Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128008
Riding Impression 2000 Harley-Davidson FXST S oftail Standard Th e new co u n te r balancers a re the wh ole story of the Tw in Cam 88B. The Softail powerplant project team managed to find eno ugh room just in front and behind the crankshaft, as well as a b it of s pace on th e r ight s ide of the engine, to d ev el op th e chai n -d riven , counter-rotating sys tem. The silent chain that connects the balancers is driven off of a cam gea r on th e s p li ne d rear cams haft. The balance rs are designed to red uce the vibra tion created by the p istons and th e upper third of the rod s when the motor is at crui sin g rpm. The s ystem d oe s add 14 pounds to the engine package, and para sitic power loss as a result of its use is a pa ltry three percent a t wide-open throt tle, Bu t the flyw hee l co un te rweig h ts do thei r job, dampening the oscillatio n by 50 percent, and they are designed to require no servicing for the life of the eng ine. They are al s o unaffect ed by any d esi gnated Scream iri' Eag le p erforman ce parts that have been engineered fo r the Twin Cam 88. Counterbal an cers asi de, o the r modificat ions to Twin Cam 88B include a new cam su pport plat e and a new-d esign oil pump that featur es a wave washer to pr event oil fro m draini ng into the engi ne fro m the Softail's frame-mo u nted oil tank, Inc identally, bo th pa rts a re u s ed on the Twin Cam 88 as well . Thr ee di fferent styl es of new, freer-breathin g bu t sfill-El'Av lega l exhaust svstems a re available on the Softail models, with the most noticeable change being that the re is n o u pper exhaust conn ect like that found on the "old" Evoluti on version s (except on the Re-engineering J By Scott Rousseau Pho tos by Jo hn San dberg t' s amazing. One ri de on a 2000 mod el Harley-Davi dson Softail will leav e you wondering how those Milwa u kee Marvels did it. H ow on ea rth did th ey take th e So fta il p latform to u nprece de nted levels of power, hand ling and brak ing performance, utilize an allnew engi ne and chassis; and still manage to provide th eir custo mers w ith a mo torcycle that is u n mis takab ly a Ha rley-Davidson in every way ? Very carefully. With the su ccess of the mu ch-heralded Twin Cam 88 engine for 1999, and th e introd uction of the award -winning FXDX Dyna Glide Sport roadster, it was only a matter of time before Harley-Da~id son took 11 long , I hard look at the Softail family , which is th e highest vo lu me p latfor m that th e Motor Company produces, and bega n to make plans for the conve rsion from Evolut ion to revolu tion. . But like all of Harley-Davidson's new pr oducts, the Softail's move into Harley's techn ological era was deliberate, an d the subject of meticulous plan ning via a thorough u nder st anding of th e pl atform ' s role within the Ha rley-Davidson lineu p. Cu tti ng -edge would yie ld to heritage. Tren d -s ettin g to ok preced e nc e ov e r tren d y. Technology wo uld be used as a method to achieve s ty li ng. And ye t Harley engin eers would also have to be attentive to the desires of its customers, wh o wa nted to see the new Softails capa ble of: 1) reduced vibration, 2) improved accelera tion, and 3) more horsepower. The new Twin Ca m 88 mo tor easily fu lfilled th e desires of accelera tion and pow er, but placing the air-coo led, twovalves-per-cy linder 1450cc V-twi n in the so lid mountings of th e Sof ta il chassis produced vibes that could loosen the fillings of anyo ne who swung a leg over it. So me thi ng w ou ld have to -be d on e to ca nc e l th e und es irab le sha ke, w hile retainin g the highly d esirab le rumble. A Dyna-sty le rubber-m ounting of the . Twi n-Cam 88 engine wo uld have proven to be too d i fficu lt, as it wou ld h a ve required chassis changes that could pot entially spoil the looks of the mo torcycle. Instead, th e eng in eers took th e hard ro ut e, eng ineering a cou nter balancing sys tem into the Twin Cam 88 and effectively winding up with an en tirely different engine, the Twin Cam 88B. crossove r d uals ). H arle y- David s on claims that the new tubes are good for as much as five horsepower in certain portions of the rev range. The five-speed transmission is a completely new version, incorporating a new shifter mechani sm and a red esigned di ecas t transmiss ion case that featu res a four-bolt mounting pad to matc with the engine. The transmission is util ized as a stressed member of the chassis package. Ne w internals include a cast steel shifte r barrel with mod ified track pro files and shifter barrel sto ps, a star-shaped end cam to elimi nate false neutrals, and a self-centering linkage. eu tral can now be engaged from fir st or sec ond gea r. Ha rley has tested pro totype units at the d ragstri p to the tune o f over 320,000 shifts, and it claims that the new tranny will need no pawl adjustments for the life of the vehicle. Hmm... Of course, th e new Softail eng ine ! transmission package needed a new Softail frame, and Harley-David son set out to design a chassis that was more rigid th a n the Ev o Softai!. Thi s h as been accomplished by using a large rectangu- (Top) With the Twi n Cam 88B-powered 2000 Harley-Davidson FXST $ofta il Standard, Harley-Davidson has once again managed to walk the ti ghtrope, balancing tec hnology and trad ition to yield a drasticall y improved mot or cycle that is dist inctly Harley. (Left ) The counter-balance d Twin Cam 88B eng ine provides mountains of vi brati on-free tor que , all owi ng riders to take in the sce nery, such as the hills of -New Hampshire, in greater comfort than ever befo re.