Bill Jenkins (drag racer)

William Tyler Jenkins (December 22, 1930 – March 29, 2012), nicknamed "Grumpy" or "The Grump", was an engine builder and drag racer.

[3] He has been inducted in numerous motorsports halls of fame for his engine building skills in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Pro Stock class.

His innovations include drag racing's first kickout oil pans, Pro Stock strut-style front suspension, and dry sump oiling system, and cool cans, electric water pump fan, gas port pistons, and slick-shift manual transmissions.

[2] The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America said: "his continual search for improved performance left little time for idle chatter with his racing colleagues.

He won the A/MP (A/Modified Production) class in a 1965 Plymouth gasser at the 1965 NHRA Nationals at Indianapolis Raceway Park, with a pass of 11.11 seconds at 130.24 mph (209.60 km/h).

[3] Without factory support, Jenkins developed his first Grumpy's Toy, a 327 cubic inch / 350 horsepower Chevy II.

[2] He entered Pro Stock when NHRA started it in 1970, and won the first two events of the year (the Winternationals and Gatornationals) in a 1968 Chevrolet Camaro,[2] ultimately taking the national title.

Jenkins used a small block-based 331 cu in (5.4 L) in a Chevrolet Vega fitted in the class' first tube chassis,[2] which debuted at the 1972 Winternationals.

[9] Jenkins retired as a driver,[clarification needed] hiring Larry Lombardo and Ken Dondero to drive his cars so that he could concentrate on research and development.

Grumpy's main focus was on Comp engines, which were used by a large client list, including national event winners Garley Daniels, Steve Johns, and Bob Kaiser.

[3] He led development of GM's new splay-valved cylinder heads for the Chevrolet small block V8 engines, utilized in the new Pro Stock Truck category in 1998.

He fitted the splay-valve heads in a 358 cu in (5.87 L) engine, used by Larry Kopp to win the 1998 Winston drag championship, and by 1998 national event winners Tim Freeman, Brad Jeter, Johns, Mark Osborne, Scott Perin, and Don Smith.

In 2006, two-time Pro Stock champion Jim Yates announced a testing program with a Jenkins motor in his 2005 Pontiac GTO.