Gordon Murray One Formula 50 years of Car Design Book

[B1GRLM]

I had the pleasure of being invited to photograph the launch of Gordon Murray's new book One Formula - 50 Years of Car Design at the Royal Automobile Club Pall Mall. Very interesting talk by Gordon who has kept the details on every car he has designed in F1, Le Mans, road cars and other vehicles.
There are likely to be some more talks so please check in with his website or on FaceBook for details.

Photos here:
https://flic.kr/s/aHsmye1PBw

It is a stunning book with 950 pages and weighing around 8KG and is available from PorterPress: https://porterpress.co.uk/collections/gordon-murra...

[Derek Smith]

I was a big Brabham fan, the BT 54 being one of the best looking F1 cars in my time, and I'm a McL fan, so more or less hero-worship Murray. But £225 for the also-ran edition. Too rich for me I'm afraid. I'll wait until it's in the charity shops.

I've recently read the Newey book and wasn't overwhelmed.

[Equus]

Derek Smith said:

I've recently read the Newey book and wasn't overwhelmed.

I thought the equally recent 'The Perfect Car', about John Barnard, was much better and more interesting than the Newey Book.

Both of them do illustrate that the best engineers are usually somewhere at the Aspergers end of the autistic spectrum, though - it is clear that both have some, erm, interesting psychological/personality issues.

From what I've seen of him, Murray seems quite normal and well-balanced in comparison. I might buy this one, but like you, I'm finding a base price of £225 a little difficult to stomach.

[B1GRLM]

I also covered the John Bernard release but I’ve not had a chance to read it yet.

https://flickr.com/photos/43904757@N00/sets/721576...

Having look briefly at the Gordon Murray book it is very nice, great images, but I totally understand your comments about the price tag, but it’s more of a collectors edition even in the standard Format.

You need to see a copy first to understand how nice it is, but a signed copy is a must.
Keep a look out for any talks Gordon might be doing, or have a look on the PortersPress stand at Goodwood.
Yes start saving.

[Equus]

B1GRLM said:

...it’s more of a collectors edition even in the standard Format.

Fair enough, but personally I buy cars to drive, and books to read. I'll leave locking them away in hermetically sealed rooms in the hope that they'll gain value to others.

[sgtBerbatov]

I was looking forward to this book, but not at that price.

[marcosgt]

Equus said:

Fair enough, but personally I buy cars to drive, and books to read. I'll leave locking them away in hermetically sealed rooms in the hope that they'll gain value to others.

The Kindle Deal of The Day edition at 99p for us both, then

It does seem a shame that books are increasingly published for an elite, I thought that went out in the Middle Ages!

I'm sure this is a very interesting read, but I'm not sure my local library will buy a copy for me to borrow! (Do they still do that?)

M

[Equus]

marcosgt said:

I'm sure this is a very interesting read, but I'm not sure my local library will buy a copy for me to borrow! (Do they still do that?)

It's years since I've seriously used public libraries, but back in the day I used to live not far from the National Lending Library. I used to visit it directly, but I believe that any public library in the UK can request books from it on loan, and along with one of the Cambridge libraries (the College of which escapes me), it used to obtain a copy of every book published in the UK.

In theory, therefore, any public library could obtain any book published in the UK. Not sure that extends to 'vanity' portfolio editions, though.

[coppice]

It is , by a margin of about two hundred quid , the most expensive book I have ever bought. But I bought it because I have long been an admirer of Gordon Murray, right from his early days at Brabham . I have only skimmed through this immense work so far but relish the proper read . It does seem , from other threads,, that sneering at Murray is a popular pastime - I will do so when I have designed World Championship F1 cars, the definitive supercar (which , as a bonus, won Le Mans ) and , as a sideline ,created a brilliantly executed lightweight sports car.

I once had the privilege of interviewing GM and he remains one of the smartest and most articulate people in motorsport I have ever encountered . A huge fan of Chapman , if not as much as he is of Dylan . I am an unabashed fan !

[dr_gn]

I’ve got Murray’s Driving Ambition book on the F1. Cost about £30 in 1999, now going for £190+

I’d expect this one to go the same way, but I certainly wouldn’t treat it as some kind of investment, I buy it to read and enjoy.

[Paul Dishman]

I had a look at the book at Goodwood last weekend. If you're a big GM fan then I can see the value, but it wasn't worth £225 to me so didn't buy.

[Equus]

Well, I am a big Gordon Murray fan - despite his recent embarrassing diversion with the iHype project - so I have bought a copy and am slowly reading it at the moment.

It's nice, but I'm not overwhelmed and remain of the view that it's too expensive to find anything but a niche market.

[Church of Noise]

I caved in and got one too.

After initially thinking it was too expensive (still think it is very very very expensive for a book), it is very impressive in terms of print quality, breadth of info and it is an absolute joy to read (the latter was what got me to buy one in the end). I'm also a fan of GM (in terms of being utterly impressed by what the man has achieved and how humble he comes across in interviews).
I don't regret buying it.

Taking into account that is one has 948 pages, and that a typical nice book of say 240 pages costs 50 GBP or more, the overal cost makes somewhat more sense.

[Equus]

Church of Noise said:

Taking into account that is one has 948 pages...

Although a large proportion of those are photographs - there is actually not that much text.

I was surprised how quickly I read it, and in those terms it represents conspicuously poor value compared to, for example, the recent John Barnard biography, which was 610 pages largely of text, for a mere £25.

Also disappointing was the scant coverage of projects since the formation of GMD, presumably because of client confidentiality. I understand the need for this, but it still left me feeling as though I'd only had half the story.

[Tukinek]

Guys, if anyone would like to sell his copy of the book, please let me know: [e-mail] Thank you!

Edited by Tukinek on Saturday 15th August 18:36