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The Classic Car Adventure (Hardback)

Driving Through History on the Road to Nostalgia

Transport > Cars

By Lance Cole
Imprint: Pen & Sword Transport
Pages: 216
ISBN: 9781473896413
Published: 20th September 2017

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Highly recommended!

As reviewed by Classic Car Weekly'This collection of articles is about driving, design, in fact, pretty much anything about older cars from vintage to modern classics. You might not agree with all his opinions, but the text is witty, engaging, authoritative and comprehensive throughout. Buy it for the essays on the vehicles you know about, and learn much from the chapters on those that you don't. Highly Recommended.'

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Nothing is new under the sun and classic cars books come and go. But here, instead of a heavy, large, glossy book of classic car images and details destined to stay on a shelf, is something new. This book is designed to be read as a companion, a book that can go in the car or on a 'plane, and which can be read in full, or dipped into anywhere for a classic car fix. Old stories and new details are presented and cover all eras of our cars.

Gathered here is a compilation of the author's published and unpublished adventures and opinions about the design and the driving of some of the greatest cars in motoring history. From 'vintagent' to 'modern classic', pristine to oily-rag, up hill, down dale and across continents, award-winning motoring author, designer and serial classic car owner, Lance Cole, charts the great classic car enthusiasm in a series of engaging essays about cars, car design and the men that made the motor industry.

From tales of Malcolm Sayer to Bedelia, and of BMW, Jaguar, Bugatti and Porsche, to tales of old Saabs and rusty Citroens, classic car life is here. Erik Carlsson, Jacques Gerin, Giovanni Michelotti and Innes Ireland are just a few of the names that can be found in these pages. From design to driving, here is a book that is a classic car adventure.

Overall an interesting book for any real car buff.

NetGalley, reviewed by Pat Lorelli

A curious and interesting book for those who love classic motorsport.

Read the complete Spanish review here.

José Manuél Rico Cortés (Mister JM) - Miniaturas JM

Lance Cole is best known in motoring writing circles as a Saab enthusiast, so it is no surprise that a striking image of the UrSaab - the very first car built by the marque - is on the front cover of his new book. This collection of articles is about driving, design, in fact, pretty much anything about older cars from vintage to modern classics. You might not agree with all his opinions, but the text is witty, engaging, authoritative and comprehensive throughout. Buy it for the essays on the vehicles you know about, and learn much from the chapters on those that you don't. Highly Recommended

Classic Car Weekly 13th December 2017 - reviewed by Richard Gunn

"The Classic Car Adventure" will prove to be an informative, thoughtful, thought-provoking, insightful and entertaining read from cover to cover.

Read the complete review here.

Midwest Book Review

This electric collection of writings covers a range of topics, from the smell of old Saabs, via the Leyland P76 to a whiskey-fulled encounter with Innes Ireland. It's harmless light reading, and an alternative to picking up a magazine at the airport.

Classic & Sports Car, February 2018

Lance Cole writes about the specific in-depth appeal of classic cars and the reasons why people like us love them, no matter how infuriating, esoteric, downright odd and difficult to explain to outsiders they may be. Taking the form of a series of essays...The Classic Car Adventure is all about the sheer individuality of our favourite classics whether it is the perverse reasons people love BL's 'nearly' cars. or lamenting the loss of Lancia or identifying the essence of a great Porsche, Cole speaks as a true enthusiast.

Classic Cars, January 2018

A potpourri of opinion, travelogue and design history, Cole's favourite subjects -- Citroen, Saab avant-garde design generally -- are covered in depth, but he also dabbles with subjects as diverse as Malcolm Sayer's aerodynamic background, cyclecars, Oily Rag philosophy and more.

The Automobile, January 2018

As featured by

Antiques Diary, January 2018

Cole guides us meticulously through many individual engineering achievements.
A fascinating, well illustrated book, reminding us how car design has progressed.

Road Transport History Assc

This amazing book is a tour de force examination of a range of fantastic super cars - a journey through classic designs and performance, peppered with suitably amazing photographs. A celebration of motoring quite unlike anything I've ever seen before! Priceless!

Books Monthly

An enjoyable effort reminding us that in the relatively brief history of the motorcar we've been treated to some impressive examples and gifted individuals. But, it doesn't get stuck with the Model T - you'll get some future classic enjoyment too. And that's what the book itself could be - a future classic.

NetGalley, reviewed by Kevin Golding

Eclectic nature of the choices the author makes in terms of subjects for examination is intriguing and quite interesting.

NetGalley, reviewed by William Harris

This is different to other classic car books and is a clever and eclectic mix of classic car coverage. There are vintage, classic and modern classic cars throughout.
The chapters on Jaguar’s Malcolm Sayer, and grand prix driver Innes Ireland, really do offer new material. The links between Sayer’s designs and the Supermarine Spitfire are real revelations. The author’s debate on car design might ruffle a few corporate feathers.
Overall an engaging narrative, good photos. I found Porsche, Saab, Ro80, Allegro, Bugatti, Riley, Fiat, Mazda and much more. It’s definitely not the usual regurgitation. It reminded a bit of Car magazine in its 1970’s and 80’s era.

Anthony Hart

About Lance Cole

Lance Cole has been a motoring and aviation writer and PR for over 30 years. He is also an internationally published photographer, illustrator and designer. The author of over 20 books, he has a parallel career as a news correspondent and TV camera-journalist. But it is old cars and their design and driving that fascinates him. He has driven Saabs all over the world and contributed to Saab design when he was a young design student. Lance wrote Erik Carlsson’s obituary for the Daily Telegraph.
Lance currently lives in England but yearns for a return to the outback of Australia where old cars rule.

Perfect Partner

Classic Car Gallery A Journey Through Motoring History (Hardback)

In a classic car photography book packed with an eclectic mix of automotive images, Lance Cole (author of the Classic Car Adventure) presents a stunning collection of photographs of old cars of all marques and types captured in many locations. Across Allards to Bugattis, Citroëns DKWs, Porsches, Saabs, Triumphs, Voisins, VWs, and a pot-pourri of well-known classics, the author has journeyed far and wide to create a wonderful diary of classic car moments amid the great enthusiasm for nostalgia on wheels. A mix of cars, people, portraits, action and atmosphere all blend in to a colourful journey…

By Lance Cole

Click here to buy both titles for £34.99
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