“Velocity: Supercar Revolution”
By John Lamm
Review by Gregg Leary

One piece of chocolate is considered a treat. Three hundred and fifty two might be a bit much. Zits and stomach aches be damned! I’m overdosing…not on candy...but on EYE CANDY. “Velocity: Supercar Revolution” is 352 pages of optic nerve delight.

John Lamm is our guide through this ultimate road trip. I should call it an “Autobahn Adventure.” As the Foreword states, “He is a special talent in the world of automotive journalism, because he is both an excellent writer and among the most highly respected automotive photographers in the world. His understanding of these exotic cars is without parallel.”

In addition to John’s “two for one” expertise, the reader will delight in the witty observations from automotive aficionado, Jay Leno. Jay owns such an impressive collection of motorcycles and cars that he utilizes several airport hangars to house them. I
don’t mean to brag, but I have about the same number of cars as Jay! Unfortunately, mine are die cast replicas in 1:64 scale… while his are the real things in 1:1 scale. As Jay says, “I only buy what I can afford.” The same applies to me. It’s only a matter of budget. I’ll have to be content with looking at the beautiful photographs and reading about these magnificent pieces of automotive art in “Velocity: Supercar Revolution.”

From the front cover image of a speeding Ford GT to the back jacket lineup of a Ferrari Daytona, Lamborghini Countach, Porsche 959, Pagani Zonda and Bugatti Veyron, you, the reader, are in for a hell of a ride. Thirty three chapters speed you quickly through the history of Supercars. From the Lamborghini Miura and Ferrari Daytona that started it all in 1967 through the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano of today, Lamm’s prose and portraits tell the story. The book is divided into three sections.

SECTION 1: The First Wave, 1967-1978
Lamborghini Miura and Ferrari Daytona
Maserati Bora
Ferrari Boxer
Lamborghini Countach
Porsche 930 Turbo
BMW M1

SECTION 2: The Group B Connection, 1983-1991
Ferrari 288 GTO
Ferrari Testarossa
Ferrari F 40
Jaguar XJ220
Porsche 959
Lamborghini Diablo
Dodge Viper
Bugatti EB 110
The Vector

SECTION 3: The Modern Supercar Era, 1992-Present
McLaren F1
Ferrari F50
Pagani Zonda
Aston Martin Vanquish
Lamborghini Murcielago
Saleen S7
Ferrari Enzo
Lamborghini Gallardo
Maserati MC12
Porsche Carrera GT
Mercedes-Benz SLR
Ford GT
Ferrari F430
Mercedes- Benz CLK DTM AMG
RUF RT 12
Bugatti Veyron
Corvette Z06
Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano

Want to sound like a Supercar know-it-all? Here are a few tidbits from the book.

“Ferrari didn’t officially name the car ‘ Daytona,’ but the nickname was started to commemorate the Ferrari 330 P4’s 1-2-3 win at that famous Florida track in 1967.”

“The Maserati 8CTF ‘Boyle Special’ driven by Wilbur Shaw won the Indianapolis 500 in 1939 and 1940.”

“It isn’t just great automobiles that separate Ferrari from others, but the fact it is the only automaker that fields its own winning Grand Prix cars, building both the engine and chassis.”

“Ferrari’s Fiorano test track opened in 1972 and the 512 Boxer was one of the first production Ferraris to benefit from development on the track, which the engineers share with the company’s Formula 1 team.”

“Testarossa means ‘red head’ in Italian-a reference to the color of the engine cylinder heads of this mid-engine Ferrari exotic. The name was inherited from the highly successful Testa Rossa sports racing cars of the late 1950s and early 1960s.”

“To think of any Porsche Turbo as anything but a hero car would be as historically lame-brained as dismissing Babe Ruth, Bill Haley and the Comets, or Chuck Yeager as irrelevant.”

“The Lamborghini Countach was the poster boy for all supercars; it was their Elvis. Other Lambos had been named after famous fighting bulls. ‘Countach’ is a somewhat off-color Italian expletive of surprise uttered by someone who saw it early on.”

Jay Leno on the Countach: “I’ve never seen a woman think the Countach is attractive. If you’re trying to impress 12-year-old boys, the Countach is the greatest car in the world, because they jump up and down and go crazy.” Jay’s Countach had a rear wing but he removed it. “I didn’t like the wing so I took it off. The chances of you getting airborne on the street are fairly remote.”

Jay Leno gets the last word on the car you see on the cover of “Velocity,” the Ford GT.
“The GT40 is almost the perfect-looking sports car. There’s something about the shape of it. Watching a GT40 is like giving a bath to a beautiful woman. There are all these curves and places. The Ford GT was a car I just had to have when I heard they were going to build it. It’s only 13 percent bigger than the original and, hey, if I was only 13 percent bigger than I was in ’66 I’d be thrilled.”

I’m thrilled to give “Velocity: Supercar Revolution” five out of five lug nuts. I could nitpick and criticize the proofreading…Lamborghini is misspelled “Lamorghini” on page 4…Porsche is misspelled “Porshce” on page 274…but the book is fantastic. These minor errors are insignificant to the overall enjoyment the book brings.