There are concepts that are so simple that afterwards you wonder why you didn't think of them yourself. And these are usually the best ones. Wilfried Müller's book is one of them.
DETAILS is a picture book. But it hardly ever shows cars in action, but mostly static. In the pits or jacked up in the workshop. The hood is open and the front fairing removed. This opens up a clear view of engines, chassis, suspensions, wheels, brakes, hoses and cables of all kinds and cockpits.
Here are some examples:
On the left, a view into the nose of the Ford GT Mk II #P/1031 before the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. The pipes for the cooling water are visible at the bottom, as well as the oil tank on the wall to the cockpit and the steering gear in front of it. The water pipes and oil hoses were routed centrally between the seats through the cockpit. The thick hose at the bottom supplies the cooling air for the front brake on the left. The remaining storage space was taken up by the spare wheel during the race. Holman-Moody entered the car in the race with the driver pairing Mario Andretti/Lucien Bianchi. Mario Andretti is discussing with John Holman.
In the picture on the right, the two mandatory luggage compartments, or what the guardians of the regulations allowed to pass as such, are visible from the rear.
The Ford GT Mk II #XGT-2 of Alan Mann's team is being prepared for the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. The drivers are Graham Hill and Brian Muir. Question for budding safety experts: how many stumbles can you spot?
As the title says, the sports cars from 1965-1969 are the subject. The author of the book does not actually give a reason for the time period chosen. However, certain structures can be recognized. They are all rear- or mid-engined cars that competed in the World Sports Car Championship or the European Hillclimb Championship during the period in question.
The following cars are shown alphabetically by brand:
| Abarth | OT Sport Spider, 2000 Sport Spider SE04, 3000 SP, Spider SE010, Spyder SE013, 2000 SE014 " Cuneo " |
| Alfa Romeo | Tipo 33, Tipo 33/2, Tipo 33/3 |
| Alpine | M64, M65, A210, A211 |
| BMW | Monti (1967), Monti (1968) |
| Chaparral | 2, 2D, 2F |
| Ferrari | 250 LM, Dino 166P, 275P2, 330P2, Dino 206S, 330P3, 330P4, 212E Montagna, 312P |
| Ford | GT40 Mk I, GT Mk II, GT Mk IIA, GT Mk IV, GT 40 |
| Ford England | P68, P69 |
| Howmet | TX |
| Lola | T70 |
| Lotus | 62 |
| Maserati | Tipo 65 |
| Matra | MS620, MS630, MS630/650, MS650 |
| Mirage | M1, M2, M3 |
| Porsche | 904 Carrera GTS, 904/8 Bergspyder, 906, 906 Bergspyder, 907, 910, 910/8 Bergspyder, 908, 989 Bergspyder, 908/02 Spyder, 917 |
| Serenissima | Torpedo |
| Shelby | Cobra Daytona Coupé |
In the book they are arranged alphabetically by year. This makes the development clearer. For example, the increasingly wider tires, although slicks were not yet used during this period. The different concepts for a rigid chassis and the engines: from the 4-cylinder and 4-cylinder boxer to the V12 and 12-cylinder boxer, everything is included.
Highlights (from my point of view) are the windshield wiper of the Ford GT Mk II, which was taken from the Boeing 707 and adapted to the specific requirements, and the front carrier of the Alfa T33/2 designed as a monster casting in magnesium. The development of the Porsche Bergspyder over the years can also be traced very well: from the kangaroo to Master Piëch's Minimal Art.
Each chapter begins with an introduction and each illustration has a short commentary. The text pages have two columns, one in German and one in English. Both are very easy to read. The pictures are mainly from the McKlein Archive, as well as from LAT, the Grand Prix Library, the Henry Ford Collection and others.
The Chaparral 2F from the 1000-kilometer race in Monza 1967 with the accompanying text in German and English.
The density of the pictures varies from vehicle to vehicle, probably controlled by the supply. There is also no scheme for selecting and organizing the pictures.
From a Swiss perspective, the many pictures of Peter Schetty in various Abarths and the Ferrari 212E Montagna are great. The fact that the deserving fighter under the Alfa Romeo flag, Roberto Bussinello, was made a Busselino (whatever that is) is hopefully embarrassing for the author and the proofreaders.
The book invites you to discover technical refinements and is therefore primarily suitable for people who want to get involved. It's been a while and you may not remember everything that the technical journals explained back then. Here it is once again presented with love. Including the atmosphere, which was not as clinical as it is today.
The Porsche 908/02 Spyder #015 driven by Gerhard Mitter and Udo Schütz at the 1000-kilometer race at the Nürburgring in 1969. Here at an unscheduled pit stop. The expression on the faces of the men standing around reflects a certain resignation to fate. Mitter/Schütz were able to finish the race, but ended up in 31st place.
The detailed picture shows the extremely flattened windshield on which the rear-view mirror is mounted.
Bibliographical details
- Title: DETAILS: Legendary sports cars up close - 1965-1969
- Authors: Wilfrid Müller
- Language: English
- Publisher: McKlein Publishing
- Edition: 1st edition 2015
- Size/format: 400 pages, 78 in color and 271 in black and white, hardcover, in slipcase
- Text: German and English
- ISBN-10: 3-927458-76-7
- ISBN-13: 978-3-927458-76-5
- Price: 99.90 Euro
- Order/buy: Online at amazon.de or at McKlein directly or in relevant bookstores
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