Difference between revisions of "Honda C100"

{{Infobox Motorcycle

|name            = Honda C100

|image            = [[Image:1959_honda_C100.jpg|200px|1959 Honda C100]]

|aka              = Supercub

|manufacturer    =  

|parent_company  =  

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|engine          = 49cc OHV single cylinder

|bore_stroke      =  

|power            = 4.5bhp @ 9,500 RPM

|torque          =  

|fuel_system   =

|ignition        =  

|spark_plug      = NGK [[NGK C7HSA|C7HSA]]

|battery          =  

|transmission    = 3-speed with an automatic clutch

|frame            =  

|suspension      =  

|brakes          =  

|front_tire      =  

|rear_tire       =  

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|oil_capacity    =  

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|turning_radius  =  

With more than 60 million sold worldwide, it is the best selling powered vehicle of all time and thus the best-selling motorcycle of all time. This 50cc Honda is still produced today, 50 years after its inception.  Out of all the brilliant bikes produced by Honda; the [[Honda CB750K|CB750 superbike]], [[Mike Hailwood]]'s magnificent six-cylinder racers, even the mighty [[Honda GL1000|Gold Wing]], there is little doubt that the most important of all of them is the '''Honda C100 Super Cub''' of 1958.<ref name="Brown1991">{{cite book|author=Roland Brown|title=Honda: the complete story|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=BBzaAAAACAAJ|accessdate=10 December 2010|date=May 1991|publisher=Crowood|isbn=9781852235444}}</ref>   The first one was sold in August 1958.  If there is one motorized vehicle that can be said to have brought mobility to the masses it is the '''Super Cub'''.  It can be thought of as the first scooterette, a totally new type of machine that had many characteristics of a scooter but featured large 17 in wheels and stability of a motorcycle proper.  It featured an enclosed drivetrain, [[step-through frame]], and protective leg shields clearly derived from [[scooter]] designs.  After two years of production Honda was the world's biggest manufacturer.  By 1960 over a half a million Super Cubs were sold every year, with a peak of 900,000 in 1963.<ref name="Brown1991" />

In 1960 Honda introduced the electric start C102 Super Cub; the [[Honda CZ100|CZ100 monkey bike]], with its similar enginge but tiny balloon tires; and the [[Honda C110|C110 Sports Cub]].  In 1964, two larger engined versions were offered, the [[Honda CM90|CM90]] (OHV 87cc) and [[Honda C65|C65]] (OHC 63cc) with slight alterations to frame and styling. Around 1967, the whole motorcycle was uprated, the 50cc engine going from pushrod 4.5bhp to SOHC 4.9bhp (a bored-down C65 engine) called the C50, and similarly the 90cc was redesigned with an OHC engine called the [[Honda C90|C90]]. Though the basic design of Cub remained unchanged, slightly new styling features and improvements were integrated, most visible being the enclosed front forks. In the 1980s, Honda fitted a new capacitor discharge ignition system (CDI) to replace the earlier contact points ignition, thereby helping to meet increasingly strict emission standards in markets such as the US. However, many experts on the Cub testify to the fact that Honda used the CDI system for better reliability and fuel efficiency, with the emissions improvements being an appealing by-product of these goals.

* Available originally only in blue with pale blue plastic parts, and later in various other colours for the world's different markets. (brown for japan, green for Britain to name two)