BMW and Nerdy Book Reviews 
The Unix Nerd's Domain
BMW and Nerdy Book Reviews
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A lot of you ask me where you can get these books, this seems to solve the problem quite nicely!
| Title | Author / Publisher |
ISBN | Comments |
|
The Gold Portfolios |
Brooklands Books |
1-85520-XXXX various |
I have the Six Series Portfolio, it is a reprint of magazine articles
published about the Six between 1976-90. It is a good book to dip into
now and again and is an interesting insight into how the car changed over
the years. Articles are printed from US, UK, Australian and South African
magazines.
It is one of a series of books covering most BMWs and is well worth the money. |
BMW 2002: Comprehensive Guide to the Classic Sporting Saloon
 |
J.Taylor and M.Macartney | 1-85520-3340 | Very comprehensive, focus is mainly on euro models. Contains a good buyer's guide. |
BMW '02 Restoration Guide
 |
M.Macartney | 1-85520-4517 | All the pics of nude 02 chassis you ever wanted to see! The Ultimate reference for the 02 fiddler. |
|
BMW Classics |
Jeremy Walton | 1-85532-329-X | This was free when I renewed my subscription to BMW Car magazine. It contains lots of quality colour photos of older BMWs and is a good overview of the marque's history. It doesn't cover newer models and doesn't go into very much detail. |
| Unbeatable BMW | Jeremy Walton | 0-85045-328-3 | The original version published around 1978 and now very expensive on the collector's market. Lots of 2002 and 3.0CS stuff. I'm very grateful to Terence C.Ekland for giving me a copy! |
Unbeatable BMW
 |
Jeremy Walton | 0-8376-0206-8 | This highly revamped edition is expensive but worth it. 570 pages of BMW history since the early days with an emphasis on the racing teams. Also has lots of good info on the //M cars and many rare pictures. A master piece. |
BMW 6 Series Enthusiast's Companion
 |
Jeremy Walton | 0-8376-0149-5 | A pretty good book but not all I'd hoped it would be, a little light on the mechanical side. Good for history info though. |
BMW Electrical Test Manuals (ETMs) |
BMW | various | BMW produces electrical test manuals for all its cars. You can't buy
these from your dealer but you can get them from specialists.
I have the 635CSi manual. This contains a comprehensive clear list of circuit diagrams and is spiral bound for convenience. There are also location pictures of hard to locate parts. Worth the money for the amateur mechanic. |
Enthusiast's Companion
 |
BMW CCA Bently |
0-8376-0321-8 | This is a compilation of articles from the BMW CCA's Roundel magazine over the years. It has a bit of everything and is a good read. It offers little technical information on very new models but does have sound advice on driving and car care which is applicable to all BMWs. |
BMW M-Series & Performance Specials
 |
Jonathan Cohen Motorbooks |
0-7603-0171-9 | A well balanced book with lots of good quality colour photos. This is the book for all you BMW-M, Alpina, Schnitzer and Hartge fans. Seems to be fairly complete but doesn't go into as much detail as it could. |
| BMW Workshop Manuals | BMW | various | These are hard to get manuals which are issued to BMW workshops. They offer detailed textual and photographic instructions for almost every possible procedure. These are very large and worth every penny if you can find one. |
|
Bmw E30 3 Series Service Manual |
Bentley | 0837603250 | Covers 1984 to 1990 318i, 325e/i and convertible. Gets very good reviews and is better than the Haynes equivalent. |
Bmw E36 3 Series Service Manual
 |
Bentley | 0837603269 | Covers 92-98 models but not the eight valve 1.8 or euro M3 engines. |
Bmw Z3 Series Service Manual
 |
Bentley | 0837603277 | Covers 4 and 6 cylinder models 96-98 |
|
Bmw E28 5 Series Service Manual |
Bentley | 0837603188 | Covers 1982-1988 models for US market. Doesn't cover the 518i. |
Bmw E34 5 Series Service Manual
 |
Bentley | 0837603196 | Very good reputation, covers 525I, 530I, 535I, 540I, Including Touring 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995. |
|
Bmw 7 Series Service Manual |
Bentley | 0-837603285 | I've not seen this but Bentley's manual are normally pretty good. Covers 735I, 735Il, 740I, 740Il, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 |
|
Chilton's BMW Coupes and Sedans 1970-1988 |
Chilton | 0-80198-789-X | Quite comprehensive workshop manual with lots of illustrations but tries to cover too many different vehicles. A good buy for American owners, quite useful. |
|
Haynes Workshop Manuals |
Haynes | 1-85010-430-1 (2002) 1-85010-401-8 (E21) 0-85696-240-6 ( E12) 1-85010-560-X (#1560 E28) 1-85960-236-3 (#1948 E30/34) 1-85960-210-X (#3210 E36) |
Well respected series of manuals with good step by step procedures and photographs. Wouldn't be without them. |
Illustrated BMW Buyer's Guide
 |
Ken Gross Motorbooks |
0-87938-754-8 | An excellent book with lots of black and white photos. This covers
all BMWs since the war in good detail. The US perspective is quite interesting
to european readers, a good read.
This book is an essential for anyone interested in BMW history. |
| Motronic Engine Management | Bosch | 1-987-722-161 | The official Bosch fuel injection handbook. Mainly covers design and operating concepts rather than hands-on work. Good background reading but not a workshop manual. |
Bosch Fuel Injection & Engine Management
 |
Charles O. Probst, Bently |
0-8376-0300-5 | I must get round to buying this.... |
Performance & Handling
 |
Don Alexander Motorbooks |
0-87938-418-2 | Very American oriented with little BMW content. Good balance of theory and practical work, not bad. |
Porsche High Performance Driving Handbook
 |
Vic Elford | 0-87938-849-8 | A very good book on driving rear wheel drive cars. I have found this to be very helpful and am fed up lending it to my friends! |
Sports Car & Competition Driving
 |
Paul Frere | 1-85260-438-7 | A more advanced book, not for the beginner. A good follow on to the Porsche High Performance Driving Handbook. |
Nerdy Books
| Title | Author / Publisher |
ISBN | Comments |
Cuckoo's Egg
 |
Clifford Stoll | 0886773717 | Excellent true story about a Nerd who discovers a small anomaly on his network and ends up tracking an international spy ring. Couldn't put it down! |
Silicon Snake Oil
 |
Clifford Stoll | 0385419945 | The Net isn't without it's pitfalls. An interesting read by an excellent author. |
Hackers
 |
Steven Levy | 0385312105 | The origins of computer Nerdism from the 60's at MIT to the founding of Apple and beyond. Excellent well researched piece of history. A must for those who remember what an Apple ][ looked like. |
Micro-Serfs
 |
Douglas Coupland | 0060987049 | A grand tale about a group of programmers who leave Microsoft to start their own software company. Often quite funny with a "Friend's" style of culture. |
The Watchman
 |
Jonathan Littman | 0316528579 | Based on the life and times of famous hacker and phone phreak Kevin Poulsen. A book you'll read many times and still not be able to put it down. Marvellous entertainment. |
The Soul of a New Machine
 |
Tracy Kidder | 0679602615 | Great true story about the team who made one of the world's first 32 bit mini-computers. Truly great read, it won a Pulitzer prize! Best quote, "I'm going to work somewhere where time is measured in units no smaller than a season". |
Please feel free to submit
your own reviews to be added to the list above.
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