MODIFYING THE ELECTRONICS OF MODERN CLASSIC CARS: THE COMPLETE GUIDE FOR YOUR 1990S TO 2000S CAR

By Julian Edgar. Published 2018 by Veloce, which supplied the review copy

ISBN 978-1-787113-93-0 Review by Mark Holman

Our previous issue featured a technical article on auto electrics, and if this is your thing, here’s a book dealing with the subject.

Following an earlier book called Car Electrical and Electronic Systems, Julian Edgar has homed in on a more specific target group — the two decades when the electronics of cars had become more sophisticated than before but were still capable of being manipulated with skill and perseverance.

In some ways, it’s not an easy book to review because of its technical nature, but a key message that I took from the 256 large pages is that you shouldn’t think about electronic tweaking solely as a way to increase power and speed. There is potential also to improve fuel economy, braking, the torque split in four-wheel-drive cars, lighting, suspension height, sound systems, and more — even switching-off airbags. (The author does make the point that some of the things he suggests could be illegal in some countries.)

Although the author draws on his experience in modifying the electronics of some specific cars, including a Prius and a Skyline, what he sets out to do is to provide readers with the tools and knowledge to think through upgrades that they could apply to their own vehicles and then how to proceed. In the process, he includes what equipment is needed to do so — including a workshop manual — and the pitfalls to be wary of. There are hundreds of photos and some amazing graphs and diagrams to illustrate the points that the author is making.

I’ll be honest — this is about the only book I’ve reviewed that I haven’t read every word of, as much of it would go over my rather nontechnical head! But if you want to ‘unlock your car’s potential’, as it says on the cover, this could be a very useful reference from which to start and to guide you through the process.