At 08:31 PM 6/25/97 -0500, John McEwen wrote:
>Hi Scott:
>
>Some of the most impressive hp/litre ratios are found in motorcycle
>engines. 35 years ago, Honda was producing incredible power from small
>engines. They were OHC,four stroke vertical twins. As an example, my
>Honda 1963 CB92 - which was introduced in 1959-60 - produced 15-16 hp from
>125 cc. This works out to 120 hp/litre. This engine had two valves and a
>single carb. It produced this power at 10,500 rpm. A British 125 of this
>period was lucky to make 6 hp.
>
>My 1982 Kawasaki 1300 produces the same 120 horsepower from 1300 cc. It
>features 3 twin choke carbs, 2 valves, single OHC and is water-cooled.
>
>In the mid to late sixties Honda produced incredible racing engines which
>could make 70 to 90 hp from 500cc. They even made a 50cc twin which
>produced something over 7 hp at 22,500 rpm. Imagine the size of the
>valves. This was a power output of 140 hp/litre.
>
>Today's motorcycle engines regularly exceed 150 hp/litre and are moving in
>on 200. I owned a Kawasaki 1979 Z1-R TC 11 - quasi-factory turbo hot rod -
>which produced an estimated 155 hp from 1 litre.
>
>Automobiles are now only beginning to approach this kind of specific power
>output.
Don't have time to check it out as I am leaving for the NEMGTR GOF in
Newton Mass. (6 hrs in a TF to get there in 95 plus weather) but the MG R
and Q types in the 1930's put out incredible HP from tiny engines. I
believe they set the record for years for HP/liter
Mike
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