Page Three: How about a little Honda History!

 Soichiro Honda was a poor Japanese boy who learned how to repair bicycles through the efforts of his father.  By age 22 he had is own repair shop.  He raced bikes and attended the Hamamatsu School of Technology and was a rebelious but creative student.  After World War II, he purchased several hundred crude single cylinder engines and attached them to bicycles.  After running out of salvaged motors, he began to build his own.  Honda had refined the piston ring, which was a weak link on older engines, and began producing engines which had a reputation for reliability.  From here, the real story begins, from innovation to mass production, Honda led the pack in innovation, reliability, and consistent progressive development. 

Not a new idea but the one to put Honda on the map in Japan.

This motor bike was a huge step toward the future of Honda's future development.

This was a significant development for Honda making him a serious manufacturer of motorcycles.

The cub is still produced today and still looks very much like the original.  Honda celebrated the 50 millionth Cub being produced in Jyly of 2008. 

The 50 cc Super Sport was wildly popular and led to the 90cc Super Sport.

A Dream which looked very similar to to one below, but not as refined, was produced as early as 1959. The Japanese version had a high pipe and was called a "scrambler"(not to be confused with the 1963 version called the CL series).

Go to "page two" to see a picture of the Super Hawk. In either 250cc or 305cc versions, these bikes sold by the tens of thousands and prepared riders for larger bikes.

For 2012 Honda will offer a new version of the VFR800.  It is called the Crossrunner.  The VFR is one of the great sport bikes of all time.  As a sport bike, a touring bike, or a daily rider, the VFR is a refined ride.  This new incarnation makes the bike available to a larger number and type of rider!

A European model which will be brought to the US in 2010 is the Varadero.  It's called the Deauville in other countries!  It's a 700cc (actually 680cc) version of the ST 1300.  It already has a good reputation overseas.

The Fury, based on the VTX 1300c, has been very popular.  I called a number of dealers and they had sold their quota and were unable to get more bikes till later this year!  I talked to a new owner, and he stated that the bike is comfortable to ride, unlike many $30,000+ choppers. They really do look good.