Memoirs of a Hack Mechanic: How Fixing Broken BMWs Helped Make Me Whole (a memoir with actual useful stuff)

For over 25 years Rob Siegel has written a monthly column called "The Hack Mechanic" for the BMW Car Club of America's magazine Roundel. In Memoirs of a Hack Mechanic, he shares his secrets to buying, fixing, and driving cool cars without risking the kids' tuition money or destroying his marriage. A geophysicist by day and self-professed, car junkie in his free time, Siegel explores his passion for cars with unflinching honesty and offers a unique window into the Car Guy mind. Along the way he reflects on the genesis of his fascination with boxy little German sedans, how cars affect family dynamics, and why men really love cars. And in showing how cars have so often been the conduit for deep human connections in his life, Siegel reveals his controversial theory that beyond their greasy fingernails, gearheads are actually intimate, caring creatures. With a steady dose of irreverent humor, Memoirs of a Hack Mechanic blends car stories, DIY advice, and cautionary tales in a way that will resonate with the car-obsessed (and the people who love them).