To stay in competition with other British manufacturers, the first AMC twin
was introduced in 1948 and went for export only, of course there were two
500cc models, the AJS Model 20 and the Matchless G9.
The engine, although similar to the normal English parallel twin in appearance,
was different to the others in that it had seperate barrels and heads, gear
driven camshafts front and rear, and was unique in that it has a centre bearing.
AMC stuck to this design on all the twins until they started fitting the
Norton Atlas engines.
All the twins, be they road or competition, looked very much like the
single of the same year, but obviously with two or Siamese exhaust pipes.
Almost all the options, extras and tuning mods applied to both singles and twins.
* - These models were intended only for the North American market, but
in recent years quite a few have found their way back to this country. Some
were even purchased by American servicemen and taken wherever they were posted,
as they normally had the opportunity to take their wheels with them or were
able to buy American specification vehicles through the base.
|