When Soichiro Honda developed what he thought was a better piston ring in the late 1930s, I don’t know if he envisioned eventually owning the world’s largest motorcycle company and the company making more internal combustion engines than any other. One of those motorcycles is this 1983 Honda XL 200R is listed here on Facebook Marketplace in Bonduel, WI, and the seller is asking $1,500. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Lothar… of the Hill People for the tip!
Humble beginnings can often turn into incredible achievements, and Honda Motor Company is one of those stories. Adding to the mind-blowing number of 500 million motorcycles produced by Honda since 1948, the XL 200R was only made for two model years, 1983 and 1984. I hope I don’t have to mention again that not all vehicles go down in value as the decades go by. This XL 200R would have been around $1,400 new, less than what the seller is asking for it now. Honda’s Pro-Link swingarm rear suspension is hard to beat.
This example isn’t perfect; it’s missing the front sprocket cover, there are the usual nicks, scratches on the Monza Red paint (the only color available), and some fading and wear on the paint, and the right side plastic cover is said to be cracked. Most of those things can probably be fixed or sourced, but for an all-around nice-sized on/off-road motorcycle, this one would be hard to beat. My brother bought a new XL 600R, and it was a scary beast and hard to kick start with its monster 600 single-cylinder engine. I rode it a couple of times, and it just seemed like death on wheels to me. This one is much more my size and speed. The seller says the tail lamp bracket isn’t stock, just for the record.
$1,500 isn’t much money in 2025 dollars, depending on which end of the spectrum you’re on. If you’re a “tech pro billionaire,” you aren’t even reading this right now as you’re picking out the gold door knobs for your $500,000,000 yacht, the one you’ll keep at your villa in Monaco. If you’re like the rest of us, $1,500 is doable for a nice little motorcycle that can get you to the trails and then get you off paved roads to where the real fun is. The most expensive yacht on the planet is worth 4.8 billion dollars, just for the record. Ok, back to my crappy life…
The engine is Honda’s 195cc SOHC, four-stroke, air-cooled single-cylinder with 18 horsepower and 12 lb-ft of torque. It’s sent through a 5-speed manual to the rear wheel (of course), and they say it runs well and everything works, including the lighting. If my off-road motorcycle doesn’t have turn signals, it’s too serious for me. Make mine one like this little Honda. Have any of you owned an XL 200R?
My 1st bike was an 82 XL80S. $600 brand new. My next was an 82 Yamaha XT200. Brand new in 1986. Same price! New old stock. My nxt XL was a used like new 1980 XL250S. These bikes run forever if taken care of and valves kept in spec. The XL200 was a great size bike for the trails,fire roads etc and had quite the reputation for being one of the more durable singles out there. You can also expect 70mpg in gd tune.. I would love this one and am always looking for another dualsport. Wish it were closer because that price is very reasonable. Most ive seen in this shape are going for (or asking, anyhow) between $2200- $2800
Thanks for the info, Matt! I agree about this one being pretty reasonable. The little things missing or needing work don’t seem too daunting, given the asking price.
Nice to see Scotty “back”, and THIS,,is what I SHOULD have bought, instead of the POS Suzuki DRZ. Matt,,^^^ do NOT get one of those. Simplicity, man, keep it simple is the unwritten rule for a dirt bike. I should have known when I couldn’t figure out the speedometer/whatever it was. Liquid cooling, what bozo thought of that? Looks like this has a compression release, I thought only bigger singles needed that, and kick start, unlike that POS DRZ, didn’t have one, and more than once, I held my breath until it started. As I’ve said, the size of the motor does not reflect how dangerous a bike is, that’s dictated by your right hand. I like power when needed, about the only thing that DRZ was good for, power, had plenty, but just a poor design, when they should have just kept it like this all along.
I think about a 2 wheeler all too often, but after my bicycle mishaps, and the ensuing hospital bills, that Colorado graciously paid, I’ve given up on 2 wheelers, and that sucks! Can’t go wrong here, unless of course, you need something unobtainable, like the electrics.
Great bikes. 200 nice size for trailrides.
Many years ago I won a provincial championship on an 82 xr 200.these are great for tight trail and run forever. I now have one for vintage racing
With a 2004 crf 230 motor with e start
Fit right in
Was it a harescramle Phil ? Congrats to you. Have to be in tip top shape for those events 💪 🦵
Back in 92 when I was still racing motocross, I purchased one if those for my girlfriend from a friend of mine. It needed a new cam and it was a quick and cheap fix. She had a blast on it and it was a great bike, I think I had like $600 in it after repairing it,and sold it years later for the same amount. It was absolutely mint when I sold it, they are great bikes. I now ride a 22 KLR650 that I have put a lot of work into to make it unstoppable!! Ride Safe !!
We used to call these dual-mode on and off road bikes “enduros”. If it didn’t have lights or a license plate bracket, it was a motocross bike! This one looks all there and in fine shape. If it were closer, I’d be looking at it, but it will cost me more to ship it home than what I’d pay for it!
Didn’t have a 200 but my first wheels was a 1978 XL100. All the neighboring kids in my farming area had XRs but I opted for the XL. I wanted to be able to legally ride on the road, once I was old enough. I guess you could say it gave me my love for riding. Three years later it was traded for a 450 Nighthawk. Now on my 3rd Harley. The kid in me would love to have that 100 to tool around on.
Listing update: this sweet Honda has been sold!