The little Henry J goes down the road minus bumpers, front and back. Built on a custom 2x3 rectangular tube frame, the car has a stance that hints at its quickness.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Jack Tanner thought his dad's 1951 Henry J was too ugly to ride in when he was a kid. Today, he is kind of partial to his own slightly more stylish and way more powerful '51 Henry J street cruiser.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Tanner completely rebuilt the 355 cubic inch small block Chevy V-8 in his Henry J, building his own headers and air cleaner in the process. The combination is capable of scooting the little car down the drag strip in the high 10-second range.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Not many folks immediately recognize the Henry J for what it is, thus the appropriate vanity plate on the rear of the car. Note the custom roll pan louvers, fuel cell fittings and fat Hoosier rolling stock.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The snug interior accomodations include a shortened '55 Chevy instrument panel, a Grant steering wheel, B&M shifter and a pair of toggle switches mounted in a console that includes cup holders. One switch turns on the electric fuel pump, the other activates a 100-horsepower shot of nitrous oxide.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Tanner's theory is `stick to the basics' -- if it isn't needed, it's not there. The tubbed rear suspension is covered in insulated foil, replacing the back seat.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The surprisingly stylish seating accommodations are provided by a now-forgotten Ford Fiesta. The blue bottle peaking out from between the seats supplies the nitrous power when extra umph is required; the 5-point racing harness keeps the driver firmly planted in the seat.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The well-worn steering wheel hints at the Henry J's life as a road car, with trips to Loveland, Colo. and the Texas Motor Speedway near Dallas-Fort Worth on its log book. Auto Meter gauges are used to keep track of under-hood goings-on.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Many folks mistake the distinctive front end of the two-tone Henry J for a Studebaker, but the horizontal star grille bar identifies it as a Kaiser-built car.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The Henry J was well ahead of the curve in the tail fin department, with these nifty vertical fins in place in 1951.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The curvaceous rear fenders were left basically unmodified, thanks to the shortened Ford 9-inch rear end and the big wheel tubs that easily accomodate 12.5-inch wide Hoosier tires mounted on Weld Racing wheels.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
A closer look at the Weld Racing wheels neatly tucked up under the rear fenders. The 31-inch tall Hoosier tires, coupled with a 3.73 gear ratio, allow the Henry J to yield about 14 miles per gallon at 70 mph -- an important consideration when you factor in the 12-gallon fuel cell.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Front wheels are Centerline racing units, mounting 195x60x15 Ultra HR radials, just wide enough to provide steering control for the short wheelbase car.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Tanner fabricated the top of the tri-corner air cleaner himself and notched the firewall to provide access to the MSD distributor.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The paint scheme consists of PPG Ebony black primer wet-sanded and buffed to a satin finish, over a Sandstone cream lower body. Tanner installed a forward-tilting fiberglass hood and modified a Z-28 cowl-induction scoop to fit.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
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