2003 Indian Chief Springfield Engine View.Jpeg
Indian Chief Springfield - Road Test
|
The 100-cubic-inch (1638cc) 45-degree Powerplus twin was introduced with all due hoopla back in January 2002 and has finally found a permanent home in Indian's flagship 2003 Chief lineup. Indian touts it as the largest-displacement engine designed and built by an American OEM motorcycle company. Pretty specific title, that...Creating its own engine had been a priority for Indian Motorcycle because the court mandated it as one of the conditions of trademark ownership when the marque was resurrected in 1998. The Powerplus may look different, but its air-cooled, 45-degree design is still pretty similar to that of Harley's Evolution engine. The 1638cc powerplant sports notched, polished aluminum rocker covers reminiscent of old Indian twins and an intake tract shifted around to the left side of the engine. As well as paying tribute to the past, those rounded cylinders have a greater fin area for better cooling, according to Indian. Putting the airbox and 42mm Mikuni flat-slide carb on the left side isn't done just for tradition's sake, though. Cruiser convention that dictates the exhaust system be opposite the sidestand, on the curb side. That means the right side of the bike is inevitably the source of any exhaust noise, and Indian designers did not want to take the chance of having two noise sources on the same side when dealing with the EPA sound police. By putting the intake on the left and the two-into-one pipe on the right, Indian could avoid having a double-decibel party that'd force the EPA to revoke its dance ticket. View Related Article
|
|