Presentation of Feuling W3

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Presentation of Feuling W3

Oh, W!

The Feuling W3 is 150 cubic inches of Harley power in a configuration that has not been seen since the early days of the last century.

Many people don’t even notice. Come by, take a look at the Feuling Motor Company’s W3 prototype ?? and go on. Even the Sportster driver, who became aware of our photo session with the W3, commented unimpressed. “Well, a big twin.” Wrong thought. Big, okay, but not a twin, but Jim Feuling’s latest project W3, in which, like the V2 engine, the cylinders are arranged one behind the other and the connecting rods act on a common crank pin, but there are three cylinders that are reminiscent of a W. Hence the name.
Gasoline flows in Jim Feuling’s veins. He is a tinkerer who, with his company Feuling R&D (www.feuling.com) developed a large number of improvements for a wide variety of engines in the four-wheel and two-wheel sector and had them patented. His relationship with Harley has been particularly strong since he was one of the first to develop a four-valve conversion kit for the Big Twins and offer it on the aftermarket. When the first prototypes of the twin cam engine introduced in 1998 ran so hot that their pistons literally burned up, Harley passed the problem on to Feuling. During this time, the Twin Cam got its large cooling fins, the exhaust valves patented by Feuling and modified, performance-enhancing exhaust ducts.
Only a short time later, the American came up with the idea that the displacement of the Twin Cam could easily be increased by 50 percent: with an additional cylinder. Construct a new crankcase, onto which a new cylinder and head are transplanted 45 degrees below, and the twin-cam-V-twin becomes a triple-cam-w-three. This is made possible by a main connecting rod and two secondary connecting rods, a design that is still used today in aircraft engines with a radial cylinder arrangement. The crank disks come from the Twin Cam, as do crank pins and connecting rod bearings. Feuling, on the other hand, developed the crankcase himself, and the camshaft drive via chain also had to give way to spur gears. But the bottom line is that the W3 only differs from the Harley original in ten components.
Jim Feuling plans to offer a 2500 cm3 version in combination with his rubber mount frame next spring, but the 2275 cm3 of the prototype also has a life of its own. The irregular firing order is reminiscent of a typical Harley sound, but it is much more lively. Two exhaust systems are available for the W3: the very loud three-in-three with ultra-short silencers and a quieter three-in-one system. In addition, buyers can choose between a central carburetor, three 40cc Dellortos or injection. In any case, the open intake funnels and the minimal silencers of the prototype provide unmistakable information about the combustion process.
F.euling states an output of around 120 hp for the prototype. They seem quite believable, even in the last gear it proceeds in the style of a Vmax. The performance continues until the limiter kicks in at 5200 rpm. Once in motion, the W3 runs surprisingly smoothly. Before the start of production, however, some fine-tuning is necessary: ​​The idling can hardly be found, the clutch has the nickname »Clutchzilla« and the sluggishness of the throttle gives hope for the smoother throttle flaps of the injection. It is also to be hoped that Feuling‘s combination of archaic optics and monumental violence will actually find its way into the series? and the Harley teaches fear.

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