Books published by publisher CarTech

With the increasing popularity of GM's LS-series engine family, many enthusiasts are ready to rebuild. How to Rebuild GM LS-Series Engines is the first book of its kind to help you rebuild your GM LS-series engine. It explains variations between the various LS-series engines and elaborates upon the features that make this engine family such an excellent design. In this special Workbench book, author Chris Werner uses more than 600 photos, charts, and illustrations to give simple step-by-step instructions on disassembly, cleaning, machining tips, pre-assembly fitting, and final assembly. This book gives considerations for both stock and performance rebuilds. The book guides you through both the easy and tricky procedures, showing you how to rebuild your engine and ensure it is working perfectly. The book also illustrates many of the performance components, accessories, and upgrades that have been developed for the LS-series family of engines. As with all Workbench titles, this book details and highlights special components, tools, chemicals, and other accessories needed to get the job done right, the first time. Appendices are packed full of valuable reference information including helpful conversions and common abbreviations. You'll even find tips that will help you save money without compromising top-notch results.

Uncover rare NASCAR history with this 1001 Facts series book that spans decades from the sanctioning body’s earliest races to today's modern events at mega-race stadiums across the country.Presented in an easy-to-read decade-by-decade fact format, author John Close allows you to spend a couple of minutes or hours at a time learning about the cars (and trucks), personalities, tracks, and milestones of NASCAR, America's most popular and attended form of motorsports. Close, a longtime NASCAR journalist, author, team member, and race-day spotter, also includes dozens of rare and informative photos that take you from the famed "Beach Course" at Daytona to the high banks of today's NASCAR tracks. For nearly 70 years, NASCAR has been the premier sanctioning body for organized Stock Car Racing in the United States. During that time, the sport has grown from a Southern, regional series to a global brand with its races telecast in more than 100 countries around the world. A must read for any NASCAR, Stock Car Racing, and American motorsports fan, this book will provide hours of interesting entertainment.

There's a common thread that connects high-performance enthusiasts; they want horsepower at the most affordable price. Hot rodders have always searched for ways to save money and improve performance, which includes fabricating their own parts, buying prime used parts, searching classifieds, and combing swap meets looking for deals. These high-performance enthusiasts take pride in beating the next guy in a contest of speed while spending a lot less to do it. Renowned engine builder and technical writer David Vizard turns his attention to extracting serious horsepower from small-block Chevy engines while doing it on a budget. Included are details of the desirable factory part numbers, easy do-it-yourself cylinder-head modifications, inexpensive but effective aftermarket parts, the best blocks, rotating assembly (cranks, rods, and pistons), camshaft selection, lubrication, induction, ignition, exhaust systems, and more. This book is an all-new color edition of a previous best seller. It contains the latest engine-building techniques, profiles current technology, and includes today's affordable parts and engines. Vizard performs ten engine builds, which include dyno charts and parts lists. And it's all done at a nominal cost. Don't throw away money on bogus parts and inflated horsepower claims. Get the real scoop with How to Build Max-Performance Chevy Small-Blocks on a Budget today!

Introduced in 1997, the GM LS engine has become the dominant V-8 engine in GM vehicles and a top-selling high-performance crate engine. GM has released a wide range of Gen III and IV LS engines that deliver spectacular efficiency and performance. These compact, lightweight, cutting-edge pushrod V-8 engines have become affordable and readily obtainable from a variety of sources. In the process, the LS engine has become the most popular V-8 engine to swap into many American and foreign muscle cars, sports cars, trucks, and passenger cars. To select the best engine for an LS engine swap, you need to carefully consider the application. Veteran author and LS engine swap master Jefferson Bryant reveals all the criteria to consider when choosing an LS engine for a swap project. You are guided through selecting or fabricating motor mounts for the project. Positioning the LS engine in the engine compartment and packaging its equipment is a crucial part of the swap process; it is comprehensively covered. As part of the installation, you need to choose a transmission crossmember that fits the engine and vehicle as well as selecting an oil pan with adequate ground clearance that has the correct profile for the crossmember. Often the brake booster, steering shaft, accessory pulleys, and the exhaust system present clearance challenges, so this book offers the best options and solutions. In addition, adapting the computer-control system to the wiring harness and vehicle is a crucial aspect for completing the installation, and is thoroughly detailed. As an all-new edition of the original top-selling title, LS Swaps: How to Swap GM LS Engines into Almost Anything covers the right way to do a spectrum of swaps. So, pick up this guide, select your ride, and get started on your next exciting project.

Get the inside story of how Ford used Kar-Kraft to win Le Mans and take revenge on Ferrari, succeed in NASCAR, NHRA, Trans-Am, and Can-Am racing, create prototypes, and produce muscle for the street.For the first time ever, author Charlie Henry, a former Kar-Kraft employee, provides an in-depth look into this skunkworks facility. Additional insight and recollections from more than 10 other former Kar-Kraft employees are included as well.The story of Kar-Kraft began, as did many others in the automotive industry, with an axe to grind. In 1963, Ford was seriously interested in purchasing Ferrari. Ferrari was a legendary brand with considerable success in racing, and Ford saw the acquisition as a great way to be instantly successful in the racing arena. When Enzo Ferrari realized that Ford would not give him complete control of the racing program, he backed out of the deal late in the process. Ford had spent millions in vetting and audits, which then set in motion a vengeful response against Ferrari. The result was the unthinkable: Ford beat Ferrari at Le Mans.Ford wanted to become competitive quickly, but it did not have the race history or resources in house. To remedy the situation, Ford searched the U.K. for an independent company to help accelerate its race car development. It first settled on Lola Cars and set up Ford Advanced Vehicles. Later, Ford brought its Le Mans effort to the U.S. and the Kar-Kraft relationship was established. Although Kar-Kraft was technically an independent company, it really only had one customer: Ford Special Vehicles. Kar-Kraft's story doesn't begin and end with the GT 40 that took the win away from Ferrari at Le Mans. Ford expanded upon the program and organized an all-out assault on racing in general. In addition, street versions of the Boss 429 were assembled under its roof. And fabled prototypes, including the LID Mustang, Boss 302 Maverick, and Mach 2C, were all assembled in Ford's contracted race shop. And then, out of the blue, its doors closed for good on a cold day in 1970.History tells us that Ford won Le Mans, the Daytona 500, and the Trans-Am championship. But it doesn't tell us how this was accomplished. Henry does just that. Whether you’re a racing enthusiast, history buff, or a fan of Fords in general, this book is required reading for your shelf.

Webster's Dictionary lists the term showman as "a notably spectacular, dramatic, or effective performer." In the art of drag racing, Hubert Platt checked all boxes. Known as the "Georgia Shaker," Platt cut his motoring teeth on the long straightaways and twisty back roads of South Carolina while bootlegging moonshine. After a run-in with the law in 1958, Platt transferred his driving skills from illegal activity to sanctioned drag racing and began one of the most dominant runs in drag racing history until his retirement in 1977.After stints in 1957, 1938, and 1962 Chevrolets, Platt's next ride was a Z11 Impala, which carried his first "Georgia Shaker" moniker. Once Chevrolet pulled out of sanctioned racing, Platt found a new home with Ford for 1964 and remained there until he hung up his helmet. Some of the cars he campaigned became icons in their own right. His factory-backed and personal machines included a 1963 Z11 Impala, 1964 Thunderbolt, 1965 Falcon, 1966 Mustang Funny Car, 1967 Fairlane 427, 1968-1/2 Cobra Jet, 1969 CJ Mustang, 1970 427 SOHC Mustang, and 1970 Boss 429 Maverick.A 1986 NHRA Hall of Fame member, Platt's lasting legacy on the sport can’t be denied. Whether he was launching his Falcon with the door open, conducting a Ford Drag Team seminar, or posting low E.T. at the 1967 US Nationals in his Fairlane, Platt's imprint on drag racing was all-encompassing. His son and biggest fan, Allen Platt, shares his dad's iconic career in, Hubert Platt: Fast Fords of the "Georgia Shaker"!

Pro Stock is a unique class of racing, and one that has changed considerably over the years. In its early years, Pro Stock was similar to the Super Stock era from a decade before, in that it featured cars that seemed to be a lot like a hot rod version of what people were driving on the street. While the engines were a little bigger and nastier than most street versions, they were not that far removed, and fans could really relate to cars like 'Cudas, Mustangs, Camaros, Mavericks, and Vegas going at it on Sunday afternoon. These mostly stock-bodied cars were, after all, what most fans wanted their own street version to be. Over the years, as always seems to happen in racing, the original vision morphs into something completely different, and in the case of Pro Stock, that meant tube frames and flip-up fiberglass bodies that resemble nothing seen on the street. And in that, there becomes a little bit of a disconnect with the fans, whose interest in Pro Stock originated in the relative stock appearance of the cars. For this reason The Dawn of Pro Stock by Steve Reyes is a celebration of the early years, when fans could really connect with the cars, and brand rivalries were intense. Legendary drag racing photographer Reyes was trackside at the biggest and best NHRA events from the mid 1960s throughout the 1990s. He had a unique perspective on the development of Pro Stock, as he was able to document the evolution of both the cars and drivers as he observed them throughout the season. For a genuine insider's view, Steve has gotten together his very best shots and supplemented them with some great images from his contemporaries to offer this new collection. Steve's own observations punctuate the outstanding images to give the reader a trackside view of Pro Stock's early days unlike any offered before.

Learn the tips and tricks to swap a Ford modular engine into your Mustang or Torino by using the knowledgeable instruction from this book. Author Dave Stribling covers motor-mount selection and fabrication, suspension and chassis modifications, aftermarket suspension options, firewall and transmission tunnel modifications, engine management and wiring procedures, fuel systems, exhaust systems, electrical mods and upgrades, and much more. Stribling specializes in modular engine swaps and expertly guides you through each crucial step of the engine transplant process. Because of the large physical size, many components (such as brake boosters, steering rods and boxes, and other underhood components) may need repositioning or modification to co-exist in the engine bay. Many older Ford muscle and performance cars are prime candidates for a modular swap; however, shock towers protrude into the engine bay of these cars, so modifications are necessary to fit the engine into the car, which is also covered here.The Ford modular engine is a popular swap for 1964-1/2-1973 Mustangs, Fox-Body Mustangs, trucks, hot rods, and other muscle cars because these high-tech engines provide exceptional performance and improved economy compared to their dated counterparts. Found in Mustangs and other Fords since the 1990s, installing a modular engine in a classic Ford infuses new technology and all the benefits that come with it into a classic car. Modular engines feature an overhead cam design that has massive horsepower potential, and are offered in 4.6-, 5.0-, 5.2- 5.4-, and 5.8-liter iterations. These high-tech 2-, 3-, and 4-valve engines are readily available as a crate engine, as well as from salvage yards, and in running cars. This engine design has a large physical footprint, and swapping the engine requires a thorough plan, using the proper tools and facilities.Swapping the engine and transmission into a muscle car or truck requires specialized processes, and this insightful, explanatory, and detailed instruction is found only in this book. If you are considering swapping one of these high-tech engines into a non-original chassis, this book is a vital component to the process.

Travel back to the muscle car era and examine the clever marketing campaigns from Detroit's Big Three and even AMC and Studebaker with this comprehensive volume. Automotive writer Diego Rosenberg recounts the catchy nicknames of cars, such as The GTO Judge, Plymouth Roadrunner, Cobra, and Dodge Super Bee. Entire manufacturer lines were given catchy marketing campaigns, such as Dodge's Scat Pack, AMC's Go Package, and Ford's Total Performance. From racing to commercials and print ads, from dealer showrooms to national auto shows, each manufacturer had its own approach in vying for the buyer's attention, and gimmicks and tactics ranged from comical to dead serious.As the muscle car wars developed in the early 1960s, auto manufacturers scrambled to find catchy marketing campaigns to entice the buying public into their dealerships. General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler, with all their divisions, as well as AMC and Studebaker, inevitably sank billions of dollars into one-upmanship in an effort to vie for the consumer's last dollar.Selling the American Muscle Car: Marketing Detroit Iron in the 60s and 70s takes you back to an era when options were plentiful and performance was cheap. Relive or be introduced to some of the cleverest marketing campaigns created during a time when America was changing every day.

Few races have captured the imagination of racing fans as the 1992 Hooters 500 held at Atlanta Motor Speedway. On November 15, 1992, the entire NASCAR racing community tuned in to watch as six drivers strapped in for a chance to win the NASCAR Winston Cup. And what a race it was.Heading into Atlanta, Davey Allison, Bill Elliott, and Alan Kulwicki each had a real shot at winning the Championship. On the track, Allison was in and out of contention until trouble found him, which left Elliott and Kulwicki to race for the title in a nail-biting finale. And who could have imagined that a young Jeff Gordon would take the handoff from Richard Petty on this day. Author Rick Houston has gathered new interviews from Bill Elliott, Paul Andrews, Larry McReynolds, Ray Evernham, Rick Mast, Brett Bodine, Kyle Petty, and Tim Brewer. They all give fresh recollections and new information on the events leading up to and including the 1992 Hooters 500.With NASCAR's Greatest Race: The 1992 Hooters 500, readers can relive the closest championship contest in NASCAR history to that point. All while learning new details on how the entire season culminated into a single lap to determine the title!

As the sport of drag racing exploded in the 1950s, two youngsters from North Carolina each rose through the ranks racing Chevrolets. It didn't take long for one of them to realize that if you couldn't beat him it may be best to join him. Buddy Martin approached Ronnie Sox about campaigning a 1963 Z-11 Chevy; and with that partnership, the most dominant duo in the history of drag racing was formed.Sox & Martin: The Most Famous Team in Drag Racing is a comprehensive archival recap of straight-line racing's greatest duo. Historic and modern imagery recapture the celebrated Plymouth race cars campaigned by Ronnie and Buddy throughout their legendary partnership. Also chronicled are the lesser-known Oldsmobile, Ford, Pontiac, Chevrolet, and Mercury mounts predating their time with Chrysler. The races, the cars, the events; all of it is covered here during this golden age of drag racing.Author Jim Schild, with the help of Buddy Martin, Herb McCandless, Jake King, Diane Sox, Dave Christie, and others, has created the most exhaustive, authentic review of the illustrious drag racing career of Sox & Martin. Add this title to your racing library today.