Patent ID: 7281598

Claim:
A snowmobile comprising: a dry sump type internal combustion engine mounted on a front side of a vehicle body; a rider's seat provided on a rear side of said internal combustion engine; a crankshaft operatively connected within said internal combustion engine; and a transmission mechanism through which the rotation of said crankshaft is transmitted to an endless track belt for driving said endless track belt to rotate, thereby driving said snowmobile to travel; wherein said internal combustion engine provided on a front side of said rider's seat is mounted with said crankshaft disposed crosswise relative to the traveling direction, a reserve oil tank is disposed across a central portion of said vehicle body along said internal combustion engine on the front side of said internal combustion engine, and a steering shaft is provided along the vertical direction at roughly a central portion of said vehicle body on the front side of said internal combustion engine, said reserve oil tank is provided on a front side with a recessed portion through which to pass said steering shaft, and said reserve oil tank and said steering shaft are disposed to overlap each other at least partly in a vehicle body side view, wherein the recessed portion is a recessed groove formed in a wall surface of the reserve oil tank, said recessed groove being an arcuate section for receiving the steering shaft with an allowance and without hindering a turning of the steering shaft, and wherein said steering shaft includes a second extended portion, said second extended portion being substantially entirely received within said recessed groove in a vehicle side view.