Powertrain Books
Understanding and designing the best means of transferring engine power to the track/road surface is of major importance to the race car designer. After all, the best suspension and chassis design won’t make much difference if the drivetrain breaks or if inefficiency in the drivetrain throws away an advantage. While the internet provides some insight into powertrain optimization, the best and most complete information is available in books specifically written on powertrains.
Use the Race Car Book Finder below to choose the books that will help you the most in your design and build work.
Have or know of a book that you or a friend found useful, but don’t see below? Let us know!
Filter the collection by the race car type and topics and skill levels. Follow the instructions below to filter the list of books, or use the search box to filter by keyword(s).
| Book Category | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain |  Boyd Coddington's Hot Rod Engines, Drivelines & Chassis  (4 / 5)A comprehensive book on the planning, design and construction of hot rods. Covers engine selection, inspection and assembly as well as transmission, final drive, front and rear suspension, steering, brakes, shocks, springs, engine and transmission installation and wheels/tires. Get "Boyd Coddington's Hot Rod Engines, Drivelines & Chassis":    | |||
| Powertrain |  David Vizard's How to Build Horsepower  (5 / 5)A guide to designing the engine as a system and constructing it to produce maximum horsepower. The design aspects use the airflow through each part of the engine as a basis for instruction. Provides detailed information on how to select, modify and tune each component to work at peak efficiency with others in the engine. Get "David Vizard's How to Build Horsepower": | |||
| Powertrain |  Designing and Tuning High-Performance Fuel Injection Systems  (4.5 / 5)Explains how to apply mathematics and techniques to design and tune a fuel injection system. Includes aspects such as VE (Volumetric efficiency) equation, airflow estimation, setups and calibration, timing maps and a tuning example. Get "Designing and Tuning High-Performance Fuel Injection Systems": | |||
| Powertrain |  Engine Airflow: A Practical Guide to Airflow Theory, Parts Testing, Flow Bench Testing and Analyzing Data to Increase Performance for Any Street or Racing Engine (4.5 / 5)Explains how to maximize performance of engines through optimizing the airflow the components. Includes a discussion on how engine airflow works, how flowbenches work, how to tune components based on testing and analysis, intake and exhaust tuning and math formulas for engines. Get "Engine Airflow: A Practical Guide to Airflow Theory, Parts Testing, Flow Bench Testing and Analyzing Data to Increase Performance for Any Street or Racing Engine": | |||
| Powertrain |  Engine Blueprinting: Practical Methods for Racing and Rebuilding (4.5 / 5)A guide to blueprinting almost any engine. Explains how to check and modify block, cylinder heads, pistons, crankshaft, con rods and degree a camshaft. Includes instruction on tools, balancing, measurement, and math for determining component requirements. Get "Engine Blueprinting: Practical Methods for Racing and Rebuilding": | |||
| Powertrain |  Engine Builder's Handbook (5 / 5)Explains how to troubleshoot and rebuild all types of engines. Provides tips, techniques and detailed information on engine inspection, teardown, the short block, cylinder heads, assembly and camshaft theory. Get "Engine Builder's Handbook": | |||
| Powertrain |  High-Performance Differentials, Axles, and Drivelines (4.5 / 5)This book explains how to select and match driveline components to engine power output to minimize or eliminate driveline breakages. Also covers gear ratio selection, differential rebuilding and driveline components. Get "High-Performance Differentials, Axles, and Drivelines": | |||
| Powertrain |  How to Rebuild & Modify High-Performance Manual Transmissions (4 / 5)Teaches how to perform step-by-step modifcations and upgrading to any manual transmission. Shows how to tear down, identify worn parts, select the best components and assemble a high performance transmission. Includes picture-documented building of GM Muncie 4 speed, Borg Warner Super & early T10 4 speed, Ford Toploader 4 speed, Tremec/Borg Warner T5 and Chrysler A833. Get "How to Rebuild & Modify High-Performance Manual Transmissions": | |||
| Powertrain |  How to Rebuild and Modify Your Manual Transmission (4.5 / 5)Provides a practical understanding of the internal workings of a manual transmissions and how to rebuild and modify them. Includes information on both front and rear-wheel drive transmissions and guides the reader on the selection, measurement, specifications and replacement of components. Get "How to Rebuild and Modify Your Manual Transmission": | |||
| Powertrain |  KT100  (3.5 / 5)Focus specifically on the KT100 kart engine from Yamaha, this book teaches in detail the machining, tuning, blueprinting and racing of this engine. The author also delves into various types of kart racing that use the engine such as dirt, oval and sprint, at-the-track tuning, and maintenance. Get "KT100": | |||
| Powertrain |  Maximum Boost: Designing, Testing and Installing Turbocharger Systems (4.5 / 5)A practical guide to turbocharging systems design, installation and testing. It also includes turbocharger selection, engine integration, and engine preparation for the turbocharger. The book looks at both fuel injected and carbureted engines. Get "Maximum Boost: Designing, Testing and Installing Turbocharger Systems": | |||
| Powertrain |  Modern Engine Blueprinting Techniques: A Practical Guide to Precision Engine Building (5 / 5)Explains the engine blueprinting process through illustrations and detailed procedures. Includes professional techniques on how to balance, make true and match components as an optimized group. Components include block, crank, connecting rods, pistons, rings, cylinder heads, intake manifolds, camshafts. Get "Modern Engine Blueprinting Techniques: A Practical Guide to Precision Engine Building": | |||
| Powertrain |  Motorcycle Turbocharging, Supercharging, & Nitrous Oxide: A Complete Guide to Forced Induction and its use on Modern Motorcycle Engines (4 / 5)For builders of small motorcycle engine-powered race cars who want that extra kick. Teaches how to turbocharge, supercharge and use Nitrous oxide on motorcycle engines. This book goes into ram air, turbos, superchargers and nitrous systems plus the fuel systems that work along side them. The book also looks at which engines are best for forced-air induction. Get "Motorcycle Turbocharging, Supercharging, & Nitrous Oxide: A Complete Guide to Forced Induction and its use on Modern Motorcycle Engines": | |||
| Powertrain |  Performance Automotive Engine Math (5 / 5)Use the concept of designing the complete engine as a system, this book illustrates how formulas can be used to define sizes, clearances, and capabilities for components. This enables components to compliment and maximize each others performance, resulting in a superior high performance engine and saving money for the builder by selecting the right components. Get "Performance Automotive Engine Math": | |||
| Powertrain |  Performance Exhaust Systems: How to Design, Fabricate, and Install (4 / 5)Explains how to design and construct exhaust systems matched to the engine to optimize power. The book includes theory and practical design of the entire exhaust system (headers, resonators, catalytic converters, mufflers) and teaches how to fabricate or select and purchase the individual components to match the design. The book also shows metal working techniques for fabricating full-custom systems. Get "Performance Exhaust Systems: How to Design, Fabricate, and Install": | |||
| Powertrain |  Performance Fuel Injection Systems HP1557 (5 / 5)A guide on modifying and tuning EFI systems. The book covers the foundations of EFI systems (wiring, sensors, ignition, etc.) and their function as well as the various options for developing your own solution--retuning Factory ECUs, piggyback computers and complete engine management systems. Case studies are provided to demonstrate practical approaches. Get "Performance Fuel Injection Systems HP1557": | |||
| Powertrain |  Racing Engine Builder's Handbook: How to Build Winning Drag, Circle Track, Marine and Road Racing Engines (4.5 / 5)Practical tips and techniques on building a racing engine. This book covers applications such as drag racing, circle track, road racing and boats. The author's approach looks at math used in modifications, combined with examples and guidance on when and how to apply complimentary modifcations. Get "Racing Engine Builder's Handbook: How to Build Winning Drag, Circle Track, Marine and Road Racing Engines": | |||
| Powertrain |  Stock Car Racing Engine Technology: Advanced Engine Theory and Design for All Levels of Circle Track Racing (5 / 5)Circle Track magazine's guide to the theory and design of stock car engines. Includes information on block prep, engine oiling, valvetrain, Blueprinting tips, cooling for power, component selection, cylinder head design, induction and exhaust systems. Get "Stock Car Racing Engine Technology: Advanced Engine Theory and Design for All Levels of Circle Track Racing": | |||
| Powertrain |  Street Turbocharging: Design, Fabrication, Installation, and Tuning of High-Performance Street Turbocharger Systems (4.5 / 5)Provides turbocharging theory, practical information and project vehicles. Includes components, constructing systems, engine building, fuel injection, and testing and aftermark options. Get "Street Turbocharging: Design, Fabrication, Installation, and Tuning of High-Performance Street Turbocharger Systems": | |||
| Powertrain |  Turbo: Real World High-Performance Turbocharger Systems (5 / 5)Includes explanations of how turbochargers are constructed and function, matching them to gas and diesel engines, manufacturers, installation, maintenance. It also includes detailed information on building the engine to handle turbocharging, rebuilding the turbocharger and turbocharger troubleshooting/failure analysis. Get "Turbo: Real World High-Performance Turbocharger Systems": |
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