In this and the next chapter, you’re going to learn the basics of general automotive electronics. No matter what year vehicle you work on, everything in these two chapters is applicable. Included here are the ignition switch, the wiring harness … [Click here to read more...]
Automotive Electrical Installations and Interfaces
This chapter covers some of the more complex installations and interfaces. If you opened the book and flipped straight to here, you may choose to go back to the beginning, as this chapter makes the assumption that you know a great … [Click here to read more...]
Automotive Bodywork: How to Weld Body Metal
Automotive sheetmetal and structural welding are vast topics, and it is not possible to give them anything approaching complete coverage here. This chapter concentrates on some of the fundamentals of welding sheetmetal sections, and on a few ploys … [Click here to read more...]
Turbocharger Failure Analysis: What Went Wrong and How to Fix It
Turbocharger failure analysis is a science unto itself. Performing a failure analysis on a turbocharger is a valuable endeavor regardless of the application. Turbos are applied to everything from commercial diesels to street performance vehicles and … [Click here to read more...]
How to Build Racing Engines: Ignition Systems
As a rule, racing ignition systems aren’t particularly complicated. All you need is a power source and a means of distributing a high voltage (spark) to each cylinder at the proper time. In reality, it is far more complex. Racing ignition … [Click here to read more...]
The Complete Guide to Engine Displacement
Engine displacement is the most common math calculation. Displacement is the size or volumetric capacity of an engine expressed in cubic inches, cubic centimeters, or liters. Here in America we typically work in cubic inches while the rest of the … [Click here to read more...]
Drag Racing Warriors: Kroona & Sandberg
Kroona & Sandberg Hailing from St. Paul, Minnesota, the team of Bruce Crandall, Dave Sandberg, and Dave Kroona took their drag racing seriously. Crandall and Sandberg partnered in the early 1960s and campaigned a number of Modifi ed Production … [Click here to read more...]
Automotive Bodywork: Before You Paint
The moment of truth has arrived. Your repaired, restored, or fabricated sheetmetal masterpiece is completed, and ready to be finished. That means that it will soon be hidden for nearly eternity, as far as you are concerned, under an opaque coating. … [Click here to read more...]
Holley Carburetor: Idle and Transition Circuit Calibration Guide
At the risk of sounding repetitive, let me say once again, that if you bought an application-specific carb, you probably are only going to need to do minimal adjustments to mixture calibration. You are only likely to run into a problem with the idle … [Click here to read more...]
Automotive Painting Guide: Final Finishing
This is finally it—the step that makes all that other work worthwhile. Many painters get real satisfaction from learning how to lay down a smooth, glossy, wet coat of paint with no orange peel or runs. But, even for a first-time amateur, seeing that … [Click here to read more...]