The Harley-Davidson Topper was the only motor scooter that the

Harley-Davidson Motor Company Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depressi ...

ever produced.

Design and specifications

The Topper had a

single-cylinder A single-cylinder engine, sometimes called a thumper, is a piston engine with one cylinder. This engine is often used for motorcycles, motor scooters, go-karts, all-terrain vehicles, radio-controlled vehicles, portable tools and garden machinery ( ...

two-stroke engine A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a power cycle with two strokes (up and down movements) of the piston during one power cycle, this power cycle being completed in one revolution of ...

mounted horizontally between the floorboards. The engine required a premixed gasoline/oil mixture. The starter was of the rope-recoil type similar to

lawn mower A lawn mower (also known as a mower, grass cutter or lawnmower) is a device utilizing one or more revolving blades (or a reel) to cut a grass surface to an even height. The height of the cut grass may be fixed by the design of the mower, but g ...

s or the

Lambretta Lambretta () is the brand name of mainly motor scooters, initially manufactured in Milan, Italy, by Innocenti. The name is derived from the word Lambrate, the suburb of Milan named after the river Lambro which flows through the area, and whe ...

E model. Unlike most scooters with enclosed engines, the Topper's engine did not have a cooling fan. It was expected that the low, horizontally mounted engine would be cooled by air passing under the scooter, but some Toppers developed overheating problems. The engine used a

reed valve Reed valves are a type of check valve which restrict the flow of fluids to a single direction, opening and closing under changing pressure on each face. Modern versions often consist of flexible metal or composite materials (fiberglass or carbon f ...

in its induction system. The engine powered a continuously variable transmission called "Scootaway Drive" that included a safety device that did not allow the scooter to move from rest at engine speeds higher than 1800 rpm. Final drive was by an exposed roller chain. The Topper had 5 inch internal expanding drum brakes on both wheels. The front brake was controlled by a hand lever on the left handlebar with a parking brake lock; the rear brake was controlled by a pedal. The front body, front fender and floorboards of the Topper were made of stamped steel, and the engine cover and body were made of molded

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...

. Storage space was provided under the seat; the manufacturer suggested storing extra containers of two-stroke oil there.

Development

The main complaint from Topper owners was with the "Scootaway Drive" continuously variable transmission. Road grime would get into the transmission and cause the belt to slip. A new transmission, with the primary drive sealed in an oil bath, was introduced for 1961. The Topper H was introduced in 1961 (sold through 1965) with a new alloy cylinder head that increased the compression ratio to 8.0:1, a reusable foam air filter, and revisions to the cylinder ports and air intake tube. A detuned version of the Topper was also available, with the power restricted to . This was advertised as the "Topper U". The detuned Topper was made to comply with laws in some states in the United States that allowed motorcycles with rated engine power below a stated maximum to be operated without a license or to be operated on a special license by riders at a younger age than would be allowed a regular motorcycle license. A Topper was used by the Milwaukee Brewers as a

bullpen car The bullpen car, also known as a bullpen cart, is used in professional baseball to bring relief pitchers into the game from the bullpen to the pitcher's mound during a pitching change. Bullpen cars were used in Major League Baseball from 1950 thro ...

from 1959 through 1995.

Performance

In 1959 a Topper was ridden from

Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...

Death Valley Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. During summer, it is the Highest temperature recorded on Earth, hottest place on Earth. Death Valley's Badwater Basin is the ...

and back without repair or adjustments requiring tools. The route went through

Trona Trona (trisodium hydrogendicarbonate dihydrate, also sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate, Na2CO3•2NaHCO3•3H2O) is a non-marine evaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has replaced ...

, to

Stovepipe Wells Stovepipe Wells is a way-station in the northern part of Death Valley, in unincorporated Inyo County, California. Geography and names Stovepipe Wells is located at and is US Geological Survey (USGS) feature ID 235564. It is entirely inside Deat ...

, then to

Badwater Basin Badwater Basin is an endorheic basin in Death Valley National Park, Death Valley, Inyo County, California, noted as the lowest point in North America and the United States, with a depth of below sea level. Mount Whitney, the highest poi ...

, then to

Whitney Portal Whitney Portal (formerly, Hunter Flat and Hunters Camp) is the end of the Whitney Portal road in Inyo County, California, west of Lone Pine at an elevation of . Whitney Portal is the gateway to Mount Whitney, the highest point in the contiguous ...

, above sea level on the side of

Mount Whitney Mount Whitney (Paiute: Tumanguya; ''Too-man-i-goo-yah'') is the highest mountain in the contiguous United States and the Sierra Nevada, with an elevation of . It is in East–Central California, on the boundary between California's Inyo and Tu ...

. It then returned to Bakersfield.

Notes

References

;Print * * * * * * * * * ;Online * * * {{Harley-Davidson model families Topper Motor scooters Motorcycles introduced in 1961

Design and specifications

Development

Performance

See also

Notes

References