Book reviews, March 1989, March 1989

Automobile Year 36 (1988-89)

edited by Jean-Rodolphe Piccard. 280pp. 121/4″ x 91/4. (Motor Racing Publications Ltd, Unit 6, The Pilton Estate, Croydon, Surrey CRO 3RY. £22.95).

Twenty years ago Automobile Year was the leading annual in its field, a position it lost to Autocourse as time went by. In the last few years, however, it has started to bounce back, albeit on a slightly different course, under the guidance of its new publisher Jean-Rodolphe Piccard.

This annual never concentrated solely on the sport, but this year there are more informed articles on the industry than ever including 25 years of Lamborghini, a review of the car industry worldwide, and an interesting piece on Lenin’s Rolls-Royces, to name just three. The sporting half of the book covers Formula One, sports-car racing, Formula 3000, rallying, the European Touring Car Championship and the season in America, with detailed results at the end. Photographs are outstanding, enhanced by the use of fine art paper, and the book is beautifully bound. Motor Sport once described this annual as “the Rolls-Royce of motoring annuals”, a description which does full justice to this year’s edition. WPK