The Henney Motor Company of Freeport, Illinois built limousine, hearse, ambulance and taxicab bodies from 1927 to 1954, and for most of that time it was the coachbuilder behind Packard’s professional cars. Under an exclusive agreement from 1937 to 1954 Henney turned Packard chassis into ambulances, hearses and flower cars, and it built the air conditioning system that Packard offered on a stock car in 1940.
Packard by Henney at a glance
| Coachbuilder | Henney Motor Company, Freeport, Illinois |
|---|---|
| Active | 1927–1954 |
| Bodies built | limousines, hearses, ambulances, taxicabs, flower cars |
| Packard agreement | exclusive, 1937–1954 |
| Chassis used | Packard commercial chassis, mostly 156 in (3,962 mm) wheelbase |
| Pre-war models | usually 160 or 180 trim on the 120A 156 in chassis |
| Air conditioning | fitted to Henney ambulances from 1938; offered by Packard from 1940 |
| Long limousines | 148 in chassis to 1954, 149 in in 1953–1954 |
| Later operations | Canastota, New York, for the Henney Kilowatt electric car |
Combines the short English Wikipedia article on Henney with the Packard Custom Super Eight article, which describes the Henney bodies in more detail.
History of the Packard by Henney
The company
Henney Motor Company was an American builder of limousine, hearse, ambulance and taxicab bodies based in Freeport, Illinois, in business from 1927 to 1954. Some of its operations moved to Canastota, New York, to build an electric car called the Henney Kilowatt, but the factory closed when its partner, National Union Electric Corporation, found it impossible to make the batteries for the planned price.
The Packard connection
In an exclusive agreement with Packard from 1937 until Henney’s demise in 1954, Henney provided the bodies for Packard’s ambulances, hearses and flower cars, and often supplied special custom bodywork for passenger cars as well. The pre-war Henney models usually carried 160 or 180 trim but were in fact built on the Packard 120A 156 in wheelbase chassis with the smaller 288 cu in engine, though 160 and 180 versions existed too.
Air conditioning first
Henney had fitted air conditioning to its ambulances as early as 1938. When Packard decided to offer air conditioning as an option in 1940, the system was developed by Henney, and it became the first time air conditioning was available on a stock automobile.
Limousines and professional cars
After the war the relationship continued through the Custom Super Clipper and Patrician years. Henney built nine-passenger Executive Sedans and Corporate Limousines on a 148 in wheelbase until 1954, and later eight-passenger Packard Executive Sedans and Limousines on a 149 in (3,785 mm) chassis, the Limousines with a partition between front and rear compartments. Its professional cars — hearse, ambulance, flower car and service car — were built on Packard’s 156 in commercial chassis and generally used Patrician-like trim, except in 1954 when they used Cavalier trim. The Henney Junior, a short-wheelbase hearse or ambulance, was built on the standard Cavalier-Patrician chassis with heavier rear suspension and the five-main-bearing Cavalier engine rather than the Patrician’s nine-main-bearing unit.
Why they matter
Henney cars are the least familiar Packards. They were coachbuilt rather than converted and built in small batches on Packard’s commercial chassis for undertakers, hospitals and livery operators, and they are the models most often left out of accounts of Packard’s range.
Design and features
- Exclusive contract: Henney was Packard’s professional-car builder from 1937 to 1954.
- Coachbuilt bodies: hearses, ambulances, flower cars and service cars.
- Air conditioning: Henney’s ambulance system became Packard’s 1940 option.
- Long limousines: Executive Sedans and Corporate Limousines on 148 and 149 in chassis.
Packard by Henney versions
- Henney hearse and ambulance: on the 156 in Packard commercial chassis.
- Henney Junior: a short-wheelbase professional car on the Cavalier-Patrician chassis.
- Packard Executive Sedan and Corporate Limousine: 148 in and 149 in passenger cars.
- Henney Kilowatt: the later electric car built in Canastota, New York.
Henney bodies were built on the One Eighty, the Super Eight and later the Patrician chassis. More Packards are in the Packard collection.
Sources
- Henney Motor Company, English Wikipedia: company history, location, closure
- Packard Custom Super Eight, English Wikipedia: Packard agreement, chassis, air conditioning, limousines
.jpg){kind=link}