Perfect Control: A Driver's Step-by-Step Guide to Advanced Car Control Through the Physics of Racing (The Science of Speed)

The previous reviewer is spot on. Reading this book is like walking into a private seminar where experts are finally revealing the true secrets of high-performance driving, in contrast to the vague or even inaccurate 'folk wisdom' many of us have heard from other sources, including other books. Part of me wants these insights to be kept secret so that I can retain an edge, but the authors have been generous in sharing this information for a negligible cost, so I'll do my part in spreading the word about how valuable this book is.The reason we can trust this information is that it's based on the laws of physics, not just trial and error, intuition, etc. Start with the premise that there's a physical limit to how quickly a given car can be gotten around a given track, and that limit corresponds to an optimal line with optimal driver inputs along that line (the best drivers of course approach this limit). The authors tell us what the optimal line and inputs are for various types of cars in various types of corners, and they tell us *why* those lines and inputs are optimal. I must say that even as an engineer with a strong interest in the physics of driving, understanding the 'why' part isn't always easy, so be prepared to re-read sections of the book and do some high-wattage thinking, but the effort is surely worth it if you have a genuine interest in getting around a track quickly.I should note that this book should be treated as part of a series, and I suggest reading the first book in the series before this one, since this second book clearly builds on the first book, including answering many questions the inquisitive reader will wonder about after finishing the first book. The third book picks up where this second book leaves off and addresses how to deal with connected series of turns such as double apexes and esses, as well as the proper line through 'bent straights' which are taken flat out.

2nd in a series of 3. This book, along with the first, cut straight to the fundamental points, with little to no filler, which I really appreciate.It is worth reading some of the articles on the author's website as background as well.Lots of advanced material... be careful "walking the tightrope" in real life. Expect this will take years to work up to, and at the absolute limit, the speed & consequences of falling off are much higher than if you are simply driving fast.One thing that I think could be improved, or expanded upon, is the explanation of the "universal cue", and how to develop a sensitivity to that.Overall, this book, along with the prior one in the series gave me renewed clarity of purpose and a few aha moments.

The book was described as telling us about driving techniques in pain language and direct - easy to translate to the track. It is anything BUT that. The author uses "circle models" to describe what we should be doing in turns, braking, etc. Explaining the physics of inertia doesn't help the average track driver know what to do to optimize speed. It should have been written in plain, direct terms that sy "This is what you might feel when doing this"... "This is how to compensate and adjust".... etc. Instead, the book just keeps repeating and promoting his own system of thinking and useless vector diagrams. Every time he referenced his models (which is throughout most of the book) I just skipped that chapter. It left little to read or learn.

This is not a book for someone who is new to racing. But for someone who has some experience, has read other race-driving books, and has an interest in the physics behind car control and line theory, this is really a wonderful book. It is not easy reading, but you do not have to be a physics major to understand the concepts. I recommend this book most highly to anyone who is a serious racer.

Good book, contains mostly what you need to know about driving on track

I’ve read just about every car driving / racing book. This is written in an over complicated style and I didn’t get much memorable take aways for the track.

Slow reading but informative.

It slows you down in your view of how to improve. Absolutely key in improving your thoughts and implementing them

Would not recommend for a beginner track driver. More so aimed at the intermediate driver that understands the fundamentals of car control already. For those at that level it does mostly go over what you already know but approaches it in a different way to understand better and for me it opened a few doors that made me realise where I could make up lap time.

I read few books on this topic including Ross Bentley's Ultimate Speed Secrets and Skip Barber's Going Faster as well as few others. However I can definitely say that the Paradigm Shift series of books are just amazing! Perfect content, very well written, no vague statements just pure explanation from the physics standpoint. It's not too technical though so anyone can really understand it.It's just simply the best book!

If it is true that Einstein once said "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results" then Paradigm Shift have given me something different to try ! I don't know if it'll work, but I'd be crazy not to give it a go !

Excellently written and well laid out. The whole series is a must-read for people with track experience looking to find those final tenths.

do not buy this book, I have read a number of these books before, this one, not good. If you are interested in how to drive books look up books by Ross Bentley, excellent driving books by this author.