We have only seen one of these very unusual motorcycles here on Barn Finds in the past. They don’t come up for sale too often and are rare in the U.S. since they were only offered one year here: 1982. This 1982 Honda MB5 has very low miles, the odometer shows just 752 miles on it. It has a few touched-up nicks and needs some carburetor work, probably due to sitting for a while.
For all intents and purposes, the MB5 was the same as the Honda MB50, which was made between 1979 and 1988 for Europe and possibly other countries, but only came to the U.S. for model year 1982 as the MB5. Cycle World Magazine tested an MB5 towards the end of 1981 and found that it turned in a top speed of 53 MPH, not bad at all for a 49-cc motorcycle! I could only dream about going that fast on my 49-cc bikes. The 18-inch ComStar mag wheels are a very cool touch.
Set up as a regular, real motorcycle rather than a “monkey bike” or mini-bike, this MB5 has full gauges, which in this era meant a speedometer, tachometer, and odometer, along with lights. The lights included ancient implements that some of us referred to as “turn signals”, but nobody uses those anymore other than me from what I can tell. They’re here nonetheless. The MB5 came in either black or red and how I haven’t owned one yet is a mystery.
There are no passenger footpegs on this bike as the 220-pound weight capacity most likely would have been exceeded with a passenger on the back. The seller’s photos are small so when they’re enlarged they’re somewhat pixelated, but this looks like a nice example. There are a few chips that have been touched up and it has a new battery and fairly new tires, but they say that the rear tire leaks a bit.
With black engine cases, oil injection, and a balanced shaft, this bike is powered by Honda’s 49-cc two-stroke single with 7 hp. It sends power through a five-speed transmission with a clutch, so an actual manual transmission. The seller says it could use some carb work for an idling issue, I’m assuming that’s due to sitting for a while. They have it listed here on eBay in Nicholasville, Kentucky and they’re asking $3,450 or you can make an offer. Have any of you heard of the MB5?
Yes, I remember the commercial when I was in high school. They show a rider in leather and the sound of the little engine at the redline along with a glimpse of the instrumentation. The commercial left an impression on me. Fast forward 40 years and I was having a conversation with a good friend who was describing a moped her dad bought her in high school. She rode it a couple times and it’s still tucked away in the barn. I asked her if the moped said MB5 by any chance. Yes, that’s the one! How did you know? She gave it to me and it sits in the corner of my barn waiting for me to get it running again. 1982 license plate with 230 miles on it. This one is all black.
People never seemed to understand the difference. A Moped stands for
“Motorized Pedelcycle” it can be pedaled and is started that way, that’s not a motorcycle or a scooter.
I took my riding test on a friend’s MB5 (black). I had just bought an ’87 Suzuki ES550 GS (blue) and figured I needed something a little easier to maneuver (I passed).
This is very tempting and not terribly far away. Fortunately, I promised my wife when we were dating, as I lay in the hospital bed after totaling the 550, that I’d never own another motorcycle. I got a pilot’s license instead.
Just sold mine and wish I hadn’t. Tremendous fun to ride in that anything under 7000 rpm ( going up or down) and it’ll putt like a moped. Meaning keeping it always in a very narrow power band(up to 10500 rpm), so you were always “racing” if you wanted to go anywhere.
Most joyful ride was a couple years ago at Road America during the lunch break tour where I got 4 laps, all at WOT! Awesome!!
These are pretty cool. You wouldn’t see me on one until common sense returns. In Colorado, a vehicle with 49cc engine is considered a “low-powered scooter”, and has limitations on its use. You need a cycle endorsement, it needs to be licensed and insured, but can’t go over 40 mph. It can be used in bike lanes, that must e-bike users mad. 50cc is the cutoff for normal cycle operation. I’ve always maintained, if you are going to ride a motorcycle, ride a REAL motorcycle, nothing less than 750cc, 1,000cc+ much better. Why? Not just power, but comfort. Spending any time on a bike that turns high rpms, gets mighty old, trust me. My H-D was a cruiser, my GWs, all great cruisers, and that’s what biking should be about, not in the racing hunch at 8grand.
disclaimer: your riding style may differ.
Yes, they fell into a gray area in most states, I think. The manual transmission and top speed puts them out of the “moped” class, so you needed a motorcycle endorsement, insurance, helmet, etc. And like you said, by the time you do that, why not ride something bigger? I think that’s why they only lasted a year in the US.
that was the very first motorcycle I bought and it was new. I just drove it to work most days,3 miles one way. Saved my 65 Cadillac. It was great and fun. A year later I sold it and bought a 77 Suzuki GT 750,
3 cyl. 2 cycle water cooled.
What a difference!
Oh ya, rode a friends Mach III back and forth to work for awhile, what a screamer for a 550. Got pulled over for excessive smoke, told him ‘I don’t know why, it just got overhauled!’. No bike license yet, I didn’t say anything and he didn’t notice!
Knew a guy that had a turbo’d 750 GT chopper, he was a little crazy.
I know of three more of these currently for sale, and all have been up for offers for over a year.
I think the seller missed the market on this one. 18 months ago his price would have gotten some attention. Today, the bottom has all but fallen out on old bikes unless you have something really special. Which this is not. The one year makes them rare in the states, but there’s a reason for that. No one wanted them then and no one wants them now. Even the people who bought them mostly never rode them; that’s why they all have low mileage on them.
Everybody thinks they are cool, but not enough to pay real money for them.
It’s hard to believe that they only sold these for one year. They must have sold about 10,000 of them in New Orleans in that short span. They were ubiquitous down here back in the 80s.
I don’t understand these people who list items and add “Tire has leak”. Fix it!
Sheesh already!
I have a 26″ inseam, and am 59.5″ tall. What’s the seat height? Can I ride it? I used to have a Yamaha GT80 in high school, and a Yamaha DT100 Enduro is a perfect fit for me. How does this bike stack up against the DT100?
I remember these, but can’t remember why I do.
I didn’t know anyone who had one. Maybe it was the ad that was mentioned in a previous comment. I will have tp pay YouTube a visit.
Here’s the ad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdecJQteDuc
Maybe I was thinking about buying one. Instead I bought a ’74 Yamaha DT400. I think I made a wise decision.
Kawasaki had a much nicer version. The AR80 in most states, and the AR50 in more restrictive states. Much better looking than the MB5. I bought one brand new as a teenager, and really enjoyed it! Much cooler than a moped with it being a 6-speed with a clutch. ! I think it was around $600 to $700 brand new from what I remember.
Auction update: this one had no bidders and wasn’t sold at the seller’s asking price.