15-01-13, 03:38 PM
the general rule of thumb for a transverse engine is that it'll lose 10% of its rear wheel power by using a shaft instead of a chain, mostly due to having 2 90deg bevel drives, rather than a linear drive with a chain.
Using an engine with a longitudinal crank eg. BMW boxer or CX500/Guzzi V-twin means there's only one bevel gear so less loss, in fact to run one of those engines with a chain would still require a bevel gear anyway as you'd need one to drive the front sprocket in the correct plane, so power wise there would be minimal difference.
Using an engine with a longitudinal crank eg. BMW boxer or CX500/Guzzi V-twin means there's only one bevel gear so less loss, in fact to run one of those engines with a chain would still require a bevel gear anyway as you'd need one to drive the front sprocket in the correct plane, so power wise there would be minimal difference.