The Amateur Aerodynamicist's Library

Updated August 14, 2023

Several months ago I had the opportunity to check out my local university’s engineering library for the first time. Automotive engineering materials are on the fourth floor, near aeronautics. I was dismayed to find that there was only a single book there on the subject of automotive aerodynamics, Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles (4^th ed.). This book:

This is a good book to have (that’s my copy above, which I bought several years ago), but it is 25 years out of date. This was the last version edited by Wolf-Heinrich Hucho, published in 1998; the SAE released a comprehensively updated 5^th edition in 2016 edited by Thomas Schuetz of BMW.

Curiously, my own library on automotive aerodynamics dwarfs that of this well-known engineering school. Here’s (some of) what you can find on my bookshelves.

Fluid-Dynamic Drag (Sighard F. Hoerner)

Published by the Author, 1965

This tome, although of limited direct applicability to modern vehicle aerodynamics, is still a fundamental text which comprehensively documents the experimental investigations into fluid drag that underpin our modern understanding. Hoerner was meticulous and thorough in his wind- and water-tunnel work, researching how shape changes and parameter changes affect fluid dynamic forces.

Aerodynamic Drag Mechanisms of Bluff Bodies and Road Vehicles (various authors)

New York: Plenum Press, 1978

Unlike the other books on this list, this isn’t a “book” per se but a collection of papers presented at a conference. That conference was the Symposium on Aerodynamic Drag that took place at the GM Technical Center in 1976 and featured presentations by the giants of automotive aerodynamic research at the height of their careers: Wolf-Heinrich Hucho, P.W. Bearman, Gino Sovran, W.A. Mair, and others. Like other older sources, it is an interesting snapshot of the “state of the art” at the time, and is useful for understanding some of the theory behind aerodynamics as it was being discovered.

Road Vehicle Aerodynamics (A.J. Scibor-Rylski; 2^nd edition revised by D.M. Sykes)

London: Pentech Press, 1984

Scibor-Rylski’s book contains perhaps the best explanations of how aerodynamic forces form. This book is a little more math-heavy than the others on this list, as Scibor-Rylski was interested in modeling cars in crosswinds, turning corners in constant wind, and other real-world problems. If that isn’t your thing, don’t bother with the last several chapters, but the first part of the book is indispensable for anyone who really wants to grasp the formation of drag and lift.

Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles (4^th edition, various authors)

Warrendale: SAE International, 1998

Since its first edition in the late 1970s, this reference has been THE go-to source for information on aerodynamic drag and lift, the history of aerodynamic research, basics of fluid mechanics, stability, testing, internal flows, and more. At over 1,000 pages, it represents the contributions of dozens of authors and researchers.

This book has a more recent edition, but I still find it useful despite a lot of the information it contains being out of date.

Road Vehicle Aerodynamic Design (R.H. Barnard)

St. Albans: MechAero, 2009

If you only buy one book on this list, it should be this one. An especially useful reference for non-professionals, this one is light on math, well-written and clearly explained, and draws on the extensive research experience of its author. I can’t recommend it highly enough as an introduction to aerodynamics.

Understanding Aerodynamics: Arguing from the Real Physics (Doug McLean)

Hoboken: Wiley, 2013

Not a resource for automotive aerodynamics specifically, this book lives up to its subtitle. McLean, a retired Boeing engineer, is not shy about building logical arguments for understanding the mechanisms of drag and fluid flows and swatting away misconceptions. Because of that, this is a very math-heavy resource; don’t bother with it unless you’ve had at least 3 semesters of calculus (through vector calculus, partial differentiation, multiple integration, etc.).

Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles (5^th edition, various authors)

Warrendale: SAE International, 2016

I was very surprised to open this book—ostensibly an update of this important reference—to find that only one chapter had been carried over from the previous edition! Everything else (nearly 1,200 pages) is completely new, and unlike earlier editions the illustrations are all full-color. This is simply the most recent and most comprehensive book available on automotive aerodynamics, period. It’s expensive, but if you’re at all serious about the subject it’s well worth the investment.

Modifying the Aerodynamics of Your Road Car (Julian Edgar)

Dorchester: Veloce, 2018

The newest book in my library, this is also the only one (aside from some other smaller books by the same author) that is directly aimed at home modifiers. Although not written by an aerodynamicist, this book was fully vetted by engineers and professors, and its author has a lot of experience modifying cars. This is probably the most practical resource on this list; you can’t go wrong with this book (and its author’s extremely informative Youtube channel).

Vehicle Aerodynamics: Testing, Modification & Development (Julian Edgar)

New South Wales: Edgar Media, 2023

At nearly 500 pages in full color, this book might be the best value of any on this list. It is certainly the most up-to-date and the most useful for anyone reading this blog, whether you're interested in the aerodynamics of road cars, SUVs, racing cars, or alternative vehicles such as heavy trucks or bicycles. Several professional aerodynamicists gave feedback on and contributed to the book, and the author brings a wealth of experience to the numerous modification examples, testing techniques, and theoretical explanations you'll find here. This is hands-down THE single best book you can invest in. Available from Amazon at the link above (I don't receive any consideration for the links here, or anywhere on this website).