Automobile Year 2002/03 (No. 50): Ian Norris

The 50th edition of the world’s foremost car annual not only looks back over the past year, with features on all forms of motor sport, the state of the world’s car industry and all the most important new production and concept cars of the year. It also takes an overview of the fifty years it has chronicled. Famous racing photographers, representing the best in their field, look back and select their favourite images from five decades of racing. Fifty years of progress in cars is illustrated by comparisons of today’s offerings from Mercedes, Renault, Porsche, Lancia, Ford and MG with their equivalents of half a century ago. In the first issue of Automobile Year, one of the great automotive journalists, Charles Faroux, described fifty years of progress in car engines. His article is reproduced, and the story is brought up-to-date by another great journalist and engineer, Paul Frère.
But it’s not all looking back fifty years. Following the pattern it has set over the decades, Automobile Year offers the best-illustrated and best-written reports on what happened in the motor industry and motor sport during the previous 12 months. With coverage of the season in Formula 1, American racing, Endurance racing, Touring cars and World Rally, together with details of all that is new on the road and the motor show stands, Automobile Year is a must for the enthusiast who wants a record of everything important in the world of cars. Add to that a host of fascinating feature articles and a standard of illustration, print and production that is second to none and it becomes clear that if you only buy one car annual, it has to be Automobile Year.

"Possibly the world’s greatest and most popular annual for petrolheads. This book is tremendous value…. it’s the sort of read that any motoring enthusiast could dip into and end up being engrossed in, and will prove itself an excellent reference source over the years. A must for anybody interested in cars" - Classic Cars, 2002
" As ever, the quality of photographs is second to none, What a record they and those in the preceding 49 issues make. We can hardly wait to see what comes with the Golden Jubilee issue" - The Automobile - April 2002