The Kneeslider

Doers Builders and Positive People

S&S X-Wedge Custom for Jay Leno

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Jay Leno's S&S X-Wedge customThe S&S boys teamed up with the ExxonMobil Mobil 1 crew to build an X-Wedge custom bike for Jay Leno. It’s powered by a 117 inch X-Wedge and is more of a sporty cruiser than any sort of chopper, after all, Jay Leno is a bit more performance oriented. This motorcycle is the first to include the third-generation “performance cruiser” chassis/powertrain kit.

S&S has a video of the build up and the presentation which shows Leno out for a ride, The bike seems well done and remember, this is EPA legal. Jay made several references to how it sounded really good and wasn’t throwing off a lot of heat. Looks like S&S may have put together a pretty strong and clean engine. I’m waiting to see this show up in a lot more bikes.

Already got a couple of tips on this. Thanks, guys!

From the S&S press release:

The X-Wedgeâ„¢ engine is not only powerful and looks great, but also meets new 2008 CARB and 2010 EPA emissions standards, providing significant reduction in noise and gaseous emissions. This next generation v-twin is a departure from S&S’ traditional engine design and a step toward the future of air-cooled, pushrod operated v-twins.

“For me this is the only air cooled motor that feels as tight and quiet as one that is liquid cooled, and that’s saying a lot. It’s got everything a guy could ask for, especially in an era when motorcycle manufacturers are getting away from air cooled engines, This bike has performance, power and a comfortable ride, which is especially important at my age,” said Leno.

Representatives from both companies presented Leno with the cycle during a ceremony at the entertainer’s famed southern California garage on November 7. The motorcycle itself weighs less than 550 pounds, has a wheelbase around 60 inches, rake of 28 degrees, and trail of 5.2 inches. The chassis is TIG welded, 1020 DOM steel tubular frame with a modular rear subframe. The build also includes 17” Michelin Pilot tires, Brembo radial binders, and Ohlins front and rear suspension.

Link: S&S   video

Comments

  1. “Jay made several references to how it sounded really good and wasn’t throwing off a lot of heat.”

    Remember, he’s comparing it to his Y2K…

    -todd

  3. I don’t know if this is a dumb question or not…but why does the “next generation of air-cooled v-twins” still use pushrods?

  4. I don’t know if its just me but he didn’t really seem that excited at the unveiling, I would be going crazy if someone built a custom bike like this for me!

  5. Why use pushrods? Better cooling and, considering the low redline, there’s no good reason to go OHC.

    I’m sure it was entirely for such purely technical reasons why Yamaha went the pushrod route with their air cooled narrow V angle twin, right?

  6. “Why use pushrods? Better cooling and, considering the low redline, there’s no good reason to go OHC.”

    I’m just curious. Exactly how do pushrods offer better cooling?

    One very good thing about Overhead Cams is less maintenance. Longer duration between valve adjustments is a big plus in my book.

  7. Most (obviously not the bevel or belt drive twins) A/C OHCs do not have air cooling though the cam chain cavity.

    Most rocker arm heads have more fin area on top than OHC engines. Ever see many OHC radial aircraft engines? That’s just one reason. On the other hand, I’m not a big fan of big chrome boxes on top of the heads……

    Less maintainence? Lets see – my Big Twin, Buell, and 883 had hydraulic lifters. No maintainence. Ever. Some A/C fours (like the old 700 Nighthawk S – not a low revving twin!)had them in the mid-’80’s – why did they stop making them that way?

    My XR1000 had eccentric rocker shafts – the adjustment of all 4 valves takes about 10 minutes – if you are slow. Just remove 4 small threaded caps on the side of the top end. They were O-ringed – nothing to replace. It never needed any adjustments anyway.

    My old BMW R100/7? Again, a braindead job to do – a lot less time over, say 50,000 miles than any Genesis head. My old K100 was also a breeze – can’t say that about too many other L/C OHCs.

    OHCs in a low revving engine are more of a gimmick than an technological advance. Whether or not one wants a bike with an A/C low revving engine is another matter. Some get it, some don’t.

    Now what I don’t get is why A/C pushrod twins – which, in theory, should be the easiest and cheapest engines to make and sell – are so flaming expensive.

  8. Thanks for your replies, guys. I just didn’t understand why they would still be using a seemingly antiquated technology on a newer engine. It makes sense now.

  9. “I don’t know if its just me but he didn’t really seem that excited at the unveiling…”

    Bear in mind that this is Jay Leno. He has more motor vehicles than you’ve had sandwiches.

  12. GenWaylaid –

    thanks for the laugh. I can go for a bbq pulled pork sammich… lettuce, tomato, red onion…chips

    Phoebe – great question

    ROHORN –

    good points about the over-priced pushrod twins. I understand supply & demand, but you can buy a crate motor for a hot rod car cheaper than an aftermarket v-twin. There’s supply & demand, & then there’s getting carried away.

    I am a fan of pushrods too (my pushrod Guzzi runs great). But, I like the Victory engine a lot and don’t think it is gimicky. Although the pushrod isn’t antiquated in a low-rev air-cooled application, there are advantages to the Victory design, right? (even though it is taller due to the OHC).

    Is a pushrod setup not the best choice when a motor runs more than 2 valves? I think Victory has 4 valve heads (not sure). Also, isn’t Guzzi’s new 8valve engine no longer a pushrod?

    thanks —

  13. Ironic that for the S&S publicity ploy to really work they had to give the thing to Leno, a world famous gearhead but a guy to whom it’s just another bike, and far from his most important. Now if they’d given the bike to ME, I’d have really appreciated it. Of course they’d get more publicity by pushing it off a pier.

  15. Hoyt,

    Good stuff – again!

    The Victory engine? Four valves per cylinder. And I’m under the impression that the head is more oil cooled than air cooled. A lot of air cooled 4 valve heads have either or both cooling and grossly inefficient combustion chamber problems.

    Some builders have told me that the old Fuelling 4 valve head kits for Big Twins did nothing except lighten the wallet and generate conversation.

    One benefit of 4 valve designs is that the lighter valves allow more radical cam profiles. With rockers and pushrods, that is no longer the case. Then there’s the BMW Oilhead valvetrain…..

    At this time, there is a complete Victory engine kit (used) for $2000.00 on eBay – far less than the usual used H-D/clone set-up. Maybe somebody will buy a half dozen of those, give them (and a big check!) to a few of us here. Then we’ll build Good Handling & Cool Bikes for their show. Oh wait – nobody wants that – the Victory rep told me so.

    Which is why S&S is selling those engines. I think it is a neat engine. But so is the EX500 engine I just bought the other day for $150.00…..

  16. I wonder if Leno would have even considered buying the bike let alone ask for one to be made for him. As far as I can tell there isn’t really anything special about this bike. Sure, it’s a great mileastone to build your own engine and get it EPA approved. No doubt, that’s a major achievement.

    Just like Paris Hilton probably doesn’t keep all the free clothing and bags Jay will eventually sell the bike or give it to some friend. S&S might have included a claus in the transaction that he had to keep it for a little while.

    Back to the engine: Are they building it because it’s better than the H-D engine? Has H-D been putting more pressure on them to stop copying their motors? Really, what is so great about the engine? What will it do for customers that the H-D or other clone motors will not? It isn’t different enough to be noticed and I fear most people would mistake it for a Kawasaki or Honda motor if not a Harley.

    -todd

    p.s. 4-valves have the potential of making greater torque over a wider power range due to the smaller diameter ports and higher flow velocities.

  17. I thought the whole point of the x-wedge was its use of automotive style components, and a wedge type combustion chamber. As most of you probably know, this is much more efficient and cleaner burning than a dome style hemi combustion chamber. Plus the use of off the shelf automotive engine parts makes it cheaper to build and service, my guess is it probably uses some small block chevy parts since there so widely available and even high quality parts are relatively cheap.

    The thing that sucks for s&s is that they spent all this time and money building a really nice epa approved engine, presumably so that chopper builders have a much easier time to get their bikes registered legally, and now that its ready the whole chopper boom is pretty much dead. Obviously there are other uses for this motor, but if it was ready 4-5 years ago they probably would’ve made a killing. But who knows, I think it would be pretty cool in a Wakan…

  18. I like the idea of putting the X-Wedge in something like a Wakan or a BTR (Big Twin Racer). The CW article about the X-Wedge mentioned S&S is considering a unit-construction transmission for the engine. Hopefully they will make it as compact as the Hellcat or Ecosse.

    This may or may not work well, but I’d like to build a cafe chassis & mount this engine ala Guzzi-style. Machine parts in order to mate a Guzzi or BMW trans. and shaft drive. Jay’s garage could handle it.

    That “bwa-aap” of the throttle when he was stopped, sounded good in the video clip

  19. I understand the truck engine technology will make it easier and less expensive for them to engineer and manufacture. Does this savings get passed onto the customer? If it’s about efficiency I doubt that MPG stats would play much consideration into someone’s chopper project.

    We’ll see how it goes, the 1/4 chevy V-8 engine design has not been successful in the past. Here’s to hoping that won’t be the case for S&S this time around.

    I like Hoyt’s idea for transverse mounting the motor ala moto-guzzi (or CX500…) though, no doubt, there would be some serious torque roll that no amount of counter rotating alternators would diminish. Better to hang this onto the front of a Morgan trike. Jay would be more interested in that.

    -todd

  20. Kudos to S&S. 550 pounds is a step in the right direction for a sport cruiser.
    My two cents on push rod two valve engines is, if the power and EPA levels are acceptable why go to the complexity of four valves and OHC’s? Fewer moving parts means less weight,less friction, fewer repairs and a quieter operation. Same applies to air/oil cooling as opposed to liquid cooling. Granted the water jackets kill a lot of noise that air cooled engines don’t.

  22. All
    Mobil 1 came to us to build that bike because of their relationship with Leno. We had no agreement with Jay, nor did we pay him anything. Furthermore, he has been riding the snot out of the bike…various pics of him around LA have shown him on it because, well, he likes it. I rode the bike before it shipped out, plenty of torque, solid chassis design–made me wish i was still in LA to run it through Latigo canyon.
    Howard