- Seller: Gordon K (Contact)
- Location: Denton, Texas
- Mileage: 870 Shown
- Chassis #: C70-2004134
- Title Status: Missing
- Engine: 70cc
- Transmission: Automatic
“Fossil House Find” is maybe what the title should be for this auction listing. Easily one of the most interesting stories I’ve heard regarding the long-term storage of a vehicle, this 1972 Honda C-70 K1 was stored from 1980 until 2025, and it wasn’t just in a regular barn. The former owner, a nurse who was married to a surgeon and amateur paleontologist, stored it in “The Fossil House“, their barn that housed a significant collection of fossils. 46 years later, it’s still located in Denton, Texas, and is listed here exclusively as a Barn Finds Auction!
I love that story, other than this dusty time capsule, ultra-low-mile C-70 having been parked for 45 years. The nurse, who is the current owner and widow of the surgeon and paleontologist, only rode it 670 miles, but is said to have used it for commuting in Denton, Texas. They bought it used with 200 miles on it, and she used it until 1980, when it was put in the barn, after having been prepped for storage.
The extensive fossil collection was recently donated to a University in Texas, and now it’s the little Honda C-70’s turn to find a new owner. They have this one listed as a 1970 model, but the VIN says otherwise. It’s a 1972 model, and in that year, they came in either Poppy Yellow Metallic or Strato Blue Metallic, as seen here.
You can see that it’s authentic right down to the barn dust, which may be part fossil dust… Honda’s famous underbone, step-through motorcycles were available in sizes ranging from 50s to 125s, and I know a lot of you have owned them. They’re ideal bikes to use when learning how to ride, and are great for college campuses, or they used to be before the sidewalks became littered with battery-powered scooters with dead batteries. This C70 has both a kick start and electric start.
This example is said to have been working as it should back when Reagan was elected, but that was a long time ago. Even if it had been treated correctly for storage, which is reportedly the case, it’ll take a day to get it fired up and ready to go again. It would be a fun project, and I’m sure it would look almost like new again with some elbow grease. The engine is Honda’s 72-cc OHC four-stroke single with 6 horsepower, and it’s backed by a 3-speed automatic clutch transmission. This is a no-brainer for a campground cruiser or around-the-neighborhood fun machine. Let’s hear those Honda Super Cub stories, and bid to win on this great-looking Honda C70 here on Barn Finds Auctions!
Bid On This Auction
rick2691 bid $250.00 2026-04-18 06:27:22
Well, that’ almost deserving of the title, “FLAME.” But it really isn’t a moped. There’s always the chance that “Cow Patty” was too many sheets to the wind to realize that she wasn’t about to board a small bike.
Seeing a Honda Step-Thru always triggers the “Little Honda” song by the Beach Boys (I guess the same song by the Hondells also deserves some of the spotlight). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZOGlgVldAs&list=RDqZOGlgVldAs&start_radio=1&pp=ygUXbGl0dGxlIGhvbmRhIGJlYWNoIGJveXOgBwE%3D
I don’t think I’ve ever seen something take the abuse that the Honda 50 could take. A friend of mine would take his, lean it over, rev the hell out of it, then slam it into gear. There was a loud “bang” and he would start spinning circles. Time and again, he did that.
Eventually he parked the bike and got a Suzuki 80 Trail. His two younger sisters inherited the 50. I wouldn’t be surprised if you got probing the buildings on the old farm, you would find it between the wall and an oil barrel. A little fresh gas and it would probably start…
Well, clearly it has 100,870 miles,,(cough), you know, I wonder if there is someone that rode one of these 100K miles. Just kidding, of course, my 1st motorcycle was a ’65 Honda 50. Told the story many times, but it’s just so darn entertaining. In ’66, I was 11,( see pic of me and my late sister, circa 1967) which in a bizarre twist, my old man came home with a like new Honda 50 that had been vandalized by,,,well, we didn’t know, but Beer City in 1966, you can piece it together. I think he traded a window air conditioner for it. It only had a couple hundred miles, but every spoke, cable, light, wire, the seat, speedo and muffler was damaged. We slowly rebuilt it, and what me and my brother put that poor thing through, is a solid testament to just what they were. We took it camping many times. These came in many styles, but I believe it was the most successful motorcycle ever made worldwide. The doc mentioned may have used it ONCE, but not a lot of use here.
No late night post would be complete without song,,”It’s not a big motorcycle, just a groovy little motorbike,,,1st gear, is alright, 2nd gear”, etc. Not sure if you did meet the nicest people on a Honda, their catch phrase at the time to counter the thugs image on Harleys, kind of ironic, the bikers that trashed our little Honda didn’t think so.
Thanks Howard, now I got that song ringing in my ears for the rest of the day! When building our new house. We kept looking for interesting architectural pieces. A Reno shop specializes in stuff taken out of fancy homes up at Lake Tahoe. The funny part is that I had seen them before, but didn’t really pay any attention. And the them is beautiful oak double doors with leaded cut glass panels and matching side lights that came out of Mike Loves house. I had seen them when delivering a new Escalade to his next door neighbor. And yes, they are installed as my front doors.
Last year I saw one of these in Japan at a Honda motorcycle dealer, brand new, for about $2500.
Love these scooters. Real Honda history here.
2025 was the last year they were available new in US.
Is 7800 miles low miles for a scooter? I always imagine lots of people bought scooters thinking it would be fun and after a couple of rides decided it was too scary for them and left them in the shed.
The thing about that Honda motor is that you could clean it up, and it will probably fire like it had just been turned off.
I restored a CT70 a few years ago. The motor was caked in gunk and was missing the points cover. I started cleaning it, but instead just pulled it and put the entire thing into a solvent tank.
After a thorough scrubbing, I put it back in the frame with the intention of carefully checking everything, but on a whim, I thought I’d see what would happen if I kicked it over. On the 2nd kick, it fired right up! I didn’t even need to set the points.
It ran for years. I probably shouldn’t have sold it, as it was the one year, 1970, they made a 4 speed manual.
Tempting, so tempting.
My 1st bike i rented from a local shop. Not much from the horsepower point of view but the newfound sense of freedom was amazing. You could ride it without any license in Greece, so it was very popular in shops that were renting bicycles for the young ones, me among them. Next year if i recall corretly i found a shop renting Suzuki 50cc and that was a leap forward a real bike.
Where I live you can find a gazillion of these little Hondas in all engine sizes, from every year you can think of. I believe you can still buy them new at the local dealer as well.
They have really not changed at all since this little guy was built.
There are also other manufacturers of clones of these that are a little more modern looking.
Where do you live?
In the Dominican Republic. They still import new and used ones from Japan.
Fun fact: Kids here love to modify them for illegal racing. You’d be surprised how much power they get out of those little engines!
The bid increment has been reduced!