Driving Ambition: The Official Inside Story of the McLaren F1

Rating:
Summary: One of the best automotive books ever
Review: This book is a 'must have' for anyone interested in the McLaren road car. It is one the best books to cover a single model that I have ever read.

The 'insiders' view of documents and photographs could never be possible without the help given from the factory.

By reading the book, and seeing the photos, one can truely get into the mind of Gordon Murray and his team.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but room for improvement
Review: This book is very impressive in that it uses high quality materials, and is expertly put together. I was disappointed in the writing of the book. It spends a great deal of time talking about how they were planning on making this car, how they went about obtaining production space, how they hired certain people, and myriad, pre-production facts. Then there is a very short space on the actual technical facts of what the car has in it, and what it feels like to drive it. Then there is a very lenghty history of the car being used as a racer (Le Mans, etc.). I wish the book had more detail about the physical components in the car, and descriptions of the visceral experience of driving it. It's like, let's keep them in suspense with a build-up, and then wrap it up in a hurry with no real meat of the story. If racing interests you, this book is your calling. If road cars are what you like, it falls short.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but room for improvement
Review: This book is very impressive in that it uses high quality materials, and is expertly put together. I was disappointed in the writing of the book. It spends a great deal of time talking about how they were planning on making this car, how they went about obtaining production space, how they hired certain people, and myriad, pre-production facts. Then there is a very short space on the actual technical facts of what the car has in it, and what it feels like to drive it. Then there is a very lenghty history of the car being used as a racer (Le Mans, etc.). I wish the book had more detail about the physical components in the car, and descriptions of the visceral experience of driving it. It's like, let's keep them in suspense with a build-up, and then wrap it up in a hurry with no real meat of the story. If racing interests you, this book is your calling. If road cars are what you like, it falls short.

Rating:
Summary: The Review of a true Sports Car Fan
Review: This is a book that is made in dedication to a car that is truly special. It shows the same kind of dedication that went into the engineering and building of this truly magnificent GT car. Unlike the person who cannot write English grammaticaly correct let alone appreciate a book of this caliber.

Rating:
Summary: Gorgeous
Review: This is the book about the F1 I was waiting for. Matches the car's construction and performance, one of the top motorbooks this year.

Rating:
Summary: McLaren F1
Review: Well, what can I say??? This book is great, it was written by Gordon Murray (The Designer of the McLaren F1) and Ron Dennis (McLaren`s boss). It contains lot`s of unpublished photos and information. This book shows why the McLaren is so special and the fastest production car in the whole World. If you like the McLaren F1 as much as I do, you`ll love this book. This is a must have for any Supercar fan.

Rating:
Summary: A Must-Have for McLaren F1 Fans and Car Enthusiasts Alike
Review: Written with F1 designer Gordon Murray and McLaren Cars head Ron Dennis, Doug Nye's Driving Ambition is to car books what the F1 is to production road cars. In its 12in x12in, 272-page embossed hardcover format, Nye begins with the background of McLaren Cars and its legendary founder Bruce McLaren, and takes the reader through the ideas and concepts leading to the dream, commitment, talent and development of the F1. Probably never-before-published photos of F1 designer Gordon Murray's hand-written notes, sketches and F1 patents accompany exquisitely detailed full- and two-page color photos of the F1, including snapshots of the F1 during every phase of its development and subsystem prototypes. Nye writes lucid details and quotes, tying chronological events to the day. The F1's brief but glorious racing history is charted with the results of each McLaren in every race. One may be left in awe after reading Nye's transcript of the incredible 240-mph+ high speed runs at VW's test track in Germany, firmly establishing the McLaren F1 as the official fastest production road car in the world (now published in the Guinness Book of World Records). If the performance capabilities, colorful racing success and visual perfection weren't enough for the general car enthusiast to appreciate, reading Driving Ambition will reveal why so many regard the million-dollar price tag justifiable for what may be the best road car built--ever. The execution of this dedicated book, in content and substance, is worth every penny, and does honor to the car, designer and team that brought this dream car to reality. With the collaboration of Gordon Murray, Ron Dennis and McLaren Cars, this beautifully printed book is the definitive reference work on the McLaren F1, and by which all other F1 books will be judged. If you're a collector, get your copy now!