Post Sale Update: This Rocket 3 sold for $10,109.09 after 21 bids on eBay.
From the seller of Monday’s Gold Star comes another classic BSA – the Rocket 3. The motor was a 750cc triple that was designed to extend the model line beyond 650 twins and it was specifically built for the US market (which wanted larger displacements and less vibrations). BSA’s financials suffered with the production of this bike, but nearly 27,500 of the Trident/Rocket 3’s were produced between 1968 and 1975. The bike was initially released to rave reviews, but Honda brought out the CB750 just four weeks later – you know how that story ends.
The 58 horsepower engine was capable of pushing the BSA Rocket 3 up to 120 miles per hour, which might have been its saving grace. The $1,800 MSRP was high compared to Japanese competition, and on top of that Honda was able to offer features BSA could not compete with like a 5-speed gearbox, overhead camshaft, electric start, and disc brakes. In 1970, BSA restyled the Rocket with a more ‘classic’ look to differentiate in the market, and the US sales team exploited the bike’s top speed to set speed records in Daytona. 200 models were then released with 5-speed gearboxes that supposedly commemorate the Daytona run. Kawasaki broke the top speed record in 1971, and one year later, BSA was done. For more on the Rocket 3, check out this article on Classic British Motorcycles.
This example (VIN: XC00967A75R) was restored over a multi-year process that ended in 2017 by a collector in Florida that acquired it in 2006. The motor and transmission were rebuilt by Steve Wiley, while the bodywork was repainted and frame was powdercoated. The seller acquired the bike in January of 2017 and completed the restoration by rechroming the exhaust, adding a new set of down pipes, rebuilding the front forks, and adding new handlebars – per the seller, “the original bars are correct but don’t really look or function that well”.
After enjoying the bike on the road, the seller decided he’d replace the stock carbs with a new set of 27mm Amal Premiers. It has spent the last year in storage without gasoline in the tank. Find this Rocket 3 for sale in Asheville, North Carolina with bidding up to $9,100 and the reserve not yet met