(first posted 8/12/2018) Behold one of the oldest and most prized possessions in my modest automotive library: The Car Spotter’s Encyclopedia 1940-1980, by the Editors of Consumer Guide.
I purchased this book new in 1982, at the tender age of 14, and it has been with me ever since. It has stuck with me through countless college dorm rooms and bachelor pad apartments. Somehow I managed not to lose it through multiple trips to Hershey.
So what is in this book? Exactly what it says on the cover. Like many things, it is easier to demonstrate than to explain.
Not sure of the subtile differences between a 1960 Chrysler Windsor and 1960 Chrysler New Yorker? Gotcha covered.
Unsure if that roadside hulk is a 1969 Mercury Marquis or the virtually identical 1970 model? Done.
Other than a brief introduction, there is no writing to speak of. Just page after page of line drawings and black-and-white photos of every American-made car from 1940 to 1980. It is utter simplicity, and single-minded of purpose. Composed of nothing more than just photos and close-up line drawings, it is automotive pornography in the truest sense of the word.
As the encyclopedic claim in the title suggests, it is fairly comprehensive, covering even relatively obscure makes like Allstate, American Bantam, Crosley, Graham, Hupmobile, and even Avanti. Of course modern readers will quickly spot the flaw in the book’s claims to comprehensiveness: As no foreign-made cars appear in it, the title should have been more accurately called the American Car Spotter’s Encyclopedia. We’ll give them a pass on this, as back in the evergreen days of 1982, just covering American-made cars seemed to be sufficient cause for using the all-inclusive title.
Out of print since 1988, primo copies are now going for upwards of a hundred bucks. Thumb-worn copies like mine with a ripped cover and yellowing pages are probably closer to $20 (which is probably still more than I paid for my new one).
Almost as soon as I had gotten it, I started wishing for a follow-up edition, covering models after 1980, but after 35+ years of waiting it is pretty clear that no sequel is forthcoming. Of course, one that covered non-US vehicles and vehicles made before 1940 would be nice too, but that would be just plain greedy.
As I ever so slowly approach my 100th post on this esteemed site (Paul, I have no idea how you do 8 to 10 of these a week), my secret is now your secret. You too can be an expert car spotter.
Specifications:
| Year Published | 1982 |
| ISBN Number | 0-517-352044 |
| Number of Pages | 256 |
Amazon.com Link:
https://www.amazon.com/Car-Spotters-Encyclopedia-1940-Consumer/dp/0517352044
CC-ers are quite open about their “professional secrets,” which I enjoy, Tom. I shoulda grabbed one of these in 1980, myself, ’cause CC is always reminding me of all the holes in my “knowledge” of our subject.
BTW, a couple not-bad copies on eBay right now, even cheaper than Amazon. I’ll look in on this one later ($8.50 + $4.50 shipping), figuring some CC-er will take the plunge: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Encyclopedia-Car-spotters-Guide-1940-1980/192620867523?hash=item2cd9192fc3%3Ag%3AIpMAAOSwN91baj5N&_sacat=0&_nkw=car+spotter%27s+encyclopedia&_from=R40&rt=nc&_trksid=m570.l1313&LH_TitleDesc=0
UPDATE: Yep, it sold today! Is Buyer among us?
This I need, I seem to always be one year off in my identification
Ironically, the guide isn’t correct about the 1958 Chryslers. Only the Windsor used the 122 wb fenders from the 57 Dodge. The Saratoga and New Yorker used the same 126 wb front fenders with pocketed headlamps as the 57 Chrysler.
I’m pretty good identifying cars from the ’50s through the ’80s — before and after that, I have trouble. My wife — kind of a car nut in her own way — will ask me to identify cars we see when we’re watching some movie from the War years, and I generally draw a blank. I’m pretty good about identifying late- ’40s DeSotos, from their “waterfall” grilles and even some Lincolns, from a strange, subtle angularity they seem to project. But, that’s about it. I can’t tell a ’42 Ford from a Plymouth, Chevy, Oldsmobile or just about anything else.
Yes, being a little older put me in the era where the Tad Burness books were the go-to. I wore out my original copy (1940-65) and had to replace it by the 80s.
Oops, meant this as a reply to Stumack.
I came across this in a book store yesterday – it’s a compilation of four of the Tad Burness “Spotters Guides”. At 1376 pages, a hefty volume to be sure.
His “American Car Spotter’s Guide: 1940-1965” was my teenage bible and it’s still with me after many moves.
I just bought this as a Kindle book from Amazon a few days ago. The hardcover version is pretty cheap at $23.79 for such a massive book. Burness’ guides were always kind of amateurish looking with the hand-lettering and the hodgepodge layouts, but there are tons of pictures to make up for it.
This would be a great resource to have, and I wish I did! However, I do have a 2002 copy of “Enclopedia Of American Cars” by the editors of Consumer Guide Mag. It’s a hardcover and at nearly 1,000 pages has lots of interesting editorial content, histories and great pics. Coves all American makes from the earliest days up to 2001 MY. It’s a heavy book, and one of my most treasured possessions.
I have The Encyclopedia of American Cars, too. Unfortunately, every now and then the editors “skip” a model,usually when there isn’t a drastic change for that model year, so you are left trying to figure out from the short description how that missing car looks.
I had a few of these Encyclopedias over the years – the latest they’ve published so far was in 2006. Particularly useful are the tables describing year-to-year models with production numbers, engine choices, wheelbases, etc. A great reference.
I also have the compilation of Car Spotters guides. It is mostly advertising and catalog pictures without much verbiage. Still it’s fun to see the clipped ad format instead of the Consumers Guide more formal presentation. I have both and many smaller volumes.
Here’s a view of the inside pages.
I still have my “Spotter’s Guide” which I received as a gift c. 1977. (Age 11?) Changed my life forever.
Observations at the time:
–That strange “alien eyes” car with wings is a . . . 1959 CHEVROLET? Wow!!!
–’57-59 Dodge, ’59 Cadillac, ’59 Mercury . . . They actually built cars that looked like that??!
–Kaiser-Frazer, Hudson, Studebaker, American Bantam . . . First time I heard of those!
Thank you Tad for your wonderful book. I could identify all the cars listed on sight–unique for a kid my age (or even adults my age today). Should be required reading for junior high and/or high school students.
I still have mine, which I bought in about 1973-4. I have looked at it thousands or times. Most of the cars were only “Special Interest” cars and not yet antiques. The term “Muscle Car” did not yet exist – unfortunately, it has all but taken over the hobby.
Looks like a great reference work. Very handy! I’ve got some old Observer’s book of Automobiles but they only cover the year they were each published. On the other hand they’re quite comprehensive from A (Abarth) to Z (Zil) and both familiar and obscure points between.
I didn’t think anybody but me had ever seen one of these!
I had one or two of these Observer’s books around the turn of the ’70s. They’re long, long gone now.
I’ve got a couple of these, 1961 and 1965. Great browsing
Still have the volume on the left sitting on the book shelf.
I still have mine! I spent countless tweenage nights drifting to sleep studying it. It helped me realize that I would never be an automobile designer (or architect) because I kept failing at trying to recreate the simplest drawings in there. I came close to getting the 1958 Rambler American fender and headlight, but boy hoods are hard to get right in perspective.
As a teen I discovered the books from “Consumers Guide.” I had a series of them that I collected, one at a time, from different used book stores. Cars of the 1930s, Cars of the 1940s, Cars of the 1950s, Cars of the 1960s.
But the ones that really blew my mind and that I rely on are “The Standard Catalog” series of books published by Krause Publications out of Iola, Wisconsin. (Iola, Wisconsin. Doesn’t that just sound so like a place that is ernest, wholesome and mid-western?)
They are, in my humble opinion, the absolute most comprehensive books out there that deal with. There are three books dealing with American cars, one on American light trucks, and one on Imported cars:
The Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805-1942, Beverly Rae Kimes and Henry Austin Clark, Jr.
The Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1946-1975, John Gunnell.
The Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1976-1999, James Flammang.
The Standard Catalog of American Light-Duty Trucks: Pickups, Panels, Vans, All Models 1896-2000, James T. Lenzke.
The Standard Catalog of Imported Cars: 1946-2002, Mike Covello.
They used to be updated every few years with minor edits and corrections and new covers, but finally they all went out-of-print. They were kind of expensive to start with, and after they went out-of-print, the prices for good condition used copies became higher than when they were new. Krause reprinted “The Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805-1942” a few years ago, but then it went out-of-print again. They have also made digital copies of their books availabe on CD from time to time.
Also, the same information is repackaged in other formats, such as “The Standard Catalog of Pontiac,” “The Standard Catalog of Chevrolet.”
It’s also interesting how the names of the authors and editors pop up every once in a while when you’re reading other things.
The Standard Catalog 1805-1942 is an essential and endlessly fascinating book. I have the most recent edition on CD copied to my computer. Besides detailed info and pictures of the major makes, it’s filled with thousands of stories about all sorts of people who tried to get into the auto business with varying degrees of success (and failure). I bought it from Amazon for far less ($19 for the CD) than the asking price is now.
The later Standard Catalogs have tons of info, but are about as exciting to read as a dictionary. What they lack is a larger, long-term story of each manufacturer. The Consumer Guide Encyclopedia of American Cars does a better job and is a more interesting read.
The Imported Cars catalog fails because it deliberately leaves out the more mundane Datsuns, Nissans, and Toyotas, seemingly because they were too dull. If the American catalogs can cover every detail of cars like the Plymouth Reliant or Ford Fairmont, then the imported catalog should cover Corollas and the like.
You are correct about the unfortunate omissions from the early histories of Japanese cars. A lot of the historical sales brochures were destroyed and lost, partly as the result of anti-Asian racism. Other printed information is only available in the Japanese language and not much of it has been translated.
Early Japanese cars were certainly no more dull than any number of small English or German cars, of which the book has no shortage of information.
Johnster, in case you (or another) didn’t know about Iola’s place in the old-car hobby: https://iolaoldcarshow.com
I had no idea about this. It must have been a strong influence in Krause’s decision to publish their many books about automotive history.
Krause Publications got its start with a newletter called “Numismatic News” about collecting coins. This led to their first book, “The Standard Catalog of World Coins.” It appears that their other publications all deal with various forms of collectibles such as antiques and firearms, but the books about automobiles and trucks were their most ambitious (in my opinion).
I was aware of the Tad Burness car spotter guides, but not this one.
Seems very useful, and a good format!
My first car book purchase (in this case a magazine) was the Nov. 1965 issue of Motor Trend. It is a buyers guide of all the 1966 cars. By the ripe old age of 13, I was crazy about cars. I still have it today along with buyers guides for every year since.
For me, the car bug really bit hard with an old Road & Track Buyers’ Guide from the late 70s or early 80s. That was the first time I’d really seen ALL the possibilities: Morgan, Lancia, Maserati, Rover, Avanti, Aston Martin…. Makes quite an impression when all you see around are Fords, Chevys, and the odd Honda.
I received this fascinating compendium at age 10, in 1979, and still refer to it from time to time. It’s not a comprehensive year-by-year catalog, but gives a bit of history of every North American and European make from the 1880s onward. Sort of a proto-wikipedia for a kid who only knew Chevys and Plymouths. And it introduced me to the 1970’s Aston Martin Lagonda (Series 2), that wedge-shaped beauty that still makes my heart race when I see a photo of one.
Ha! Great minds think alike! 🙂
I used to borrow that book from the town library. It felt like I was carrying a cinder block home.
Some great books. Here’s a little different one from Tad Burness, this edition copyrighted in 1969. My auto enthusiasm started young, and included reading books like this and identifying cars while riding in the family 1963 Chevy.
I have one of these. I bought it from the Scholastic Book Club at school when I was about 8 or 9 in the late 1960s.
Me also…it was my automotive bible for many years. Also got mine from SBS.
I made the mistake of giving mine to my nephew, I think it disintegrated after that. Even as an adult I liked going through the pages.
I think the cover is starting to come loose from my copy, but I still have it as well as half a dozen more books from Consumers Guide that I got as a kid in the late ’70s- early ’80s.
They are not perfect by any means, but in those pre-internet days were a pretty good source of info.
As so often happens with CC posts, this one reminded me of a long forgotten book (or books) in my hometown public library reference section. It had pages of front and rear views of cars (as I remember, maybe profiles also) … as if intended for witnesses to identify cars used in crimes, or to train law enforcement to spot cars based on written descriptions. Is this totally a figment of my imagination or does anyone else remember those?
dman, you’re probably thinking of those AMA Auto Identification Manuals (there are a few on eBay and Amazon right now): this ought to revive your memory: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1951-1962-AMA-AUTO-IDENTIFICATION-MANUAL-LAW-ENFORCEMENT-GUIDE-DOMESTIC-CARS-/382526460018?oid=382206089389
For italian design, nothing beats Carrozzeria italiana – Advancing the Art and Science of Automobile Design published by Automobilia. Charts and discusses all of the design studios and manufacturers…
Here’s an inside spread…one of many…and the book has some wonderful writing about cars from a Italian/European perspective
Ooooohhhh that looks juicy
And of course, this book should be on the shelf of everbody who frequents this web site…
I have one in digital form
22 GB of 99.9% brochures, factory dealer lit and ads
Over 196,000 images.
I can’t post the directory tree because it’s too big.
Useful book to have, but someone needs to do volume 2 (1981-2015 or so). Direly needed by some of us.
My first automotive book of a lifetime was The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars: 1885 to the Present given to me as a Christmas gift by my parents in 1968. While I was already a fairly dedicated gearhead by then, this massive book opened up vast new vistas for me.
There were a couple of updated versions of this book, culminating in the much larger and more detailed, two-volume The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile published in 2000. Copies of this set go for hundreds of dollars. I was quite lucky to find a very clean, ex-library example on Amazon a few years back for $80.
No one has yet mentioned “Auto Parade”, which I discovered around the same time I got Burness’ “Car Spotter”. There were two volumes in the local library, 1960 & 1961. The library has since discarded them (STUPID!) but I did manage to find a ’61 edition at a garage sale some years ago. There were black and white and some color photos of all makes of cars around the world.
These are a very, very precious part of my library. Also called Auto Universum and Automobile World depending on territory (I think). Well worth the purchase
An old co-worker and supervisor gave me Consumer Guide’s “Encyclopedia of American Cars 1940-1970” as a going-away present when I left Vanguard Tours bus company in Ossining, NY in 1981.
Remains a prized auto literature possession.
Nearly always have an educated guess about what car I’m looking at. No more books for me! Take my guess to Google Images to verify. Trouble is, too many of these are mislabeled. “The Old Car Manuel Project” gives factory direct answers. The old books generally stay in the attic where they belong..
I too have the ‘Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946 – 1975’. It’s been quite handy and I would definitely like to get my hands on the ‘1805-1942’ version as well!
What are the odds that this post would be re-run yesterday, and that I would skim it this morning, AND that Tom would randomly pick a page of late 1960’s Mercuries as an example? I was pretty sure that the Cyclone which I saw heading towards me on I-5 near that CC Mecca of Eugene Oregon yesterday, was a ‘69. It had that slightly protruding grill (nascent Bunky beak) which I thought came in the second year of that body style. But now I know for sure. Thanks Tom (and Rich for re-posting).
I love it how some people complain about how nowadays cars look all the same, as if you didn’t need a Spotter’s guide for the 50s and before!