Denis Jenkinson had a passion for all things Porsche. His close contacts with the Stuttgart firm and his own detailed experiences of half a million miles of Porsche motoring gave him a unique pedigree as an author. First published in 1983, this classic book - reissued to meet continuing demand - chronicles the marque's development from Auto Union P-Wagen through to Porsche 944. It will delight fans of both Porsche and of 'Jenks', as the legendary journalist was affectionately known throughout the motoring world. - The Porsche dynasty, the Volkswagen Beetle, and the conceptual leap that fathered the first commercial Porsche motor car. - The air-cooled, rear-engined 356. 911 and 917. - The water-cooled, front-engined 924, 928 and 944 models, as well as the racing cars. - The great days of Porsche in the Targa Florio, Carrera Pan-Americana, the 917 battles between Jo Siffert and Pedro Rodriguez, and the 1982 Le Mans victory. - At least 140 photographs that were published for the first time in this book.

2004-09-11 Far more than just a Porsche book...

Porsche was probably Jenks' favourite marque, their commitment to engineering excellence appealing very much to his sense of mechanical propriety. But this isn't a sober technical history of Porsches - it also appeared under the title "A Passion for Porsches" which might give you an idea of how personal the book is.

In fact, rather than just being a history of Porsches it's really DSJ's experiences driving (he used a 356 for many years), reporting on (in his capacity as Continental Correspondent of Motor Sport), testing (as often as he could) and generally getting close to the firm's products. It's as much about people as cars, all told in the chatty, eloquent prose that made you feel that Jenks was writing to you personally.

So, the history of the company is covered in outline, and DSJ's experience of most of the cars right up to the 928 is documented in gloriously eccentric detail. Above all, like everything he wrote, this book is splendid fun, told by one of the all-time great motoring writers.

Fantastic.