Honda Z50R

MiniTrail

The Honda Z50R refers to a motorcycle produced by Honda Motorcycles belonging to its Z Series family of mini bikes. It began production in 1979 as Honda's answer to the increasing demand for mini dirt bikes to be used on the track, as opposed to their traditional trail bike used more for leisure, such as the Z50A and Z50J. The Z50R quickly evolved into a light-weight mini racing machine until 1999 when it was replaced by the XR50R in 2000.

1979

1979 Honda Z50R

1979 Honda Z50R'79 Mini Trail bike

• Like the previous two years of the Z50A models, it was available in the one color: Tahitian Red
• Fuel tank: had just the word "HONDA" and a flying wing above it
• Fuel tank itself had a new shape: the rear part was tapered down to look like the tank from a larger bike
• Chain guard: black
• No number plate on the left side
• Chain guard: chrome
• Fenders: painted red
• Grips: black
• Plastic levers: silver aluminum
• Engine: The tired OHV engine of the Z50A was replaced with a stronger 49cc OHC single cylinder
• Transmission: 3-speed with an automatic clutch
• Ignition: points
• Exhaust pipe: went to the left side of the bike rather than on the right
• There is no number plate on the right side
• Unlike the following years, there is no logo on the side of the saddle
• Serial number began: AB02-5000009

1980

1980 Honda Z50R

1980 Honda Z50R'80 Mini Trail bike

• Like the previous year, it was available in the one color: Tahitian Red
• The fuel tank has the word "HONDA" and a flying wing above it
• The number plates on both the left and right side had the decal "50R" on them
• The chain guard was chrome but the fenders were painted red
• The grips were black and the plastic levers were silver aluminum
• The engine was a 49cc OHC single cylinder
• It had a 3-speed transmission with an automatic clutch
• The saddle had a red "Z" on each side
• The serial number began: AB02-5100007

1981

1981 Honda Z50R

1981 Honda Z50R'81 Mini Trail bike

• Like the previous year, it was available in the one color: Tahitian Red
• The fuel tank has the word "HONDA" and a flying wing above it
• The number plates on both the left and right side had a larger decal "50R" on them
• The chain guard was chrome but the fenders were painted red
• The grips were black and the plastic levers were silver aluminum
• The engine was a 49cc OHC single cylinder
• It had a 3-speed transmission with an automatic clutch
• The saddle had a red "Z" on each side
• The serial number began JH2AB0200BS200001

1982

1982 Honda Z50R

1982 Honda Z50R'82 Mini Trail bike

• Finally the Tahitian Red was replaced with another color: Blaze Red
• The fuel tank has the word "HONDA" and a flying wing above it
• The number plates on both the left and right side were white with a red "Z" on them
• The chain guard was chrome but the fenders were painted red
• The grips were black and the plastic levers were silver aluminum
• The engine was a 49cc OHC single cylinder
• It had a 3-speed transmission with an automatic clutch
• The saddle had a white "50R" on each side
• The serial number began: JH2AB0207CS300002

1983

1983 Honda Z50R

1983 Honda Z50R'83 Mini Trail bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• The black solo seat had a white "Z" graphic letter
• The number plates were yellow with a white "50R" decals.
• The serial number began: JH2AB0204DS400012

1984

1984 Honda Z50R

1984 Honda Z50R

1984 Honda Z50R'84 Mini Trail bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• The blue solo seat had a white "Z" graphic letter
• The number plates were yellow with a white "50R" decal
• The shock springs were red
• Engine: 49cc OHC four-stroke, 2-valve, single cylinder
• Control: Adjustable throttle stop
• Transmission: Three-speed with automatic clutch
• Suspension: Full suspension front and rear
• Wheelbase: 895mm (35.2 in.)
• Dry weight: 49.5 kg (109.1 lb)
• Seat height: 575mm (22.6 in.)
• The serial number began: JH2AB0204ES500001

1985

1985 Honda Z50R

1985 Honda Z50R'85 Mini Trail bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• The blue solo seat had a white "Z" graphic letter
• The number plates were yellow with no decals
• The wing decal was red, white, and blue
• The shock springs were blue
• The serial number began: JH2AB0209FS600001

1986

Z50R

1986 Honda Z50R

1986 Honda Z50R'86 bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• The red solo seat had a white "Z" graphic letter
• The number plates were white with no decals
• The wing decal was red, white, and blue
• The wheels were painted gold
• The serial number began: JH2AB0203GS700001

Z50RD

1986 Honda Z50RD

1986 Honda Z50RD Special in Chrome

1986 Honda Z50RD Special in Chrome

1986 Honda Z50RD Special in Chrome

1986 Honda Z50RD'86 Special

• Available color: Chrome
• All the steel parts were chrome plated
• The seat and grips were red
• The number plates were white
• The wing decal was red, white, and blue
• The serial number began: JH2AB0203GS700001

1987

1987 Honda Z50R

1987 Honda Z50R'87 bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• Frame, fenders and shock springs were Shasta White
• The red solo seat had a white "Z" graphic letter
• The number plates were red with no decals
• The wing decal was red, white, and blue.
• The wheels were painted gold
• The serial number began: JH2AB0203GS700001

1988

1988 Honda Z50R

1988 Honda Z50R'88 bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• The frame, fenders, shock springs, number plates, and wheels were Shasta White
• The number plate changed from an oval to a trapezoid
• The blue solo seat had the word "HONDA"
• The tank had a large "Z" with the number "50R" beneath it
• The number plates were white with no decals
• The wheels were white
• There was no wing decal
• Finally the ignition used a CD
• The serial number began: JH2AB0207JS900001

1989

1989 Honda Z50R

1989 Honda Z50R'89 bike

• Available color: Blaze Red
• the frame, number plates, and wheels were Shasta White
• The fuel tank, seat, front and rear fenders were red
• The solo seat had the letter "Z" logo
• There was a new style wing logo on the tank
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*KS000001

1991

1991 Honda Z50R

1991 Honda Z50R'91 bike

• The primary color was now Shasta White
• The seat was still red with a red "50R" logo on a white graphic background
• The "HONDA" logo and number plate panel were blue
• The large "Z" logo on the tank was red and blue
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*MS000004

1992

1992 Honda Z50R

1992 Honda Z50R'92 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White, although the seat was still red with a white "50R" logo.
• The fuel tank wing logo was deleted
• The "HONDA" logo and number plate panel were blue
• The large "Z" logo was red and blue
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*NK100001

1993

1993 Honda Z50R

1993 Honda Z50R'93 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White
• The tank logo reads "Z50R" and the "HONDA" seat logo was white
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*PK200001

1994

1994 Honda Z50R

1994 Honda Z50R'94 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White
• The XR style graphics "50R" on the seat was white
• The fuel tank logo reads "Z" (blue) and "HONDA" (red)
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*RK300001

1995

1995 Honda Z50R

1995 Honda Z50R'95 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White
• The fuel tank logo "Z" was red and the logo "HONDA" was purple along with the outline
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*SK400001

1996

1996 Honda Z50R

1996 Honda Z50R'96 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White
• The fuel tank logo was redesigned
• The serial number beganL JH2AB020*TK500001

1997

1997 Honda Z50R

1997 Honda Z50R'97 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White
• The number plate was now white
• The fuel tank logo was redesigned with new color: black, white, and red
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*VK600001

1998

1998 Honda Z50R

1998 Honda Z50R'98 bike

• The primary color was Shasta White
• The "50R" logo on the seat was black
• The fuel tank logo was redesigned to include a yellow Honda wing logo
• The serial number began: JH2AB020*WK700001

External links

• The Honda Mini Trail 50 Motorcycle Information and Website