Book Review by Peter C. King of WHAT THE SHOP MANUAL WON'T TELL YOU: Studebaker Avanti Restoration and Maintenance as it appeared in the Spring 2000 issue (No.110) of Avanti Magazine (p. 23), the quarterly publication of the Avanti Owners Association International.
This book review comes in two versions, the short one, and the long one.
The Short One: There is more information about maintaining your Avanti in this book than in any ten on your bookshelf. . . .If you order it now you will have a head start on the people who read the long one and then order the book.
The Long One: Every book has a character*the way it makes you feel as you read it. This one makes me feel as if I'm putting tools on a car for the first time with the trusted family mechanic looking over my shoulder. He doesn't tell me everything to do. He tells me where I find what I need so that I will know what to do when he isn't there. In the long run, it's the finding that is the real value, not the doing.
I use a simple technique when I evaluate a how-to book. One new idea, one problem averted, one right tool bought the first time is worth the price of the book. If I can find one of those, it's a buy. If I can find two, it's a must-buy. The second one pays for the tools. It contains two sections that fill that bill. Electrical System*Miscellaneous*"Two Shorts Waiting to Happen" and "Critical Grounds." Have you ever heard of an Avanti burning to the ground for no apparent reason? This is why. Climatizer and Ventilating System*"Avoiding a Flood" will just save your carpets. The book is full of stuff like this.
Is the book worth the price? Think about that for one minute. One stripped bolt. One wrong part. One delay while you order the right part. You can think of a dozen situations where you'd have given everything in your wallet to undo what you just did. Your bookshelf is full of books that are long on theory but short on telling you how and why to do anything practical. This book is long on advice. All 108 pages of it.
I disagree with the author on one point. He positions the book with the following statement. "While this supplement relates specifically to Studebaker Avanti restoration, much of the information will be helpful to other Studebaker restorations and for Avanti IIs on the original Studebaker frame." True, but it doesn't matter which era your Avanti is from. This book will save you the purchase price several times over.
Even if you don't repair your Avanti yourself, buy this book and give it to your mechanic. Your Avanti will thank you for it.
(Copyright 2000 by Avanti Magazine, the official publication of the Avanti Owners Association International [AOAI]. Used by permission. All rights reserved by AOAI. This review may not be copied or transmitted without the permission of AOAI.)
Book Review of WHAT THE SHOP MANUAL WON'T TELL YOU: Studebaker Avanti Restoration and Maintenance, by Bob Palma, Technical Editor of Turning Wheels, as it appeared in the September 2000 issue (Vol.32, No.9) of TW, p.34, the monthly publication of The Studebaker Drivers Club.
This is a great book and every Studebaker enthusiast ought to have one. Regardless of their interest in Avantis.
That may be the world's shortest book review, but it's accurate. This is one impressive tome, arranged to complement the original-issue Studebaker Avanti Shop Manual. Although author Stan Gundry encourages owning a Studebaker Avanti Shop Manual as well, it is not required to benefit greatly from this book.
The title "What the Shop Manual Won't Tell You" is most accurate and must not be interpreted as a put-down of Studebaker's original Shop Manual authors. Those writers must, by necessity, prepare Shop Manuals based on pre-production and early production cars; there's no way they can incorporate experiences beyond the controlled testing of pre-production units. Even Service Bulletins cannot report on units that have been on the road 20 or 30 years and worked on by a variety of talent levels, shall we say. That's where Stan's book picks up the slack and does an excellent job.
Regardless of one's ownership or interest in Studebaker Avantis (and later ones, too; they are also covered), most of this book has applications for other Studebakers as well. It is worth having for those references alone. How about information on lubricants for your Ross steering gear? Extensive real-world feedback on Studebaker's original disc brakes and honest observations about contemporary retro-fit offerings? Stan even discusses the illumination properties of the various bulb numbers with which Avantis (and, by association, virtually every other Studebaker of the day) were originally equipped, and the properties of the bulbs available today for contemporary replacement.
The information in this book is at many levels of automotive skill and knowledge. One can pick and choose how much they want to personally absorb and use, versus items one might consider best left to current professionals. Along these lines, Stan cautionsly approaches topics such as paint and body work, reminding the reader of potential material hazards that simply didn't exist when Avantis (and other Studebakers, of course) were new.
Stan does a good job of balancing the extremes of persons who want to do all vehicle maintenance and repair themselves, versus those who think even an oil change is best left to professionals. Both polarities and their interests are treated fairly and courteously in this book. Included information is of value to competent but simply uninformed professionals with whom one might be dealing. This makes it pleasant and informative reading for just about anybody with an interest in old cars, much less Studebakers or even Avantis
.
This is not merely a compilation of one man's experiences. Noted SDCers Gearge D. Krem, John Shanahan, supercharger expert John Erb, Avanti expert Jon Myer, transmission expert John Metzker, and the late Ron Hall are all credited for having made contributions.
Quite frankly, I did not find the slightest shortcoming. The sum total of all the contributors, combined with Stan Gundry's excellent compilation and writing skills, make this a strongly recommended addition to any Studebaker enthusiast's library . . . again, even if one doesn't own an Avanti or plans to do so.
(Copyright 2000 by Turning Wheels, the official publication of The Studebaker Drivers Club [SDC]. Used by permission. All rights reserved by SDC. This review may not be copied or transmitted without the permission of SDC.)
