SEMA 2009: 1951 Henry J gasser is a 7-second blast from the past
Posted Nov 6th 2009 4:20PM by Frank Filipponio
1951 Kaiser Henry J - Click above for high-res image gallery
Here's another black beauty that caught our attention in the halls of SEMA 2009. It's a 1951 Kaiser Henry J owned and raced by Chris Beanes of California.
Running in A/Gas, this gloss-free gasser can storm the quarter in the mid-7s at better than 174 MPH. We read somewhere that it's powered by a Chevy 400 that's backed by a four-speed transmission, but other than that we don't have a lot more details. What we do have are a few pics in the gallery below that hopefully capture the magic of this nostalgic dragster.
Photos copyright ©2009 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Howard H. 4:43PM (11/06/2009)
Great car.
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kevin 5:19PM (11/06/2009)
This is seriously impressive. I can't imagine how much went into the car, money, labour, thought, etc.
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KT 5:38PM (11/06/2009)
Awesome.
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artandcolour 5:56PM (11/06/2009)
terribly minor and arcane point here, but they weren't Kaiser Henry Js. they were Henry Js by Kaiser-Frazer in '51-'52 and then Henry Js by Kaiser Motors ('53). they were [technically] their own marque. there was the Allstate also, which was a Henry J sold and marketed by the Sears Corporation, with it's own grille/badge, and whatever Sears parts could be used, tires, batteries etc.
i don't see the point of a 'gasser' like this. i'd rather see this important little car restored correctly.
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Tom Winch 8:58PM (11/06/2009)
The "point" is, it's a tube frame race car with either fiberglass or carbon fiber Henry J body panels. These gassers are drag cars from a bygone era and this one is very cool.
JDM Life 10:25PM (11/06/2009)
My Civic would eat this.
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yankee 8:04AM (11/07/2009)
This is the car we need today with the new composits ,the new 4 bangers and yesterdays price .oh allright but not more then $10,000
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fmwso 6:22PM (11/08/2009)
That looks really good. I love it.
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papa dave 12:29AM (11/17/2009)
Frank, thank you for featuring our car....It's a fiberglas replica of a '51 Henry J with numerous body modifications.... like a chopped top...pie cut front end etc....Double frame rail, chrome moly chassis, certified 25.1E to 6.0 sec.....weight 2385 with driver.... powered by a 380 cu.in. small block Chev. built by Dustin Lee, Lake Havasu, Arizona.....Donovan aluminum block ...Brodix aluminum heads....10-71 supercharger....Enderle Buzzard Catcher fuel injection system by Ralph and Spike Gorr...Mike's Transmission Powerglide...We run the NHRA Heritage Series in A/Gas which is a 7.60 Index Class...We were runner up in the series this year with a win in Las Vegas and won in Bakersfield at the Hot Rod Reunion last month....25 racers were vying for 16 spots....We won the the race from the 11th qualifying position....Looking forward to bringing home the Wally in 2010....Thanks again...
JDM life....don't know why you would feel inclined to make your comment...... don't really think anyone cares about your belly button Civic....
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barkersfab 8:08PM (12/19/2009)
Dear Frank the pictures you took of the henry j look great . I thought i would set the story straight . My self Eric Barker and Chuck Morris built the car for the beanes family. I did all the fabrication work while Chuck did all the fiberglass work for the body altercations that i dreamed up . I would like to say thanks to the Beanes family for giving me a oppertunity to build them a winning car and congradulations to dustin who makes all the power and calls on race day to make it a winning car for the beanes.The car is very unique and deserves alot of attention . I Eric Barker used to be in arizona now im in north carolina still fabricating drag racing cars . FOR IT IS MY LOVE AND PASSION. It is very evident if you look at the henry j I built for the Beanes family . THANKS AGAIN FOR POSTING THE HENRYJ .Eric Barker
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