Jalopnik: tank car

1955 Johnson and Shipley B-Lakester For A Salty $500,000!

Graverobber — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 07:00:00 EDT

In 1827 Jedediah Smith became the first white man to cross the Bonneville Salt Flats. In honor of that, and Speed Week, Nice Price or Crack Pipe is putting you inside the belly tank of the beast.

Ads for endurance extenders are all over the TV these days, and while those salves and pills may be of dubious value, another form of endurance extender was tested and found effective during the second world war. Droppable belly tanks extended the range of the escort P51 Mustangs, allowing them to accompany their protectorate B17s and 24s deeper onto the continent, and keeping the ME109s off their backs. As the tanks were expendable, they needed to be replaced after each sortie, and the allies cranked them out to meet the demand.

War's end saw a considerable volume of military surplus material - including a whole lot of these belly tanks - hit the civilian market. Hot rodders, realizing the aerodynamic cat-turd shape of the tanks, grabbed them up as cheap and slippery bodies for their cars in which they plied the outer edges of the performance envelope on the hard, unforgiving salt flats of the Utah desert.

One of those cars, which is a multi-record holder, is the subject of today's heated debate- the Johnson and Shipley #48-B land speed belly tank racer. One of a series of three, this hemi-powered lakester holds the 1963 B and '64 A speed records at, respectively, 259.92 and 263.350 mph. Don Johnson was the driver for these runs, and Jeff Shipley kept everything bolted together. The center of Shipley's attention was, no doubt, the 331 c.i.d. Chrysler V8 which is topped with a 6-71 GMC blower and two-port Hilborn fuel injection. A Gilmore in-and-out box transfers power to the quick change Halibrand rear end.

If you are interested in seeing one of 48-B's sisters, #28 may be found at the Peterson Automotive Museum. The other may be more difficult to catch as it sold to a private collector in 2007 for $440,000.

This Moon-disc equipped salt rocket is set at a price a bit more dear than its sister- $500,000. At that price, you're really getting three pieces of historical significance- the WWII angle; the Bonneville speed trials bit; and the individual history of this particular car. For that price, it has been fully restored, but needs mechanical work should you want to hit the salt with your investment.

So, is half a million a Nice Price for a storied Bonneville bomber? Or does that price seem more like Crack Pipe than Salt Lake?

You Decide!

Raced & Rallied, or go here if the ad sets a new record for shortest appearance.

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2006 Woodward Dream Cruise: Jay Leno's Tank Car Takes Woodward Avenue By Storm

Ray Wert — Sat, 19 Aug 2006 13:16:14 EDT

The rains couldn't keep Leno's Tank Car from exhibition at the Woodward Dream Cruise, but the boys at Bosch were kind enough to drop a tent over it to make sure no damage would be done to the one-of-a-kind engine on wheels by the not-so-much torrential downpour. If y'all remember, his 9500-lb. hot rod's humongous V12 tank engine (1792 ci) was merely naturally aspirated, so Gale Banks and the boys at Bosch decided to fit the sucker with some twin-turbo action. The resulting 1600 hp and 3000 lb.-ft torque is nothing less than epic — but we'll let you judge that for yourself.

Turbo Tankcar Goodness

Davey G. Johnson — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 15:00:00 EDT

Because a Continental V-12 out of a Patton tank just isn't enough power for Jay Leno, he sent the car formerly known as the Blastolene Special off to Gale Banks for some honking turboage. As we mentioned previously, the freshly uprated monster roadster will be unveiled at the Woodward Dream Cruise later this month. However, Iowahawk — sneaky devil that he is — infiltrated Banks' facility last week and captured this video of the beast being fired up. Mash play and be amazed.

This Just In [Iowahawk]

Fat, Fast Bastard: Twin Turbos for Leno's Tank Car

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 12:04:05 EDT

So you though Jay Leno had wrung all the juice possible out of his Tank Car? Silly you. The 9500-lb. hot rod's giganormous V12 tank engine (1792 ci) was merely naturally aspirated. Enter turbo king Gale Banks, a friend of Leno's, who agreed to fit the Tank Car with twin turbos — which will boost horsepower to 1600 hp and 3000-lb.-ft of torque. The weak link? The six-speed Allison tranny, which will have to be modified to accept the kind of torque that could put the earth off its axis. The finished product will be unveiled next month in Detroit for the Woodward Dream Cruise. Pity the poor asphalt.

Leno's Tank Car Gets Twin Turbos [internal]