In Honda’s legendary lineup of motorcycles, one of the most iconic is the Z50 – affectionately known as the “monkey” bike because of how riders looked while on the tiny things. The first model was the Z50M, adorned in Shasta White bodywork with a Magna Red frame and a plaid seat. US riders rarely saw the original bike because they were initially just sold in Europe and Canada – it even took a few months before Honda offered it in its home market of Japan. The bike was unexpectedly popular and the rest is history. Now, it seems that the model line is history, as well. Due to ever-tightening emissions regulations, Honda decided to kill off the monkey bike and give it one last run – a special 50th Anniversary model. 1,800 were built and they were only officially sold in Japan. Everyone else was forced to wait for bikes to be exported, knowing they’d have to pay a premium for the privilege. That situation describes this feature bike, which is one of the rare unclaimed examples left. Will it be yours?
The 50th Anniversary calls back to the original bike very well, with a similar white paint scheme paired with a red frame, headlight holder, fork tubes, and more. Don’t forget the plaid seat, either!
The original Z50M. Photo by Holger Sahlmann, courtesy of Wikipedia.
The new bikes get special badging to commemorate the anniversary and a fancy key. MSRP is approximately $3,200 but no examples are selling at anywhere near that. This bike is available out of Australia from Raider Moto – they’ve always got interesting bikes which is why I profiled the founder in a short interview a few months back. You can find it here at Raider Moto for $7,595.
