An absolute steal of a deal at $3,000, this 1984 Honda XL600R is big. Really big. Not as in a V12 or a Gold Wing or some crazy 700-pound motorcycle big, but as in powerful. It can be found here on Facebook Marketplace in Kaukauna, WI, and they’re asking $3,000. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Lothar… of the Hill People for the tip!Â
I’m generally a 125 to a 250 guy as far as on/off-road motorcycles go; I’m not into bikes with so much power that they can actually be scary to ride. One wrong twist of the throttle and you’re on your back on the trail, or worse yet, on the road. I’ve mentioned too many times that my brother bought an XL600R new, and it was an absolute beast. Technology has certainly come a long way from the early 1980s, but something like this could still provide almost anything a person would need for getting to the trails and then conquering those trails.
Honda made this model from 1983 through 1987, and the ’84 models were all red and black as shown here. Honda’s philosophy, at least in marketing literature, is that more power = good, less power = bad. “The power game is simple. If you have the power, you rule. If you don’t, you follow.” That makes sense, at least on paper. I’d rather live by another philosophy: “It’s more fun to ride a slow motorcycle fast, than to ride a fast motorcycle slow,” to paraphrase that saying.
There appears to be some fading, and there are probably a few nicks and dings or scratches on this example, but Hagerty is at $3,500 for a #3 good-condition example and $6,600 for a #2 excellent XL600R. At $3,000, this appears to be a good deal if not a great deal. With 18,726 miles on the odometer, someone rode this one a lot, even if that’s just 446 miles a year on average.
The engine is Honda’s 589-cc SOHC four-stroke single with 43 horsepower and 36 lb-ft of torque when new. It has so much compression that there’s a compression release lever on the handlebars to kick start it. Power is sent through a 5-speed manual to the rear wheel, and the seller says it runs and rides great. What’s your ideal on/off-road motorcycle?
Suggestion to the new owner:
Get very, very familiar with the kick start process-the compression release will be your best friend and save your knees from hurting as much..
Good pick. These were great ADV bikes for their time (as were the XT/TT 500/600, etc). More than a few cut a new trail on faded tracks to an old mining camp or ghost town years ago.