Patent ID: 7159680

Claim:
A snowmobile comprising: a snowmobile frame having a longitudinal axis; a four cycle engine secured to the snowmobile frame, wherein the engine comprises: a crankcase having a crankshaft extending therethrough, wherein the crankshaft has a crankshaft axis, wherein the crankshaft axis is transverse to the longitudinal axis of the snowmobile; at least one cylinder unit connected to the crankcase, wherein the at least one cylinder unit includes a cylinder and a cylinder head; the cylinder including a cylinder bore with a cylinder bore axis, the cylinder being slanted such that the cylinder bore axis is inclined rearwardly with respect to a vertical axis; at least one piston, the at least one piston being disposed in the cylinder bore to reciprocate along the cylinder bore axis; a continuously variable transmission connected to the engine on one side of the longitudinal axis of the snowmobile, wherein the continuously variable transmission is driven by the crankshaft; a balancer shaft rotatably coupled to the crankshaft and being supported in the crankcase for rotation about a balancer shaft axis, the balancer shaft axis being positioned above the crankshaft axis; and a track operatively connected to the frame and driven by the engine.