404 Pages

The Straight Eight Engine Powering Premium Automobiles by Keith Ray This is the first book specifically about automobiles with straight eight engines that have become amongst the most sought-after, collectible, and valuable vehicles of all time. In Britain and Europe, the straight eight was always a rare, expensive car, but in the United States, the engine also found its way into the mainstream ‘midrange’ market in basic side-valve form. First appearing in a road car in the 1920s, the engine grew quickly in popularity, and flourished throughout the 1930s and the early 1940s, but by the 1950s only a small handful were available, including some Packards, Pontiacs and Daimlers, as well as the exclusive Rolls-Royce Phantom IV. New straight eights will almost certainly never again be seen on the road, replaced today by the V8 engines. Within these pages is a comprehensive survey of the different cars that were produced and the variations in the many styles of engines. Each model is illustrated with contemporary and period photographs. Hard cover in dust jacket219mm x 290mm 404 pages, 479 images