Howdo all, I registered sometime ago, but Ive forgotten my username and password 
Anyway Im looking to study some chassis design and construction so that one day I might be able to build my own plaything (probably a hillclimber) or
even gain emplyoment in engineering hahahaha
Anyway Im looking for recommendations on good reading material that is relevant to this topic...any got any good ideas?? I know someone must have
This is the best book I have found specifically on the subject, Race Car Chassis: Design and Construction by Forbes Aird. But I do not think one good
book exists.
I learnt a lot by looking at chassis`s on cars. The web is quite good. have a look at HERE
The main thing to remember with chassis design and one that is very hard to do and most people ignore, is that all major loads (suspension, steering,
engine and diff) should NOT go into an unsupported memember. The should go into a junction of at least 3 tubes.
If you want to work in motorsport read, understand and remember everything you can that is written by Carroll Smith and you will have a good
advantage.
John
And I'll add
my own list.
Anything by Carrol Smith.
There are three Tomes, all of which are worth their weight in gold.
Prepare to win.
Tune to win.
Engineer to win.
Be warned they are old, and he also has a fetish for aerospace parts, but not only are the books accessible, the information comes from some-one has
done it at top level.
Also, his work doesn't put you off when you've finished.
Geography isn't one of my strong subjects but that doesn't sound right Basic Locosts are used in hillclimbing and track racing, have you
read the original book. Running before you can walk is springing to mind. I'll sell you my copy of the second edition Locost book for
£10 The race car chassis book by Forbes Aird is £128 
I would suggest picking up:
"Chassis Engineering" By Herb Adams and "Race Car Chassis Design and Construction" by Forbes Aird.
These are the two best beginner books I have found. If you cannot read, understand, and enjoy these...... find another hobby . Those will give
you the basics of chassis engineering.
After that I would recommend forgetting about cars and learning about material selection (specifically tubular metals and carbon fibre). This allows
you to calculate the loads, and design something just strong enough to work. Once you have decided where everything should sit in the car connecting
the dots with triangulated tubes is easy. Using the lightest possible materials to meet your goals is where the skill/engineering comes in to play
and is where a good chassis comes from.
As the saying goes "Anyone can build something that works, it takes an engineer to build something that barely works".
Cheers
quote:
Originally posted by Peteff
Geography isn't one of my strong subjects but that doesn't sound right
£10
Calculating strengths is good, if you know the loads that a component or part will see.
I have never calculated the strength of any part. I look to see what works and copy that put pay attention to reducing stress raisers.
John
I totally agree with C10CoryM.
I found this site when looking up information on how to build your own car. Through Steve Graber's site (grabercars.com) I found this site. After
peeping for a while I actually bought THE book and the "Chassis Engineering" and "Race Car Chassis Design and Construction"
books. This site and those books actually made me decide to go back to school part-time and study mechanical engineering.
So be careful you don't catch the locost bug