In a 1976 Motorcyclist review, Bob Greene calls Yamaha’s XS360 “exceeding my every expectation of handling, performance, and comfort…What Yamaha’s done here is close much of the credibility gap betwixt little bike an dbig bike, evidenced by their expensive electrics and point adjustment systems, electric starter, trick flashers, and on and on. Small only in displacement and wheelbase, Yamaha’s new …
Rare German Find – 1964 Göricke-Werke GÖ 100/4 S
9-14-21 Update: Three years later, this bike is back up for sale. The seller “borrowed” Tim’s excellent description below to complement the new set of photos – find it still in West Palm Beach, Florida with an unmet opening bid of $3,500 here on eBay. Despite existing for some 90 years, Göricke-Werke AG has only been heard of by a …
No Reserve – Honda Neon Sign
Here’s an unofficial (non-licensed) neon sign of the Honda Wing logo that a Honda fan had custom built to the tune of $2,200.
“Buella” – Buell Engine in Honda Frame
I’m not sure what to call this bike, but the tank says “Buella” because it combines a Buell 1,200cc V-Twin motor in a “modified” Honda CR500 frame!
No Reserve – 2021 Honda CT125 Trail
Post Sale Update: This CT125 sold for $4,560 after 61 bids on eBay in Crystal Lake, Illinois. MSRP on a new Trail 125 is $3,899, but they’re hard to find in dealers right now. Often when that happens, you’ll see people try to flip barely-used bikes with crazy asking prices. This time around, the seller’s letting the market decide what …
2007 Yamaha Morphous
Here’s a vehicle only true scooter fans know about – the Yamaha Morphous. Ignoring the oddball name, it was by all accounts a well designed scooter that did not achieve commercial success. It was introduced in 2005 in the US and was pulled in 2009. If you’re looking for a scooter that stands out, it’s hard to imagine a better …
1990 Honda CB-1
Honda had a lot of interesting bikes on offer in the late 80’s and early 90’s many of which have now gone on to become cult classics. The CB-1 was only sold in 1989 and 1990 but carried on for another year in Japan before Honda sidelined the bike in 1992 and replaced it with the CB400 Super Four which …
1973 OSSA Pioneer 250
OSSA was a Spanish firm that offered a wide variety of dirt bikes to cover anything that an off-road enthusiast could want to do. The Pioneer was OSSA’s enduro bike, though realistically the pavement experience was limited to putting around in town. In the dirt, it was quite impressive for something that was street legal. In fact, in a 1969 …
1972 Yamaha RD250
From early 2011 until late 2019, I crisscrossed the lower 48 in search of weird, wonderful and rare motorcycles that were destined to head overseas. If Abhi abides, maybe Bike-urious will feature a longer story on a grey-exporters experiences in the future. I learned a lot not only about buying bikes during those eight years and 400,000 miles, I also …
Original Owner – 1980 Suzuki PE175
I recently complained about the over use of “1 owner” in bike sale descriptions, which is why I’m glad to say that the seller of this example is the same person who purchased it new in 1980. Even better, his asking price is quite reasonable – just $1,100!
1971 Rokon Trailbreaker
Rokon was founded in the early 60s with the intent of developing a “moto-tractor” that featured two wheel drive. This task was achieved with a combination of shaft, chain, and belt drives, and it enabled riders to go nearly anywhere – as long as they weren’t in a rush!
Rare in the US – 2013 Honda Blade 110
Normally, the words “Honda” and “Blade” would make you think of something like the original 900RR Fireblade (or the new Fireblade RR-R). But in Southeast Asia, the Blade is one of many (and I mean MANY) underbone scooters that dominate their personal transportation industry. This one has somehow made its way to California, and the seller claims that it is …
Land Speed Racer – 1965 Honda S65
Here’s an unexpected platform to go land speed racing with – a Honda S65!
1985 Husqvarna CR500
In 1983, Husqvarna introduced a new 500cc motor for their Open Class bikes, and they promptly won the 1983 Baja 1000 in 14:48:10 with the US team of Dan Smith and Dan Ashcraft. While there were obviously plenty of modifications to the race bike, the production motorcycle was quite formidable in its own right – Husky offered the powerhouse engine …
Honda CR85 Engine Swap – Derbi Senda
In production since 1998, the Derbi Senda is a 50cc motorcycle that was barely brought into the US. This is basically a tiny supermoto with excellent components – 6 speed transmission, liquid cooling, and a top speed over 50 miles per hour…though this one’s going to be faster as it comes with the engine out of a Honda CR85. The …