as an author, Roy Smith has differentiated his works by studying areas that other historians have tended to neglect. A Porsche fan, Smith's Porsche subject again have left the beaten track with studios of the under estimated 924 Carrera and the racing history of the 914, a model which Porsche still only half acknowledges. Now in Powered by Porsche, Smith looks at other racing cars which used Porsche engines and often chassis and running gear as well. Powered by Porsche is an encyclopaedic work unearthing any number of Porsche racing projects and contributes a great deal of background to half a century of Porsche auto racing completion. It will be of particular interest to North American readers for as the author shows, most of the teams using Porsche motive power were here and he has clearly researched them in considerable detail. Roy Smith's latest offering is a veritable treasure trove for marque historians and an immersive pleasure for general fans. - Kieron Fennelly - Freelance. Porsche is well-acquainted with podiums and spraying champagne from before the tradition came to be, and their motorsport exploits are rarely met with anything but championships. But besides the winning works team, the legendary Porsche Systems Engineering appearing on race entry sheets, there were also a ton of cars built and developed from outside the company, but powered by Porsche motors. Support for these teams powertrain needs extended Porsche capacity at times, and this brought about a host of replica versions of Porsche race vehicles to be built from yet more 3rd parties. From championship-winning Formula One cars to prototype sports cars and the mighty creations of the Kremer brothers, this book covers the subject exhaustively. This is the first book to put together such a comprehensive list, and every Porsche-powered racing car that wasn't built in a backyard (and some that were), are to be found here. Its a unique perspective on Porsche's motorsport heritage, and beyond that novelty it's been exceptionally well put together, with historical data and tons of history on the marques that employed Porsche power all supplemented by the anecdotes from the people who were there to add authenticity and liveliness to the deep referential knowledge thats been compiled. - Petrolicious. How many of us know that there are several race cars that'd not really bear the name Porsche, but were powered by Porsche? This book will learn you all you need to know about this previously uncovered subject. From previous books, we know Roy Smith does not like a medium job. His books are very accurate and detailed, and tell you the complete story without hiding anything. For this book, Smith interviews both the team owners, the pilots, mechanics and the people at Porsche that co-operated with the teams that built their own cars using a Porsche engine. Even the Hybrid cars that the old professor Ferdinand Porsche designed are covered and it goes all the way through to the Daytona Prototypes. The book contains both unique details and previously unpublished pictures about the different cars, and tells anecdotes from the people involved in racing these wonderful cars. Definitely a book you need to have in your Porsche or race library! - Love for Porsche. Wroth a company like Porsche developing powerful and efficient race engines, it was inevitable that other boys and chase builders would plant a Porsche engine into one of their own creations. With so many builders doing this, it was therefore inevitable too, that an author would sooner or later pick up on this and produce a book about this side of Porsche's history. With Powered by Porsche - The Alternative Racecars, Roy Smith has done just that, and what a worthwhile project it has turned out to be. At the front of the book, the author has included a handy alphabetical index listing all the cars covered in the book, from A to U. An additional section covers other vehicles such as aircraft, tractors, boats and motorcycles. The variety of race cars that have used Porsche power over the years is quite staggering, and includes a 962-powered Ford Sierra Thundersaloon that is shown racing at Brands Hatch. The book is also well supported with tables of race results and features many interviews with team owners and drivers, as well as Porsche engineers too. The period covered by the author stretches from the birth of the hybrid car in the 1890s right up to the present day, including the Daytona Prototype series. The book is well written and well illustrated, with many previously unseen images and despite its length (468 pages), it is not too weighty. The publisher has described the book as an encyclopaedia of all non-works, Porsche-powered race cars, and that pretty much sums it up. This book, of which there are only 1500 copies being printed, will set you apart from any other Porsche enthusiasts who you would be able to challenge with did you know type questions. If Porsche is your favourite marque, you need this on your bookshelf. - Vehicle Engineer. Ok, a Porsche is driven by a Porsche engine, but well-known: A variety of (racing) cars are from other builders and are powered by an engine from Porsche. On lush 466 pages with around 800 photos, the splendour band spans the arc from Lohner-Porsche, Cisitalia and math-scraper fliers to modern racing and sports cars such as Kremer, Schuppan or Dauer. As the first book ever, this work gives an insight into the fascinating topic. - Austro Classic. The material is significant, and Smith uses first person accounts via exclusive interviews throughout the book to tell a very complex story. This kind of approach will make Powered by Porsche an essential reference work both now and in the future. The scope spans more than 60 years of motor racing from the Cisitalia Porsche to the Fabcar Porsches in 2007, all with first person insights from the people involved. Powered by Porsche is a wonderful and impressive book. All major sources are attributes throughout the book within the text. There is a good index, bibliography, and perhaps the nicest feature is list of all the cars with chapter references upfront. Absolutely essential for the serious Porsche enthusiast, and a true education for the rest of us. - Veloce Today. For the first time it's a look at the non-Porsche racing cars that used Porsche engines, featuring and detailing all of them, backed-up by hundreds of rare and previously unpublished images. It features interviews with team owners, drivers and the people from Porsche and covers a huge expanse in time from the 1890s to the Daytona prototypes. A lovely book and one for the enthusiast and in particular the Porsche aficionados. - TKC. Roy Smith has created a huge, detailed and informative boson all of the various race cars powered by Porsche. Worthy of any coffee table stout enough to hold it powered by Porsche has a simple, unfussy design and quality printing. An easy, readable prose style and focused, detailed level of research has helped Smith create a real resource for Porsche racing fans. Along the way, there are plenty of I didn't know that moments in a story that is anything but finished - the continuing story of Porsche power plants and success. - Sports Car Market. Extensive work on Porsche-powered racing cars, of which the chassis weren't actually designed by the Stuttgart manufacturer. It scores with the well-chosen theme and plenty of rare illustrations. - Automobilsport. This is a handy - and hefty - reference-level book not just for Porschephiles but followers of the many marques that used Porsche power. - SpeedReaders.Powered by Kirsch is an encyclopaedic work contributing a great deal of background to 50 years of motorsport, a veritable treasure trove for marque historians and an immersive pleasure for general fans. - Update.