Motoring
Motoring Book of the Year
The Royal Automobile Club has revealed the finalists for its 2026 Motoring Book of the Year Awards, widely regarded as the most prestigious accolades in motoring and motor racing literature.
Now in their thirteenth year, the Awards celebrate the very best in motoring and motorsport publishing, from compelling stories and automotive history to landmark works on the cars, people and marques that have shaped the motoring world.
Nearly 50 books were entered, spanning major international and independent publishers to self-published authors. Eligible titles, published between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026, were rigorously assessed for originality, research, writing, illustration, design and production values.
The winners will be announced at a special ceremony at the Club’s historic Pall Mall clubhouse on Wednesday 28 October 2026, including the winners of each category, the Graham Robson Trophy for Best Debut Author and the new Best Design Award, culminating in the coveted overall Motoring Book of the Year. The Club will also recognise one individual’s exceptional contribution to automotive publishing with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Motor Cars and Motoring – under £30.00
- Dream Road to Pan America: A Century in Pursuit of the World’s Longest Highway by Shawn William Miller (University of California Press), £25.00
- Mr Wilman’s Motoring Adventure: Top Gear, Grand Tour, Clarkson and Me by Andy Wilman (Michael Joseph), £22.00
- Should You Buy an EV? by Paul Hadley (self-published), £17.99
Motor Cars and Motoring – under £100.00
- BMW 3-Series 50 Years by Tony Lewin (Motorbooks), £38.00
- The Complete Book of Volkswagen GTI: Every Model Since 1976 by Russell Hayes (Motorbooks), £38.00
- The Ferrari Under the Bed: A Memoir and History of 0046M by Darrell Westfaul (Dalton Watson Fine Books), £90.00
Motor Cars and Motoring – no price limit
- Aston Martin: The Entire Story by Russell Hayes (Evro Publishing), £195.00
- Lancia Stratos Zero: The Eternal Futurist by Gautam Sen (Dalton Watson Fine Books), £110.00
- Ultimate Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona – The Definitive History by Luca Dal Monte, Simon Charlesworth and Keith Bluemel (Porter Press International), £475.00
Motorsport Subject – under £30.00
- Forza Ferrari: How F1’s Most Famous Team Can Win Again by Nate Saunders (The Quarto Group), £10.99
- Senna: The Truth by Franco Nugnes (Pitch Publishing), £25.00
- Whitney Straight: Racing Driver, War Hero, Industrialist – The Authorised Biography by Paul Kenny (The History Press), £25.00
Motorsport Subject – under £100.00
- Formula 3000: Where Legends Earned Their Stripes by James Newbold (Evro Publishing), £75.00
- Lella Lombardi: The Tigress of Turin – Her Authorised Biography by Jon Saltinstall (Douglas Loveridge Publications), £40.00
- The Ferrari 250 GTO Spotting Guide by Yan-Alexandre Damasiewicz (Blenheim Publishing), £40.00
Motorsport Subject – no price limit
- The Maserati 250F: A Legendary Formula 1 Car by Walter Bäumer and Jean-François Blachette (Dalton Watson Fine Books), £295.00
- The Rise of the Trident: From a Bologna Back Alley to Grand Prix Glory – Maserati Tipo 26 and V16, 1926 to 1934 by Adam Ferrington, Emmanuel Rault and Alessandro Silva (Fondazione Negri), £160.00
- Ultimate Ford GT40 – The Definitive History, Volume 2 by John S Allen, Graham Endeacott and Mark Cole, with Mike Teske (Porter Press International), £325.00
Best Debut Author (Graham Robson Trophy)
- Mr Wilman’s Motoring Adventure: Top Gear, Grand Tour, Clarkson and Me by Andy Wilman (Michael Joseph), £22.00
- Senna: The Truth by Franco Nugnes (Pitch Publishing), £25.00
- The Ferrari 250 GTO Spotting Guide by Yan-Alexandre Damasiewicz (Blenheim Publishing), £40.00
Best Design
- Dragster Genesis: The Formative Years of Fearsome Acceleration by Barry John (Evro Publishing), £50.00
- Porsche 911: The Art of Speed by René Staud and Jürgen Lewandowski (Prestel), £65.00
- The Art of Racing: Helmets by Joe Twyman (Hothouse Media), £495.00
Judging Panel
The six-strong independent judging panel comprises Mick Walsh (Classic & Sports Car), Wayne Batty (Octane and Magneto), Damien Smith (formerly Motor Sport), Ian Titchmarsh (British Racing Drivers’ Club), specialist bookseller Ben Horton (Horton’s Books) and Christian Whitehead (Blackwell’s Oxford). Respected motorsport writer and commentator Simon Taylor is the panel’s non-voting chairman and will host the Awards ceremony.
The Awards form part of the Royal Automobile Club’s London Motor Week (26 October – 1 November 2026), culminating in the St James’s Motoring Spectacle on Saturday 31 October, when Pall Mall will host a free celebration of motoring past, present and future, followed on Sunday 1 November by the RM Sotheby’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, the world’s longest-running motoring event.
Previous Winners
Previous Winners of the Motoring Book of the Year Awards
2025 WINNERS
The Motoring Book of the Year
Power Unleashed: Trailblazers who Energised Engines with Supercharging and Turbocharging, by Karl Ludvigsen, Evro Publishing, £395.00
Books about motor cars and motoring, costing no more than £50:
Meyers Manx 1964-2024, by Basem Wasef, Hothouse Media, £49.50
Books about motor cars and motoring, with no price limit:
Joseph Figoni: Le Grand Couturier de la Carrosserie Automobile Vol. II–IV: Bugatti, by Peter M. Larsen & Ben Erickson, Moteurs!, £650.00
Books on a motorsport subject, costing no more than £50.00:
A.J. Foyt – Vol. 1: Survivor, Champion, Legend, by Art Garner, Octane Press, £37.00
Books on a motorsport subject with no price limit:
My Travels On Racer Road: Can-Am and Formula 1 in their Golden Age, by Pete Lyons, Evro Publishing, £70.00
Graham Robson Award for Best Debut Author:
De Tomaso: Racing Blue Blood, by Alejo Pérez Monsalvo and Marcel Schaub, McKlein Media, £295.00
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Gordon Cruickshank
2024 WINNERS
The Motoring Book of the Year
The Austin Pedal Car Story, by David Whyley, Porter Press International, £85.00
Books about motor cars and motoring, costing no more than £50.00
Morgan: An English Enigma, by Martyn Webb, The Crowood Press, £45.00
Books about motor cars and motoring, with no price limit
BMW: Behind the Scenes, by Steve Saxty, Seven Spoke Publishing, £239.95
Books on a motor sporting subject, costing no more than £50.00
Goldie, by John Mayhead, National Motor Museum Publishing, £20.00
Books on a motor sporting subject with no price limit
The Last Eyewitness, by Doug Nye, Porter Press International, price £195.00
Graham Robson Award for Best Debut Author
Bob Evans, Happy Lucky Days: My Life in Racing, BHP Publishing, £32.00
Lifetime Achievement Award
Dr Clare Hay
2023 Winners
The Motoring Book of the Year
Driven To Crime, by Crispian Besley, Evro Publishing, priced £40.00
Motoring Book of Year (Below £50.00)
Max Hoffman Million Dollar Middleman, by Myles Kornblatt, Veloce Publishing Ltd, priced £30.00
Motoring Book of the Year (No Price Limit)
Kim A Biography of MG Founder Cecil Kimber, by Jon Pressnell, Dalton Watson Fine Books, priced £115.00
Motorsport Book of the Year (Below £50.00)
Speed Queens: A secret history of women in motorsport, by Rachel Harris-Gardiner, Pen & Sword Books Ltd, priced £22.00
Motorsport Book of the Year (No Price Limit)
Bentley Speed 8: The Comprehensive Story of Bentley’s Last Le Mans Winner, by Andrew Cotton, Sportfahrer Verlag, priced £225.00
Graham Robson Award for Best Debut Author
Andy Saunders, The Automotive Alchemist, Dalton Watson Fine Books, priced £90.00
Lifetime Achievement Award
Karl Ludvigsen
2022 Winners
Motoring Book of the Year:
Fit for a King: The Royal Garage of the Shahs of Iran by Borzou Sepasi (Dalton Watson Fine Books), priced £110.00
Motoring Book of the Year (Below £50.00):
Trans-Africa Land-Rover: The Story of Philip Kohler and his Epic Overland Adventure by Martin Port (Porter Press International), priced £30.00
Motoring Book of the Year (No Price Limit):
Marcel Pourtout: Carrossier by Jon Pressnell (Dalton Watson Fine Books), priced £110.00
Motorsport Book of the Year (Below £50.00):
Racing Green: How Motorsport Science Can Save the World by Kit Chapman (Bloomsbury), priced £20.00
Motorsport Book of the Year (No Price Limit):
Strictly No Admittance: The Inside Story Of The ‘Lightweight’ E-type And The XK Engine Which Powered It – The Last Works-Built Jaguar To Race At Le Mans by Peter D Wilson (PJ Publishing), priced £95.00
Graham Robson Award for Best Debut Author:
Twin-Cam Extravagance – The History of Lagonda Rapier & Rapier Cars by Chris Wiblin (The Rapier Register), priced £50.00
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Doug Nye
2021 Winners
Motoring Book of the Year:
The Lamborghini Miura by Simon Kidston and Jon Pressnell (Kidston SA)
Motoring Book of the Year (Below £50.00):
Tipping Point – Designing a Great British Underdog by Andy Plumb (Lead-In Design)
Motoring Book of the Year (No Price Limit):
Joseph Figoni: Le Grand Couturier de la Carrosserie Automobile Volume 1, Alfa-Romeo by Peter M Larsen and Ben Erickson (Moteurs!)
Motorsport Book of the Year (Below £50.00):
Mr Le Mans, Tom Kristensen by Tom Kristensen with Dan Philipsen (Evro Publishing)
Motorsport Book of the Year (No Price Limit):
Delage Records & Grand Prix by Daniel Cabart and Sébastien Faurès Fustel de Coulanges (Orep Editions)
Graham Robson Award for Best Debut Author:
The Rise of The Sidevalves by Tom Fryars (Gorton Publishing)
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Mark Hughes
2020 Winners
The stories behind two American motorsport legends – Richie Ginther and Shadow – were awarded top honours at 2020’s Royal Automobile Club Motoring Book of the Year Awards.
Richie Ginther: Motor Racing’s Free Thinker by Richard Jenkins scooped Motoring Book of the Year, which is presented to an exceptional book that is judged to have a wide appeal and which costs no more than £75.00. Specialist Book of The Year – awarded to a book that represents a feat of impeccable research and flawless writing regardless of its retail cost – went to Shadow: The Magnificent Machines of a Man of Mystery, written by Pete Lyons and published by Evro.
The awards took place as a virtual event on 28 October 2020.
2019 Winners
Motoring Book of the Year:
The Self-Preservation Society 50 Years of the Italian Job by Matthew Field (Porter Press International)
Specialist Motoring Book of the Year:
John, George and the HWMs: The First Racing Team to Fly the Flag for Britain by Simon Taylor (Evro Publishing)
Lifetime Achievement Award:
John Haynes OBE creator of the iconic Haynes Manual and founder of the Haynes Publishing Group was posthumously awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his significant contribution to the UK’s motoring book industry.
2018 Winners
Motoring Book of the Year:
How to Build a Car by Adrian Newey (Harper Collins)
Specialist Motoring Book of the Year:
Reid Railton: Man of Speed by Karl Ludvigsen (Evro Publishing)
2017 Winners
Motoring Book of the Year:
Watching the Wheels: My Autobiography by Damon Hill (Pan Macmillan)
Specialist Motoring Book of the Year:
Delage – Champion Du Monde by Daniel Cabart and Christophe Pund (Orep Editions)
2016 Winners
Motoring Book of the Year:
Brian Redman: Daring Drivers, Deadly Tracks by Redman himself and Jim Mullen (Evro Publishing)
Specialist Motoring Book of the Year:
Squire: The Man, The Cars, The Heritage by Jonathan Wood (Classic Motor Cars Ltd)
2015 Winner
Motoring Book of the Year:
The Magnificent Monopostos: Alfa Romeo Grand Prix Cars 1923-1951 by Simon Moore (Parkside Publications)
2014 Winner
Motoring Book of the Year:
John Surtees: My Incredible Life on Two and Four Wheels by John Surtees (Evro Publishing)