The A-Z Of 21st Century Cars

Author: Tony Lewin
Paperback: 540 pages
Publisher: Merrell Publishers Ltd (14 Oct 2011)
Price: £24.95 (RRP)
Recommended? Yes

The A-Z Of 21st Century Cars is being sold as “The most comprehensive guide available to the international automobile industry of the first decade of the twenty-first century“. Whilst this is quite a specific remit, the fact that so much has changed over this time period highlights the importance and necessity of this book for anyone with even a passing interest in cars.

Written by Tony Lewin (a former editor of What Car? and an acknowledged industry expert of over thirty years experience, the breadth of the book covers 300 entries of various vehicles and features over 1500 images. Whilst some of the images are stock, the quality cannot be denied and the sheer number means that the simple turning of the page can offer something new and fresh to the reader.

The book is arranged into three categories; being models, marques and designers. Each are colour coded differently to help you navigate through the book (given the number of pages this proves to be extremely helpful). Cross referencing is simple to follow and where there is another related entry to look up there’s a double arrow (marked >>) to highlight this fact to the reader.

Each vehicle entry covers year of production, engine size, length, layout, horsepower, max speed and the ever present CO2 emission levels. Descriptive text frequently details a brief history followed by a commentary on the design of the car.

To give a flavour of how it really steeps you in the designer’s world, let me provide another small quotation for you: “On the 458 Italia, the visual mass is also reduced by the placing of the engine air intakes under the car, allow smooth sides undistorted by slots or ducts“. It is this language and attention to detail that purveys itself throughout the book, making it a pleasure to read.

The included glossary (based on the terms used by the noted Coventry University) is a particularly welcome addition as it helps the reader understand how the designer thinks when coming up with the aesthetics for a car. Also included are company histories, principal model listings and designer biographies. Finally, a ‘who owns whom’ section rounds out the facts.

So should you buy it? If you are a car enthusiast or have an interest in design, this might well be for you. The scope of the book means that there’s very little left out of any great significance and the photographs are beautiful too. Whether you want to read up for more pub facts or you are more serious about your design knowledge then The A-Z Of 21st Century Cars may well be for you. Definitely recommended.