How To Make Your Car Handle

To make your car handle, design a suspension system, or just learn about chassis, you’ll find what you need here. Basic suspension theory is thoroughly covered: roll center, roll axis, camber change, bump steer, anti-dive, ride rate, ride balance and more. How to choose, install and modify suspensions and suspension hardware for best handling: springs, sway bars, shock absorbers, bushings, tired and wheels. Regardless of the basic layout of your car—front engine/rear drive, front engine/front drive, or rear engine/rear drive—it is covered here. Aerodynamic hardware and body modifications for reduced drag, high-speed stability and increased cornering power: spoilers, air dams, wings and ground-effects devices. How to modify and set up brakes for maximum stopping power and handling. The most complete source of handling information available. “Suspension secrets” explained in plain, understandable language so you can be the expert.

When automotive manufacturers stuffed large V-8 engines into intermediate-size cars, the American muscle car was born. Built from 1964 on, the vast majority of these amazingly fast machines did not carry cutting-edge chassis and suspension systems, and now these cars are up to 50 years old. Today, owners do not have to settle for poor handling and ride quality. Muscle car and suspension expert Mark Savitske has built his business, Savitske Classic and Custom, on making muscle cars handle and ride at their best. With this updated edition, Savitske shows you what it takes to transform the handling of these high-horsepower machines. He explains the front and rear suspension geometry so you understand how it functions, and in turn, you realize how to get the most from a particular system. He also reveals the important aspects of spring rates, shock dampening, and ride height so you select the best spring and shock package for your car and application. He discusses popular high-performance tubular suspension arms and sway bars, so you can find the right combination of performance and adjustability. The suspension system has to operate as an integrated part of the car, so you’re shown how to select best suspension package for a well-balanced and responsive car. He also discusses how to extract maximum performance from popular GM, Ford, and Mopar muscle cars. You can harness the potential performance potential of your muscle car and put much more power to the ground with critical chassis and suspension updates and products. A muscle car that carries modern suspension technology not only provides far better handling and ride comfort, but it is also much safer. How to Make Your Muscle Car Handle is the essential guide to unlocking the handling and performance potential of your muscle car. If you yearn for better handling, comfort, and performance for your muscle car, this is the book for you.

In most forms of racing, cornering speed is the key to winning. On the street, precise and predictable handling is the key to high performance driving. However, the art and science of engineering a chassis can be difficult to comprehend, let alone apply. Chassis Engineering explains the complex principles of suspension geometry and chassis design in terms the novice can easily understand and apply to any project. Hundreds of photos and illustrations illustrate what it takes to design, build, and tune the ultimate chassis for maximum cornering power on and off the track.

“Like the YouTube channel, this is a touching yet informative guide for those seeking fatherly advice, or even a few good dad jokes.” — Library Journal

A comprehensive guide to designing and building street rods, customs, and lead sleds. Includes hundreds of photographs and practical tips, plus safe working and design factors. It covers all areas of the car, including chassis, suspension, frame, engine, bodywork, paint, and drivetrain. This guide also details how to choose a car and make critical planning decisions. It shows how to properly equip a workshop and lists tool and parts suppliers.

For many people, a well-maintained automobile is a source of pride and peace of mind. But for others, the idea of routine maintenance is daunting. How to Make Your Car Last Forever will guide you through the minefield of preventative maintenance, repair, extended warranties, and magic elixirs that claim to cure everything from oil consumption to male-pattern baldness! Author, car repair expert, and host of satellite radio show America's Car Show with Tom Torbjornsen, Tom Torbjornsen has seen it all in his 40 years in the automobile industry. Let him show you how to extend the life of your car indefinitely. In How to Make Your Car Last Forever, he explains the what, when, and why's of automotive maintenance and repairs in easy-to-understand terms. Simple how-to projects supplement the learning with step-by-step instructions that will save you time and money. While you may not want your car to last forever, Torbjornsen's advice will help you preserve it indefinitely while maximizing resale value down the road. Preventative maintenance is the key to the automotive fountain of youth. Let Tom Torbjornsen show you the way!

Ride quality and steering response set many cars apart from one another. As a result, an enormous aftermarket has sprung up to take factory steering and suspension to the next tier. Everything enthusiast or backyard mechanic needs to know about suspension theory, design, modification, tuning, and creating an integrated system for maximum performance is covered in this hands-on guide. The book covers wheels and tires, suspension and steering, shock absorbers, springs, anti-roll bars, suspension bushings, aerodynamics, and setups for high-performance street, autocross, road race, and drag racing applications.