Reddit mentions: The best vehicle design & construction books

This question has been asked a bunch of times, but the one post I've found the most helpful was /u/that_video_art_guy's response in this post. For quick reference, here's the copy/paste:



I've read many of these books, I'm partial to the mechanics and team member books but find all of them to be very enjoyable.


The Super Collective Super list of Super Good F1 Books:

Mechanics/Team Members


[Life in the Pit Lane: Mechanic's Story of the Benetton Grand Prix Year](
http://www.amazon.com/Life-Pit-Lane-Mechanics-Benetton/dp/0760300267/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1356716346&sr=1-5&keywords=steve+matchett) - Steve Matchett

[The Mechanic's Tale: Life in the Pit-Lanes of Formula One](
http://www.amazon.com/Mechanics-Tale-Life-Pit-Lanes-Formula/dp/0752827839/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1356716346&sr=1-1&keywords=steve+matchett) - Steve Matchett

The Chariot Makers: Assembling the Perfect Formula 1 Car - Steve Matchett

Team Lotus: My View From the Pitwall - Peter Warr

Jo Ramirez: Memoirs of a Racing Man - Jo Ramirez

Art of War - Five Years in Formula One - Max Mosley, Adam Parr, Paul Tinker

Tales from the Toolbox: A Collection of Behind-the-Scenes Tales from Grand Prix Mechanics - Michael Oliver, Jackie Stewart


Technical Books

Red Bull Racing F1 Car: Haynes Owners' Workshop Manual

McLaren M23: 1973 Haynes Owners' Workshop Manual

Lotus 72: 1970 Haynes Owners' Workshop Manual

Tune to Win: The art and science of race car development and tuning - Carroll Smith

Engineer to Win - Carroll Smith

Nuts, Bolts, Fasteners and Plumbing Handbook AKA: Screw to Win - Carroll Smith

Race Car Vehicle Dynamics: Problems, Answers and Experiments - Doug Milliken

Chassis Design: Principles and Analysis - William F. Milliken, Douglas L. Milliken, Maurice Olley

The Racing & High-Performance Tire: Using Tires to Tune for Grip & Balance - Paul Haney


Technical Driving

Ultimate Speed Secrets: The Complete Guide to High-Performance and Race Driving - Ross Bentley

Going Faster! Mastering the Art of Race Driving - Carl Lopez

Working the Wheel - Martin Brundle


Drivers and Rivalry's

Senna Versus Prost: The Story of the Most Deadly Rivalry in Formula One - Malcolm Folley

The Limit: Life and Death on the 1961 Grand Prix Circuit - Michael Cannell

Winning Is Not Enough: The Autobiography - Sir Jackie Stewart

Shunt: The Story of James Hunt - Tom Rubython

Alex Zanardi: My Sweetest Victory: A Memoir of Racing Success, Adversity, and Courage - Alex Zanardi, Gianluca Gasparini, Mario Andretti.

It Is What It Is: The Autobiography - David Coulthard

Flat Out, Flat Broke: Formula 1 the Hard Way! - Perry McCarthy The Black Stig, Damon Hill

F1 Through the Eyes of Damon Hill: Inside the World of Formula 1 - Damon Hill, Photography: Sutton Images


People Of F1

Life at the Limit: Triumph and Tragedy in Formula One - Professor Sid Watkins

Beyond the Limit - Professor Sid Watkins

I Just Made The Tea: Tales from 30 years inside Formula 1 - Di Spires

Bernie: The Biography of Bernie Ecclestone - Susan Watkins


Picture Books

McLaren The Cars: Updated 2011 Edition

Art of the Formula 1 Race Car - Stuart Codling, James Mann, Peter Windsor, Gordon Murray

Moving between bodies is a huge task for a spacecraft. As you, or if you delve into spacecraft design you will see that nearly all of them are very specially purpose built for their specific mission.

To figure out what you need you really have to start with a precise list of requirements for your spacecraft and stick with them. If you attempt to design something that is general purpose it will drive you up a wall.

As far as actual technical guidance, I would highly recommend you get and old copy of SMAD (http://www.amazon.com/Spacecraft-Structures-Mechanisms-Concept-Technology/dp/1881883035/ref=pd_sim_b_7?ie=UTF8&refRID=10QSAC9RY0RZBV42N24C)

It should be the starting point for any spacecraft.

As far as I know there are no off the shelf designs for spacecraft components which are open source. This is because designing and validating those designs is a very expensive task, and export restrictions. However, there are a lot of electrical components out there that can be used in spacecraft. Many automotive grade computers will survive earth orbit just fine, once you have replaced the electrolytic capacitors. I'm sure there are many cameras who could also be made 'space ready' pretty easily. The canadian spacecraft MOST is using automotive grade electronics and is doing well.

Also, I know this guy who is making an open source electronics board that he hopes to be space rated at some point in the future. I don't know if he is shipping these things yet. (http://www.solarsystemexpress.com/gdb-e-series.html)

Feel free to post your specifics for what you want to do with this - post your wildest dreams for what you want to do if you want. :)

I hear this a lot and find it pretty frustrating, because it's really not true: it assumes you know what "basic maintenance" is, and the right keywords to look for.

A list of truly basic maintenance items that every car owner should be able to do:

1. Oil monitoring and change: monitoring the levels and spotting bad oil (milky, sludgy, etc. vs. smooth maple brown), getting the oil change intervals from the Owner's Manual, using the right oil and filter, applying the right torque to the filter cap.
   
   
2. Air filter change
   
   
3. Fluid monitoring and top-off: how to check levels on coolant, power-steering, brake, automatic transmission fluids (if applicable) -- topping up the levels when they get low, and checking back on the levels periodically to see if there's a leak. Periodic flushing of brake-fluid (every 30k miles?). How to check the other fluids to see if they need to be flushed and replaced. The importance of using the CORRECT FLUID for your car: e.g. DOT3 vs. DOT4 brake fluid.
   
   
4. Tire monitoring and maintenance: knowing the right PSI, effects of weather and cargo load (1-2 psi more pressure needed at cold temperatures), checking tread-depth using a gauge or penny, checking the wear on the tire is even, changing a flat.
   
   
5. Battery principles: effect of cold weather on power, the need to drive long distances to recharge the battery, recharging using jumper-cables or recharging station.
   
   
6. Fuel: use the right minimum octane, keeping the tank full as much as possible (to avoid condensation in the tank).
   
   
7. Washing the car regularly (once a week) -- prevents rust, getting the underbody washed keeps the exhaust and lines clean, etc. Fill in paint chips ASAP using the manufacturer paint.
   
   
8. DOCUMENT all your maintenance in a spreadsheet or notebook: I date everything, noting the odometer (mileage) reading, what parts I needed and where I got them, and how long the job took and any problems I encountered. Good documentation is critical for knowing what was done and when, since many jobs need to be done periodically (e.g. brake fluid flushes, oil changes), and you won't know this unless you keep good records.
   
   DIY is great, but you absolutely need to understand WTF you're doing and not just assume that random videos can substitute for true understanding. If you're serious about mechanical DIY beyond the basics, I suggest reading the following:
   
   

• Auto Fundamentals - Stockel, Stockel and Johanson --this is a good introductory text that gives you some basic grasp of how cars actually work and how complicated even basic parts can be (e.g. BRAKES).
  
  
• Basic Machines and How They Work -- a good complement to the first book; it helps you develop a sort of intuition/common-sense for working with machines.
  
  
• Total Automotive Technology - Schwaller -- more advanced than the first one, and includes useful tips like how to diagnose and troubleshoot problems. I found it too difficult to read at first, but after finishing the first one (which gives you a big picture overview), it was extremely valuable.
  
  Budget $500-1000 for all the tools and parts you'll need: torque wrenches, ratchet and socket sets, breaker bars, etc. If possible, buy a cheap Japanese beater mobile for $500 (Toyota, Honda, etc.) that you can find a service manual for (e.g. Haynes at a minimum, although IMO Bentley is much better). Then do everything you can to get it running right: the advantage of doing this on a beater is that if you fail, you're not carless and you won't lose too much even if you have to write the car off. After a few years, you should know enough about cars to tell good mechanics from crooks, and when it's worth it to pay an expert.

This might sound trivial and silly, but really the best place to start when it comes to familiarizing yourself with all the systems that go into specifically an electric FSAE car is the rule book. Recruit a bunch of students with an EE/Mechatronics/Software/Computer Science background into your team, study the EV section of the rules, and brainstorm. As with the rest of the car, you as a team are completely free to choose how to implement your electronics so long as you are rule compliant. Other than that, this book, this book and/or this book might help (haven't read them myself).

I bought Modern Automotive Technology after a good amount of research. I have been very happy with it. It goes system by system explaining how they work and then explaining how to service them. Lots of different diagrams from different makes and models. pretty good review questions. Also covers hybrid and electric systems.

I find that the internet is a good resource for specific questions but I really need the organization of a book to force myself to learn in a systematic way.

Also that VW books that u/officeroffkilter recommended is only about aircooled VWs and is not going to be very relevant anything more modern (which is almost everything on the road today). Although it may be a great book for the basics.

People never believe me, but I constantly tell them we're really good at building planes... as there is a lot of data to infer from, which is why we have several extremely, notable books. Rocket and space craft design are a grey area. The one that is always recommended first to everyone is "Space Mission Analysis and Design". Most colleges use it and it's #1.

I can't speak for this "Spacecraft Systems Engineering." The recommendations say it's a good supplement to the book I mentioned above-so that's a good sign. Would consider getting it afterward the one above.

A good book: http://www.amazon.com/Deep-Space-Craft-Interplanetary-Astronautical/dp/3540895094/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1368739956&sr=8-7&keywords=deep+spacecraft
But please feel free to visit the Cassini mission website. Free! http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/ (Alice)

Also if you or anyone else is really looking into it the two most useful text book I found to be SMAD (Space Mission Analysis and Design): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mission-Analysis-Design-Technology-Library/dp/9401051925/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=space+mission+analysis+and+design&qid=1559028595&s=gateway&sr=8-1


Other good reads are Fundamentals of Astrodynamics (which is much more relevant for KSP) https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fundamentals-Astrodynamics-Dover-Aeronautical-Engineering/dp/0486600610/ref=sr_1_1?crid=SWR1ICPOGQ7X&keywords=fundamentals+of+astrodynamics&qid=1559028689&s=gateway&sprefix=the+fundamentals+of+astro%2Caps%2C134&sr=8-1 And Ignition! to cover the history in a very entertaining manner https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ignition-Informal-Propellants-University-Classics/dp/0813595835/ref=pd_sbs_14_1/259-4345144-1867258?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0813595835&pd_rd_r=9e3755d8-811a-11e9-9b3b-b9bbd55e85d0&pd_rd_w=sq1G0&pd_rd_wg=m37dV&pf_rd_p=18edf98b-139a-41ee-bb40-d725dd59d1d3&pf_rd_r=WPHT2J5EFR2KZ1WYVJEX&psc=1&refRID=WPHT2J5EFR2KZ1WYVJEX .


You can probably find pdfs online for those if you look mind.

http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Automotive-Technology-James-Duffy/dp/1619603705

This was the assigned book in my introduction to automotive repair class. Excellent content on pretty much all areas of automotive repair and maintenance, along with ASE type questions at the end of each chapter to further aid understanding. I recently studied this book hard and passed my A5 (Brakes) exam with flying colors

I wouldn't buy it from Amazon though, you could likely find it cheaper elsewhere.

Car Smarts by Mary Jackson
Car Smarts: An Easy-to-Use Guide to Understanding Your Car and Communicating with Your Mechanic https://www.amazon.com/dp/1562614576/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_GrYszbEPAA0NG

Its not meant for hard core mechanics or car guys... it's meant just to be an overview or guide. Plus, its written by a woman, so should be a plus there! :-)

First things first: this was literally the first result when I googled "engine design textbook" Kevin Hoad: Vehicular Engine Design

I don't have experience with that book so I can attest to its quality. I have, however, read sections of the following books:

Robert Norton: Design of Machinery 5th edition

• Chapters 2-7: Linkage design and analysis
  
• Chapter 8: Cam Design
  
• Chapter 11: Dynamic Force Analysis
  
• Chapter 12: Balancing
  
• Chapter 13: Engine Dynamics
  
• Chapter 15: Cam Dynamics
  
  Gwidon Stachowiak: Engineering Tribology, 4th edition: for piston ring design.
  
  Shigley's Mechanical Engineering Design

This one is comprehensive and, importantly for me, well-illustrated. :-)

http://www.amazon.com/Automotive-Technology-Edition-James-Halderman/dp/0132542617

(Automotive Technology by James Halderman)

It's hard to fit all that into one book, or even ten books. There's a staggering amount of technology packed into cars. The amount of history is tremendous too, just check out the amount of American automobile manufacturers that no longer exist. So the best I can do is two books.

Car: The Definitive Visual History of the Automobile



Automotive Technology

If you're interested in ride/handling or chassis design:

Race Car Vehicle Dynamics

The Science of Vehicle Dynamics

Fundamentals of Vehicle Dynamics

Chassis Design: Principles and Analysis