The Five Best Honda Motorcycles of the 80s

It has been a long, long time since the 1980s. However, there are still plenty of people who view the motorcycles of the 1980s with enormous fondness. Honda is no exception to this rule, which is why there are still Honda motorcycles from the 1980s that remain well-known in the present time. Here are five examples of Honda motorcycles from the 80s that have managed to remain well-known:

Honda Africa Twin

The Honda Africa Twin was a dual-sport motorcycle, meaning that while it could be used on standard roads, it was perfectly capable of handling off-road situations as well. In total, it had three versions, with the first version being the XRV650 that was produced from 1988 to 1989. On the whole, the Honda Africa Twin was a motorcycle that motorcyclists could count upon, not least because it was built to be tough.

Honda CG125

Chances are good that most people won't find the Honda CG125 to be the most impressive motorcycle upon initial inspection. However, it is important to remember that motorcycle manufacturers design their motorcycles for a wide range of purposes, meaning that what isn't particularly impressive by one set of standards can be very much so from another. In the case of the CG125, it was based on the CB125 but incorporated a number of changes to make it more suitable for the markets in developing countries. One excellent example can be seen in how the CG125 came with a washable air filter as well as other components that provided it with a longer useful lifespan in case it didn't receive regular maintenance, which was expected for its target markets. Due to this, the CG125 turned into a huge success, so much so that it is still being produced by Atlas Honda over in Pakistan to this very day.

Honda Gold Wing

The Honda Gold Wing came into existence because Honda wanted to come up with some kind of motorcycle that could serve as a flagship in the wake of the success of the CB750. In time, this resulted in an entire series of touring motorcycles that started up in the mid 1970s and are still being made in the modern day, though it should come as no surprise to learn that there are significant differences between a first-generation Gold Wing and a sixth-generation Gold Wing. It is interesting to note that the 1980s bore witness to three separate generations of the Gold Wing, which proved to be necessary because Honda was facing fierce competition in this particular segment of the motorcycle market in those years. In particular, the fourth-generation Gold Wing is memorable because of how much of a change it was from its predecessors, with an excellent example being its seamless appearance because of the use of plastic to encase it.

Honda Hurricane

The Honda CBR600F was marketed as the Honda Hurricane in the US market. Appearance-wise, it was another motorcycle that was encased in plastic, which resulted in a very distinct look for it. However, what was most interesting is that it was a sports motorcycle that came at a very affordable price, which is why it was sometimes called the poor man's racer. With that said, what is undeniable is that the Hurricane put a considerable amount of speed at the disposal of even people who were either unable or unwilling to spend an enormous sum of money on a motorcycle, meaning that it had a profound impact on that particular segment of the market.

Honda VFR750R

There are a number of factors that play an important role when it comes to designing motorcycles. For example, there is a need to consider the production price because a higher production price means a higher sales price, which in turn, means pricing potential customers out of the market. Likewise, there is the issue of making a motorcycle marketable, which is something that can see enormous change from year to year. The Honda VFR750R is interesting because it wasn't designed with most of these factors in mind. Instead, it was a solo seat racing motorcycle designed for the sole purpose of winning the World Superbike Championship. With that said, even though the Honda VFR750R was intended for nothing but this particular purpose, the 3,000 units that were produced managed to sell for $15,000 USD per unit anyways.