Get up to speed on the Kennedy Tank Special.
Acceleration. Aerodynamics. Taking the corners at high speed and sticking them. While you might not associate our name or products with traits like these, our history with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway proves otherwise.
From 1936 to 1952, William E. Kennedy, Sr., and William E. Kennedy, Jr., sponsored cars at the Indianapolis 500. At the time, major names in the oil industry were a large base of business for Kennedy Tank. Naturally, William Sr. and Jr. alike saw the opportunity to use the race to host and entertain these valuable customers. It also fed their own personal passion for the sport as well (a passion passed down in a very big way to Patrick Kennedy, author of two books on the Indy 500).
As for Kennedy Tank’s top finish, that occurred in our inaugural 1936 outing. Driven by George Barringer, and joined by riding mechanic Dick Wilkes, the car finished in eighth place, posting an average speed of 102.630 mph.
past winners
| YEAR | DRIVER | SPONSOR | OWNER | CAR # | START | MPH | FINISH | LAPS | SPEED | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | George Barringer | Kennedy Tank Special | Phil Shafer | 17 | 14 | 112.700 | 8 | 200 | 102.630 | ||
| 1937 | Emil Andres | Kennedy Tank Special | Phil Shafer/ Joel Thorne | 36 | N/A | 116.243 | Bumped - First Alternate | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1938 | Not Entered | ||||||||||
| 1939 | Al Miller | Kennedy Tank Special | Paul Weirick | 42 | 28 | 123.233 | 28 | 41 | Accelerator | ||
| 1940 | Joie Chitwood | Kennedy Tank Special | Paul Weirick | 42 | 26 | 121.757 | 15 | 190 | Flagged | ||
| 1941 | Emil Andres | Kennedy Tank Special | Joe Lencki | 19 | 15 | 122.266 | 30 | 5 | Crash | ||
| 1946 | Not Entered | ||||||||||
| 1947 | Les Anderson | Kennedy Tank Special | Les Anderson | 58 | 7 | 118.425 | 11 | 131 | Flagged | ||
| 1948 | Les Anderson | Kennedy Tank Special | Les Anderson | 34 | 9 | 122.337 | 24 | 58 | Gears | ||
| 1949 | Bill Cantrell* | Kennedy Tank Special | Les Anderson | 74 | 30 | 127.191 | 21 | 95 | Drive Shaft | ||
| 1950 | Not Entered | ||||||||||
| 1951 | Paul Russo | Kennedy Tank Special | Paul Russo/ Ray Nichels | 7 | N/A | 121.914 | Did Not Make Race. 1st of 3 Qualifying Laps 127 mph Range - Good Enough to Make Race. 4th Lap Less Than 100 mph (Mechanical Problem - Coasted Across Finish Line) | ||||
| 1952 | Johny Mauro | Kennedy Tank Special (Ferrari)** | Johny Mauro | 35 | N/A | N/A | Did Not Make Qualifying Attempt - Lacked Speed | ||||
*Les Anderson could not get car up to speed in practice and replaced himself with Bill Cantrell.
**Test driven by two-time Formula 1 World Champion Alberto Ascari.
***Donald Davidson – Indianapolis Motor Speedway Historian helped with the history of the Kennedy Tank Special.