Mr. Honda was never a fan of the two-stroke concept. Nor was he blind to effective marketing, and by the late seventies the emerging market for lightweight sporty motorbikes couldn’t be ignored. In many countries laws limiting engine size for young riders meant a big market for 50cc machines.
Introduced in Europe and Africa in 1979, the MB50 had the style of a motorcycle and, unlike a typical scooter or moped, came equipped as such, including a tachometer, larger wheels/tires and disc brakes. The success of the “street” MB spawned the off-road styled MT model. Both shared two-cycle 50cc and 80cc engines and five-speed gear boxes. In 1982 Honda introduced the MB to the U.S. as the MB5, downplaying it’s tiny displacement in the land of cubic inches. Marketed towards the young, presumably sexy, rider the MB5 proved to be a one-year experiment in America.
Todays bike sports a flashy set of later model MBX wheels in place of the original Comstars and shows only 3351 miles with very presentable cosmetics to match. Offered at only $1800 buy-it-now, find it Corona, CA
