The books you listed are great references. The Carroll Smith books (Tune to Win, Engineer to Win, etc.) are very easy to read and cover the basics in a qualitative way non-engineers can understand. The Milliken book lies on the other end of the spectrum as it is a much more thorough and...
First post here...hello everyone.
Kronos1, you are correct in your assumption that reducing unsprung mass is a good thing - for many reasons.
The assumptions you make in number 2 lead me to believe you don't have a firm understanding of vehicle dynamics. Research tire load sensitivity...