Post-Listing Update: After being relisted several times, this Metralla did not sell at $14,000, $13,700…or any price.
In the 60s, Bultaco was known primarily for its off-roaders, especially in the US. Their streetbikes were normally relegated to stay in Bultaco Cemoto’s home country of Spain, which imposed regulations allowing Bultaco to only use one engine in a small variety of sizes. You would think this put the Spanish company at a serious disadvantage when it came to international competition – but the Bultaco Metralla utilized the usual two-stroke engine that pumped out an impressive 32 horsepower in a world where plenty of cars didn’t make 32 hp. For a short period of time, this was the fastest two-stroke motorcycle you could buy.
The engine was a 250cc unit and the bike weighed just 250 pounds. With an original MSRP of $600, the Mk2 Metralla was in production until 1975, and it’s become an absolute cult classic in the states. And I’m not the only one who thinks this is a pretty bike – it was even featured in the Guggenheim Art of the Motorcycle Exhibit. Capable of just over 100 miles per hour, this bike put Bultaco on the map. Unfortunately, that’s also made these bikes very expensive nowadays.
“Riding it is like throwing a smoke bomb into a hornets’ nest, then climbing on. Every time I ride the bike, I think to myself, ‘Really? Guys rode these skinny-tired, drum-braked, springy-suspensioned things in anger?’ Major respect for those brave souls who had no idea what sport bikes would be like a scant 25 years later.”
– Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car, April 2010.
This specific Bultaco Metralla has just 556 miles on it, and has the original decals and badging. The seller claims that there’s a possible race history, but anything that can’t be proven should be disregarded. Still, it looks to be in great shape – I haven’t seen a Metralla in this condition in the last several years, if ever.
Find this Bultaco Metralla for sale with a BIN price of $14,500 in Beverly Hills, California
