From Road and Track:
Haynes Manuals, the workshop manuals producer that makes detailed maintenance manuals on pretty much every relevant car on the planet, confirmed today it will no longer publish any of its new print workshop manuals in print. Manuals published by the company from here on out will only be available in digital form.
The company clarified on Twitter it will continue to print its massive back catalog of existing manuals, so if it already has one on your car, you’re still in luck if you want a physical copy.
Haynes, based in the U.K. and founded in 1960, has been a lifesaver for enthusiasts around the world looking to do the work on their own cars. Instead of dropping a bunch of money on a dealer or repair shop, you could pick up a Haynes manual and have all the info you need to get any job done.
. . . .
“We are currently in the process of creating an exciting and comprehensive new automotive maintenance and repair product that will cover around 95 percent of car makes and models—an increase of around 40 percent over our current Workshop Manual coverage.”
Link to the rest at Road and Track and thanks to DM for the tip.
PG still remembers the shock he felt the first time he saw an auto mechanic wearing disposable gloves.
Prior to that, one could discern how much experience an auto mechanic had by looking at his hands. (They were all “hims” in times of old.)
Special soap was available for mechanics, farmers, factory workers, etc., who got their hands really dirty. It would remove a lot of dirt and grease, but that sort of work not only got your hands dirty, it often built up formidable calluses on those hands. When those calluses dried and cracked, dirt and grease built up in the cracks and that was very hard, sometimes impossible, to remove.
In those occupations, the condition of a man’s hands was like a calling card and could command respect among his fellow laborers. If you were a newbie, you couldn’t bluff your way up the status ladder.