James Taylor

The coach – distinguished from the bus by its use for longer-haul and more comfortable trips – has a long and august history. Its origins lie in the charabanc, a long open-topped vehicle used to transport passengers on works outings and pleasure excursions. Over time, coaches came to be enclosed and fitted with more comfortable seating and higher-quality bodywork than the charabancs and the buses used on shorter routes. By the 1960s and 1970s on-board toilets began to be fitted, and despite a decline due to private car ownership, coach travel remains popular, with Wi-Fi, electric sockets and even video screens now built in. This colourful introduction explains the development of motor coach design and the main coach manufacturers, models and operators, offering a fascinating insight into the history of the nation’s most popular vehicles.

A comprehensive pictorial overview of Rover cars and car-derived vans covers the 60 years from 1945 to 2005. It describes and illustrates all of the great classic Rovers up to and including the SD1, and goes on to look at the models inherited from British Leyland that attracted Rover badges. It finishes with the models designed in conjunction with Honda; the later British-designed cars – and even the final City Rover. There is also consideration of some Rover models that were designed but, for various reasons, did not enter production, and can now only be seen as prototypes in museums. A title in Veloce’s popular Pictorial History series, Rover Cars 1945 to 2005 describes all of the postwar models with illustrations and technical data for each.

The traditional utility Land Rover remains as much an enthusiast's choice as ever now that its production has been ended. Between 1948 and 2016, there was a far greater variety of models produced - an astonishing 300-plus - than even the most ardent enthusiasts recognise, and this comprehensive and highly illustrated book is a guide to all of them - both those built in Britain and those built (often with unique features) overseas. Laid out with an easy-to-follow catalogue format, this book offers masses of detail on both production variants and also on many that never went beyond the prototype stage, as well as on the multiple special editions that were sold around the world in more recent years.

Rolls-Royce and Bentley relied upon standardised body designs after 1945, but for the next two decades both marques also supplied chassis frames separately, and it was possible to have these clothed with coachwork by bespoke coachbuilders like, for example, Mulliner, Park Ward and James Young in Britain, or Graber, Farina and Franay in Europe. Many buyers took this route, and this highly illustrated book bears witness to the wide variety of styles that were built in this fascinating period. Chassis number lists for each coachbuilder, both in Britain and overseas, identify their creations, to make this a comprehensive and essential companion for anyone interested in Rolls-Royce and Bentley in the post-war era.

When the Range Rover Sport was launched in 2005, it was aimed at a new group of customers who in many cases would never have considered a Land Rover product before. These customers wanted and could afford a luxurious vehicle that was expensive to run; but they also wanted a very personalized vehicle that did not have the rather grand and conservative connotations of the full-size Range Rover. Brasher and more glamorous than its older sibling, the Sport was soon adopted by celebrities and others who expected to be noticed. Range Rover Sport - The Complete Story is the first book devoted specifically to the first-generation Range Rover Sport. It tells the story behind the development and launch of the vehicle; it explains the market reaction, including contemporary press reviews; provides details of each model with technical specification tables and colour and trip options; lists production figures and VIN identification and dating; details prices and sales figures for the UK, USA and Canada and finally, includes a useful chapter on buying and owning.

Digital Decisioning ensures your systems act intelligently on your behalf, making precise, consistent, real-time decisions at every touch point. It operationalizes machine learning and artificial intelligence, so you can make the best possible decision, every time. It uses business rules to guarantee the agility, transparency and compliance that established companies and regulated industries demand. Focusing only on decision-making, it supports continuous learning and improvement. Digital Decisioning applies machine learning and artificial intelligence at scale to automate the decisions essential for more profitable, more customer-centric and more digital business operations. "Essential reading for COOs looking to rigorously improve automation through AI." Based on dozens of successful projects around the word, this book lays out the basic elements of the approach in a practical how-to guide. Aimed at managers, not technical teams, this book will focus your efforts to apply machine learning, artificial intelligence and predictive analytics. It emphasizes practical "do this next" advice delivered in non-technical terms, describing the business value and impact of critical technologies without diving into technical detail. Stories of real implementations, real companies, show what can be done. A completely updated version of an established and popular book on Decision Management, this second edition has forewords by leading analytic experts, Tom Davenport and Eric Siegel. "James has been at the forefront of decision management techniques for years. Anyone trying to automate and embed analytics to support decisions should read this book." --Bill Franks, Chief Analytics Officer, International Institute for Analytics, speaker, and author "An absolute masterclass in analytics from one of the great masters himself. Nothing but solid knowledge, sage advice, and great examples without an ounce of hyperbole or flu." --Doug Laney, Principal Data Strategist with Caserta, and best-selling author of 'Infonomics'.

Having this book in your pocket is just like having a real marque expert by your side. Benefit from James Taylor’s years of Range Rover ownership and experience, learn how to spot a bad example quickly, and how to assess a promising one like a professional. Get the right Range Rover at the right price! This buyer’s guide focuses on the third generation Range Rovers, produced between 2002 and 2012. Packed with good advice – from running costs, through paperwork, vital statistics, valuation, and the Range Rover community, to whether a third generation Range Rover will suit you and your lifestyle – this is THE COMPLETE GUIDE to choosing, assessing and buying the Range Rover of your dreams.

The Mercedes-Benz W123 was launched in 1976 and sales quickly surpassed those of its predecessor, the W114. The W123 went on to become the most successful Mercedes, selling 2.7 million cars. Mercedes-Benz W123 - The Complete Story explores the life of this highly regarded executive car from its initial evolution, development and production to the creation of new models and its success in motorsport. The book features the styling, engineering and technical advances introduced over the lifetime of the three series; full technical specifications together with customer options, equipment and interior trim for each model; production numbers and vehicle number sequences and finally there is a section on the little-known details of the manufacture of the car in China.

Contemporary novel about a sensitive musician who falls in love with a lady porn star

James Taylor remembers very well the disappointment among his petrol-head friends when the XJ-S was announced in 1975. It was not a replacement for the legendary E-type; its colours were uninspired; and its interior was drab. All credit, then, to those people at Jaguar who truly believed in the car and, over a period of nearly 20 years, turned the ugly duckling into a swan. From the moment the XJ-S HE arrived in 1981, there seemed to be renewed hope, and from then on, the car went from strength to strength to become the much-admired grand tourer it always should have been. The book contains a timeline of the key events in the history of the XJ-S and an overview of the evolution of the XJ-S from the XJ27 prototype. There are Appendices covering identification/serial numbers, UK showroom prices through the years and sales in the US by year.

Having this book in your pocket is just like having a real marque expert by your side. Benefit from James Taylor’s years of Range Rover experience, learn how to spot a bad example quickly, and how to assess a promising one like a professional. Get the right Range Rover at the right price! This buyer’s guide focuses on the second generation Range Rovers, produced between 1994 and 2001. Packed with good advice – from running costs, through paperwork, vital statistics, valuation, and the Range Rover community, to whether a second generation Range Rover will suit you and your lifestyle – this is THE COMPLETE GUIDE to choosing, assessing and buying the Range Rover of your dreams.

Inspired by the success of the Ford Mustang "pony car" in the USA, Ford UK launched the Capri - "The Car You Always Promised Yourself" in 1969 and it was an instant hit, with its long bonnet, sleek 2+2 coupe body, and low stance. For 1974 Ford launched the Capri II, with a new smooth body style, engines ranging from 1300 to 3000cc, and a plush Ghia version of the 3-litre model. In 1978 came the Capri Mk3 with yet more refinement and a four-headlamp nose. These classic Fords now have an almost fanatical following, supported by some very active owner's clubs. Good examples are eagerly sought, and with prices rising restoration has become a very viable proposition. An astonishing number of variants of the Capri Mk2 and Mk3 were offered, so they really need to be identified. This book, companion to our 2017 title Factory-Original Ford Capri Mk I, does the job, taking the reader right through the production period and pinning down the correct factory specifications, equipment and finishes across the range. This information is backed up by nearly 300 specially commissioned colour photographs of outstanding examples of the cars.

The 1960s saw car ownership take off in Britain, as the newly opened motorways created new opportunities for travel – on family holidays, to visit relatives, or for work. The kinds of cars the British drove also changed. Small economy cars in particular helped to swell the numbers on the roads, while safety concerns started to have a greater influence on design. Larger cars for the wealthy few were joined by a new breed of ‘executive’ saloons and family runabouts. Although they may seem crude by modern standards they were perfectly in keeping with their times. This was a period when Britain still thought it produced the best cars in the world – and was struggling to accept that its golden age was over. Many old-established British makes disappeared in this decade, challenged by a gradually increasing number of imports. But the 1960s was a decade in which many families came to own and cherish a car for the first time, with the greater convenience and freedom it gave. This book is part of the Britain’s Heritage series, which provides definitive introductions to the riches of Britain’s past, and is the perfect way to get acquainted with family cars of the 1960s in all their variety.

For over 50 years between the 1760s and the early 19th century, the pioneers who sailed from Europe to explore the Pacific brought back glimpses of this new world in the form of oil paintings, watercolours and drawings - a sensational view of a part of the world few would ever see. Today these works represent a fascinating and inspiring perspective from the frontier of discovery. It was Sir Joseph Banks, President of the Royal Society, who popularised the placement of professional artists on British ships of exploration. They captured striking and memorable images of everything they encountered: exotic landscapes, beautiful flora and fauna, as well as remarkable portraits of indigenous peoples. These earliest views of the Pacific, particularly Australia, were designed to promote the new world as enticing, to make it seem familiar, to encourage further exploration and, ultimately, British settlement. Drawing on both private and public collections from around the world, this lavish book collects together oil paintings, watercolours, drawings, prints and other documents from those voyages, and presents a unique glimpse into an age where science and art became irrevocably entwined.

The second generation Range Rover was arguably Land Rover's first model designed as a luxury vehicle. It was a major leap for the company, but a very successful one as well. Despite controversy over its looks, and some initial teething problems, it became a worthy successor to the much-loved original. Range Rover Second Generation - The Complete Story draws on the memories of designers and engineers as well as on a wide variety of factory sources to provide the most authoritative history of the mode yet. The book covers the full development history; the changes during eight years of production; Range Rovers for the North American market; full technical specifications and finally Range Rovers and the emergency services.

Having this book in your pocket is just like having a real marque expert by your side. Benefit from James Taylor’s years of experience with the Land Rover Discovery, learn how to spot a bad example quickly, and how to assess a promising one like a professional. Get the right Series II Discovery at the right price! Packed with good advice – from running costs, through paperwork, vital statistics, valuation, and the Land Rover community, to whether a Series II Discovery will suit you and your lifestyle – this is THE COMPLETE GUIDE to choosing, assessing and buying the right Discovery for you.