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| Originally produced as a clip-on engine to fit any bicycle, the Whizzer powerplant first appeared in 1939. The simple 8.4 cu. in. (138cc)
side-valve engine could be clamped onto any bicycle frame (there were three mounting points and a flexible exhaust pipe). Drive to the rear wheel was by a belt-driven friction roller mounted
under the bottom bracket. In 1942 a revised design was introduced. The Model F had improved engine internals and a belt drive to the rear wheel. The typical bicycle-based Whizzer thus earned
the name "motorbike" or "motorized bicycle". The Whizzer power supply was simple and easy to install and made the Whizzer machines popular with enthusiasts. After World War II a complete belt driven machine with a Schwinn-
like frame became available. By 1951 the American moped had evolved into a complete machine based on a Schwinn-like
frame. The bike had a painted fuel tank (with chrome available as an option), telescopic forks, and two curving frame tubes.
The cantelever frame, patented by Schwinn in 1938, was initally produced in-house by Whizzer but, due to legal issues, the frame was supplied to Whizzer by
Schwinn. Whizzers were economical, and sold in large numbers in the 1940s and 1950s. They were especially popular with
American teenagers. They were still available in the early 1950s, but were no match for the new lightweight machines imported
from Japan. Specially engineered Whizzers topped 60 mph, (one suposedly hit as high as 75 mph), among the most well known, were designed by Martin Engineering of California. Martin Engineering also created a specialized Whizzer called the "Road Runner" The complete frame/engine motorbikes were available until the 1950s when Whizzer was unable to compete with Japanese manufacturers and was forced to close down model production. Manufacture of parts and other items continued for a few years, but Whizzer finally closed its doors in the 1960s. In its heyday, the Whizzer was a very popular motorbike. While Whizzer was headquartered in the USA, it was not solely a United States company. There was a Whizzer branch factory in Luxembourg and Belgium where Whizzers were produced for the European market. |