MagicMtnDan
10-01-2003, 04:42 AM
Dodge Building Ten Tomahawk Choppers
Remember the keen V-10 bike from the Detroit auto show that got more attention than any of Chrysler's concept cars? After months of suspense for the megamillionaires interested in owning one, Chrysler says it will build a small batch of the 500-hp bikes.
http://www.thecarconnection.com/images/gallery/6574_image.jpg
Chrysler spokesman Dave Elshoff told Reuters that the company would build as many as 10 Tomahawks, which hav a theoretical top speed of 300 mph. That will likely remain a theory, as Elshoff confirmed to Reuters that the bikes will be more like rolling sculpture than actual functioning motorcycles. "You couldn't license it for the street," he said of the $555,000 four-wheeler, one of which is being built for sale in the Neiman Marcus Christmas catalog.
http://www.thecarconnection.com/images/gallery/6542_image.jpg
The object of desire for many at the North American International Auto Show this week has been Mark Walters' obsession for the past five months.
Walters is the Chrysler Group designer responsible for the Tomahawk four-wheeled motorcycle concept vehicle that made its debut Monday in Dodge's concept vehicle press conference.
"If I wasn't sleeping, I was working on it. If I was sleeping, I was dreaming about it," Walters said. "I actually had dreams of the CAD screen."
The Tomahawk caused by far the biggest buzz at this year's show, drawing eyes away from the other Dodge concepts on the same stage. Who would have thought that normally conservative auto executives would take their biggest car engine - a V-10 -- and essentially build a motorcycle around it? And even if they did, who would have thought it would have turned out soÂ… soÂ… so damned sexy?
Tomahawk chops
Under that highly polished steel and aluminum are some pretty cool engineering innovations. For example, the bike itself has no frame. Everything is either anchored to the engine block or anchored to something that is anchored to the block. The dry-sump engine is an 8.3-liter, 20-valve V-10. It produces 500 horses and 525 lb-ft of torque. And since this bike only weighs 1500 lbs, in theory it could reach a top speed of 400 mph.
Because the Viper engine is notorious for its heat output, Walters had to modify the engine to force air through, even when the bike is not moving. In front of the steering post sits a cooling fan that runs 1.5 times engine speed. The surface area of two aluminum radiators was maximized and an air induction system that forces heat out of the back of the bike was specially fabricated out of stainless steel. Areas of the engine that are most likely to come in contact with tender human flesh have been lined with a special fabric heat shield that further directs the flow of heat out of the ducts. The header lengths are intentionally uneven to enhance the sound out of the muffler. Walters said the trade-off for getting such a cool sound was to sacrifice 5 horsepower.
The output shaft is transverse and oversized but hollowed to reduce weight. The transmission consists of a two-speed gearbox with a double-disc, dry-plate clutch with a small-diameter flywheel. The drivetrain consists of dual 110-link motorcycle-style chains without a tensioner.
The suspension and handling are the unique to the bike in order to give all four wheels independent suspension, according to studio engineer Stephen Lim. The suspension is comprised of outboard parallel upper and lower control arms mounted via ball joints to aluminum steering uprights and hubs. Steering arms both push and pull the front wheel.
The wheels have 20-inch perimeter-mounted drilled machined stainless steel rotors. There are two custom designed inverted brake calipers per wheel. The rear wheel has 20-inch perimeter-mounted drilled cast-iron rotors and one inverted brake caliper per wheel.
Parts of a phenomenon
The single biggest part of the bike is the billet aluminum where the driver sits. It started at 750 and was precision milled down so that it now weighs just 28 pounds and is 4 millimeters thick.
Under the seat is a "brain box" computer controller similar to what is used in a standard fuel-injected auto - this one was borrowed from a racing Viper, of course.
Walters said the tires were custom made by Dunlop, and a computer circuit board design was cut into the rubber as tread to emphasize the fact that the entire bike was designed on the computer using Alias/Wavefront Studio Tools software. Walters admits the design itself "takes a little from all kinds of motorcycles and weapons systems and heavy equipment as well," but the shape was dictated by the challenge of getting a human body around a V-10 engine.
An hour or so after the introduction, Walters finally got a chance to catch is breath. With the bulk of the press corps off chasing other stories, car guys from other companies gathered around to gawk and gasp at the polished steel and aluminum. One man with a strong English accent struck up a conversation with a Volkswagen executive, and praised Chrysler's management for allowing their people to take a chance on a vehicle that may never earn the company a dollar.
"It's projects like this that designers dream about," he said.
Remember the keen V-10 bike from the Detroit auto show that got more attention than any of Chrysler's concept cars? After months of suspense for the megamillionaires interested in owning one, Chrysler says it will build a small batch of the 500-hp bikes.
http://www.thecarconnection.com/images/gallery/6574_image.jpg
Chrysler spokesman Dave Elshoff told Reuters that the company would build as many as 10 Tomahawks, which hav a theoretical top speed of 300 mph. That will likely remain a theory, as Elshoff confirmed to Reuters that the bikes will be more like rolling sculpture than actual functioning motorcycles. "You couldn't license it for the street," he said of the $555,000 four-wheeler, one of which is being built for sale in the Neiman Marcus Christmas catalog.
http://www.thecarconnection.com/images/gallery/6542_image.jpg
The object of desire for many at the North American International Auto Show this week has been Mark Walters' obsession for the past five months.
Walters is the Chrysler Group designer responsible for the Tomahawk four-wheeled motorcycle concept vehicle that made its debut Monday in Dodge's concept vehicle press conference.
"If I wasn't sleeping, I was working on it. If I was sleeping, I was dreaming about it," Walters said. "I actually had dreams of the CAD screen."
The Tomahawk caused by far the biggest buzz at this year's show, drawing eyes away from the other Dodge concepts on the same stage. Who would have thought that normally conservative auto executives would take their biggest car engine - a V-10 -- and essentially build a motorcycle around it? And even if they did, who would have thought it would have turned out soÂ… soÂ… so damned sexy?
Tomahawk chops
Under that highly polished steel and aluminum are some pretty cool engineering innovations. For example, the bike itself has no frame. Everything is either anchored to the engine block or anchored to something that is anchored to the block. The dry-sump engine is an 8.3-liter, 20-valve V-10. It produces 500 horses and 525 lb-ft of torque. And since this bike only weighs 1500 lbs, in theory it could reach a top speed of 400 mph.
Because the Viper engine is notorious for its heat output, Walters had to modify the engine to force air through, even when the bike is not moving. In front of the steering post sits a cooling fan that runs 1.5 times engine speed. The surface area of two aluminum radiators was maximized and an air induction system that forces heat out of the back of the bike was specially fabricated out of stainless steel. Areas of the engine that are most likely to come in contact with tender human flesh have been lined with a special fabric heat shield that further directs the flow of heat out of the ducts. The header lengths are intentionally uneven to enhance the sound out of the muffler. Walters said the trade-off for getting such a cool sound was to sacrifice 5 horsepower.
The output shaft is transverse and oversized but hollowed to reduce weight. The transmission consists of a two-speed gearbox with a double-disc, dry-plate clutch with a small-diameter flywheel. The drivetrain consists of dual 110-link motorcycle-style chains without a tensioner.
The suspension and handling are the unique to the bike in order to give all four wheels independent suspension, according to studio engineer Stephen Lim. The suspension is comprised of outboard parallel upper and lower control arms mounted via ball joints to aluminum steering uprights and hubs. Steering arms both push and pull the front wheel.
The wheels have 20-inch perimeter-mounted drilled machined stainless steel rotors. There are two custom designed inverted brake calipers per wheel. The rear wheel has 20-inch perimeter-mounted drilled cast-iron rotors and one inverted brake caliper per wheel.
Parts of a phenomenon
The single biggest part of the bike is the billet aluminum where the driver sits. It started at 750 and was precision milled down so that it now weighs just 28 pounds and is 4 millimeters thick.
Under the seat is a "brain box" computer controller similar to what is used in a standard fuel-injected auto - this one was borrowed from a racing Viper, of course.
Walters said the tires were custom made by Dunlop, and a computer circuit board design was cut into the rubber as tread to emphasize the fact that the entire bike was designed on the computer using Alias/Wavefront Studio Tools software. Walters admits the design itself "takes a little from all kinds of motorcycles and weapons systems and heavy equipment as well," but the shape was dictated by the challenge of getting a human body around a V-10 engine.
An hour or so after the introduction, Walters finally got a chance to catch is breath. With the bulk of the press corps off chasing other stories, car guys from other companies gathered around to gawk and gasp at the polished steel and aluminum. One man with a strong English accent struck up a conversation with a Volkswagen executive, and praised Chrysler's management for allowing their people to take a chance on a vehicle that may never earn the company a dollar.
"It's projects like this that designers dream about," he said.