Callaway Builds Motorcycle Engine

Callaway is a name that has become synonymous with Corvettes over the years, and with good reason. However, in addition to unleashing the power of America’s legendary sports car, Reeves Callaway has also done technical and engineering consulting for motorcycle companies such as Yamaha. A few years ago, he showed the world a V16 motor he built using four Yamaha 1,000cc motorcycle engines mounted on a custom fabricated aluminum block.

Named the ‘Cyclone,’ this furious 4.0L was good for 550 hp @ 10,000 rpm. In current tune, redline has been lifted to 11,500 rpm, making 640 horses. While the Cyclone project began as merely a lighthearted experiment, Reeves hinted recently that we could be seeing this powerplant under the hood of the next Callaway show car.

Despite being over 36-inches long and housing 16 cylinders and 80 valves, the aluminum block helped keep its dry weight down to just 334 lbs. Callaway allegedly used the Yamaha motors because his company helped develop their five-valve heads and Callaway believes they are among the best-built engines he has worked on.

By Dustin Woods