Today in motorcycle history, June 10, 1959
The 1959 Isle of Man TT witnessed the first entry from a Japanese team in the World GP series, the four 125cc Hondas being managed by Kiyoshi Kawashima, who had the complete trust and support of Soichiro Honda. This first challenge resulted in Honda claiming 6th, 7th, 8th and 11th in the 125cc light weight class, as well as the Manufacturers’ Team Award.
With the excitement of Honda doing well at Isle of Man a small expeditionary force headed by another Kawashima, Kihachiro Kawashima, left Japan on June 10, 1959. He was going to establish Honda's first overseas base, American Honda Motor Co. in Los Angeles, California.
To save expenses, the Honda lads shared a one-bedroom apartment and stacked motorcycle crates by hand in the company's Pico Boulevard warehouse. Frustration soon set in when the first Honda Dream motorcycles seemed to be too fragile for the sustained speeds and long distances it would need to cover to be successful in America. The 50cc Honda Super Cub cycle used by the team for a run to the liquor store, groceries and other errands roused unexpected interest. Since Piper Aircraft was already using the Super Cub trademark, Honda's pioneering product simply became known as the Honda 50.
Neither a moped nor a scooter nor a conventional motorcycle, the 50 combined a female-friendly step-through chassis with a clean, quiet engine unlike the "loud and dirty" American and British bikes.
Humming like a well-oiled sewing machine, the Honda 50 was the anti-Harley. Sales brochures called it "the thrifty, nifty Honda 50." Instead of selling them through traditional motorcycle dealers, Honda recruited agents in Popular Mechanics and offered sales franchises to hardware stores, lawn-mower repair shops, and even college bookstores. By the end of 1961, Honda's network of 500 dealers reached the East Coast.
