Need an edumacation

[Solego]

I have what you would call a basic understanding of automotive theory. I can do anything, given a manual was provided that gave me step by step instructions. But, when I read some posts and people talk about panhards and the such, I am clueless.

So, for those actually in the automotive industry or anybody that can help, would you have any old textbooks or teaching manuals that you would be willing to part with. It need not be make or model specific, just something that explains the process, the parts, and how they interact with other parts. I had little success with finding books of this nature in the county library, which has a $30,000,000 budget. Go figure. I live in a university town that has more bike lanes than car lanes.

Any help is greatly appreciated. As always, you guys are awesome!

[68gmsee]

Not sure what you're looking for but if you are just looking to understand how the engine works there are a lot of good sites on the internet to get you started. Now mind you, this is if you are not familiar with internal combustion engines and want to know what happens...

This is where I sent my nephew so he could see how engine components work. You can go to auto parts and get some repair manuals also.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/engine.htm

If you are looking for more advanced stuff, then, I apologize.

[Longhorn Man]

While I am not downplaying the value of books... you can learn a LOT by just asking questions here. (the panhard par, also called the track bar, is the one that locates the rear axle side to side on a coil spring rear axle, it is the one that goes from the axle, to the frame, from left to right)
I have also personally learned tons of info over the years reading the car craft and hot rod type mags. (car craft is more of a hands on, hot rod is more of a 'look what I wrote a check for')

[nplocoman]

You can't beat a GM chassis and service manual. Cheap to,10 to 30 bucks. These are easily obtained on e-bay, amazon etc. They are published by year of truck and hold a wealth of basic service info and spec's.

[cdowns]

i'm a firm believer that the first thing a person should buy after getting a classic or anytype of vehicle is the factory service manual for that vehicle.for the 67-72trucks they're available for about $25 plus shipping from most vendors here and maybe a bit less on ebay
you could stop by the gartlis museaum and see if they could help or point you in the right direction// i kmow what you mean about librarys in florida pretty piss poor compared to the ones i had access to in a small town(pop 50,000) in new york
theres always some interesting books at the swapmeets at webster the first sun of the month starting up again in sept