1991 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy

Please kindly note that this motorbike will be available for viewing by prior appointment in Dortmund: please contact [email protected] for booking.

Having initially developed large-capacity singles for the off-road market, Honda and its Japanese rivals began offering a succession of purely road-going derivatives. One of the most interesting of these was the Honda XBR500 of 1985, the styling of which was unashamedly 'retro', and this concept was taken a stage further almost immediately with the GB500 Tourist Trophy (TT), launched the following year (in Germany the model was marketed as the 'Clubman'). A factory 'café racer', the GB500 looked very British, taking styling cues from such classics as the BSA Gold Star and Velocette Venom Thruxton. Thus the GB500 boasted coachlined paintwork, clip-on handlebars, rear-set footrests, chromed headlamp shell, matching speedometer and rev counter, and alloy-rimmed, wire-spoked wheels instead of the XBR's Comstars. The dry-sump, radial four-valve motor featured electric starting and delivered its 42bhp via a six-speed gearbox, while the entire ensemble weighed in at a little under 340lbs. 'It blends a touch of the past with the best of today's technology,' declared Honda of a model that struck a chord with mature riders who hankered after the past but disliked the associated oil leaks, dodgy electrics and general unreliability.

Representing a rare opportunity to acquire one of these increasingly collectible Hondas, the example offered here has a speedometer that reads in miles per hour, indicating that it was intended for a market outside continental Europe. The machine is offered with German registration papers and a TüV document. The engine turns over.
Offered with key