[CD]

Here’s something we spotted recently on the Euro trade show circuit — a British company hoping their new motorcycle engine will tempt a few OEMs with its mix of compact technical features and high revving, twin cylinder power. The MaxSym GP500 and GP600 twins are parallel twin, 4-strokes — once the backbone of the Brit bike biz — but feature many updated details which make them a match for modern V-Twins, and a likely candidate for commuter and lightweight touring bikes. The liquid-cooled engine has a unique balancer system which has been patented by MaxSym and helps the engine run at a relatively high rpm without generating the usual unpleasant buzziness. Another clever touch is the one-piece casting of the head and barrels as a single unit — there’s no head gasket needed as the top half of the engine is a complete unit. In addition, the camshafts are an assembly of lobes, sprockets, bearings, etc., rather than two actual shafts. The cam chain is centrally located and can be removed from the back of the engine for maintenance without altering the cam timing. The cam chain also has a neat little gadget which reduces its running speed by 50% to boost reliability. With a six speed gearbox, dry sump lubrication and the option of having inlet valves at the front or rear of the cylinders, the engine is a flexible base unit for all kinds of motorcycles, karts and snowmobiles, especially those who want to tune the engine for racing. MaxSym claims it will rev to 14,000 rpm safely. The unit is just over 300mm wide and weighs just 24kgs, excluding the transmission. It retails for £4,995 and there are a range of options which can take the 75bhp output to around 110bhp for competition use. Log onto www.maxsym.com for more from MaxSym.

[Goose]

Christ! No head gasket?! It's cast like a weed eater motor, one piece head/cylinder. Well, most now days cast the cylinder with the upper case half. Horizontal split cases are a must, of course. This eliminates leakage at the base gasket, what the TC88 did with an O ring, I understand. But, looking at this thing I'm sitting here thinking "What the heck do I use for a valve spring compressor?????" I guess they have a special tool for that. Next thing I think is, "What do I do if I wanna bore this motor or I damage the nickacil lining and need it replated?" Now, here Im assuming a plated cylinder like most engines now days. In other words, I'd rather have the head gasket! Guess you'd mill the base of the cylinders to raise compression. LOL! Sure would make checking valve/piston clearance a chore! Don't just pull the head, have to pull the whole blessed cylinder assembly and put the silly putty on the top of the pistons and just HOPE it doesn't fall out of the valve pocket area when you're putting it all back together just to remove it all to mic. Royal PITA. So long as you don't look at this thing with race application in mind, keep it stock, and it proves reliable, I guess it's okay. Sure seems stupid to eliminate the head gasket and keep the base gasket, though.

It does look like a good valve angle, downdraft throttle bodies, 8 valve head with DOHC. All good stuff, up to date looking. I think I like the LOOK of the new Bonneville motor, though. I get a little teary eyed when I see that Triumph logo on the case covers.