We start off this listing by apologizing for the picture quality, but this bike is just too interesting not to share. In the 1960’s, two men named Jack Pruett and Bruce Butterfield owned a motorcycle dealership named Jack’s in Fresno, California. The two combined forces with a Mr. Willis and built adapters that allowed them to put VW 1600cc 4-cylinder …
1935 Ariel VG 500 Deluxe
11-27 Update: Well, that was quick. Just a few hours after we posted this Ariel VG 500, it sold for an unknown best offer on eBay. Ariel was a British manufacturer that was well known for innovation, especially due to the Square Four. The company had an interesting history – after producing its first bike in 1902, it closed for …
1987 Cagiva Alazzurra 650SS
Produced for just three years, the Cagiva Alazzurra was a rebadged Ducati street bike. Cagiva purchased Ducati in 1985, and was looking to grow their market share in larger-displacment bikes. Instead of building one from scratch, they used a 650cc version of the Pantah engine for both the Alazzurra and the Elefant. MSRP wa $3,893, putting it slightly above the …
Featured First – 1981 BMW R80GS
Nowadays, the BMW R/GS series is well-known in the motorcycling world as the bikes that launched the concept of big-bore dual sporting. No small part of that is due to the documentary of Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman going the Long Way Round the world on BMW R1150GS Adventures. Hell, we’re guilty of it ourselves – there’s a R1150GS parked …
Snakebit – 1967 Benelli Cobra
Starting in the 1950s, department stores like Sears and Montgomery Ward rebadged Italian small displacement bikes from Puch, Gilera, and Benelli and sold them right out of their brick and mortar stores, or even out of the mail order catalogs. MW was particularly fond of Benelli, and rebranded the Benelli Cobra into the Montgomery Ward Riverside 125. As a buyer, …
1968 Seeley 7R
Post-Listing Update: This Seeley 7R Racer was pulled off of eBay, final sales price unknown. Colin Seeley is a former sidecar racer who became famous as a motorcycle designer. Some of his most notable work came right after he retired from sidecar racing competition, where he built frames for racing motorcycles utilizing Matchless and AJS engines. At the time, AJS …
Mini Indian – 1974 Indian MM-5A
Post-Listing Update: Despite 25 bids on eBay, this Indian MM-5A did not meet reserve at $2,080. The Indian MM-5A, also known as the Indian Mini Mini, was a mini bike designed for little children (4-5 year olds) to become familiar with motorcycles, but also the Indian brand. There were two marketing goals with this bike – encourage older riders to …
Wildfire – 1970 Ossa 250 Sport
11-23 Update: As you might expect, this Wildfire did not get much attention at a $7,000 opening bid. However, it’s now back up for sale with bidding up to $3,999 and the reserve not yet met. Find it available here on eBay. In the United States, Ossa is associated mostly with successful trials bikes, as well as some MX motorcycles. …
What a Story – 197x Tony Foale Honda CB750
6-28 Update: Year of bike in title changed to reflect Tony’s comment. Post-Listing Update: Unfortunately, this bike only got one bid and did not meet reserve at the opening bid of $10,000. I can’t believe there wasn’t more action on this bike. We love listings like this – a rare bike, an interesting back story, and great pictures. Just sit …
Featured First – 1965 Bultaco TSS 250
Post-Sale Update: This Bultaco TSS 250 did not get any bites at $40,000. In 1965, Bultaco created the first 250cc factory production road racer – the Bultaco TSS 250. Just 51 were produced between ’65 and ’66. The Spanish company actually sold this Works racer, also known as the Model 24, directly to their competitor, EMC Motorcycles in England.
2004 Aprilia RSV 1000 R Factory
11-22 Update: This Aprilia RSV 1000 R Factory has been relisted here on eBay with a starting bid of $7,000. In the mid to late 2000’s, Aprilia produced one of the best liter bikes the world had ever seen…the Aprilia RSV 1000 R Factory. Consumers didn’t respond as favorably as they should have, possibly because these bikes didn’t have “Ducati” …
Little Italian – 1993 Cagiva Mito
From many angles, the Cagiva Mito looks like a large Italian supersport – but your eyes may deceive you. Part of that may come from the name itself, as Mito is Italian for “myth”. Debunking the myth, you’ll see that it’s just powered by a 125cc two-stroke single cylinder engine, capable of 30 horsepower and a surprising top speed of …
2011 Confederate P120 Fighter Combat
Post-Sale Update: After being relisted, this Confederate P120 Fighter Combat sold for $70,000 on eBay. Ever since we started Bike-urious, we’ve been waiting to feature this bike. We all love the Confederate Fighter an inordinate amount – in fact one of our staff members finally decided to get a bike after seeing this picture:
1976 Montesa Cappra 125
The Montesa Cappra 125 was the Spanish firm’s attempt at a motocross bike specifically for young riders. To help promote the bike, Montesa even created a “Montesa 125cc Trophy”, a spec series specifically for the small displacement Cappra. It was so popular that they had to change the format of the competition, adding several heats just to handle the number …
1 of 300: 2006 Ducati 999R
Post-Listing Update: The opening bid on this 999R was reduced to $15,000 but it still got no action. Designed by Pierre Terblanche, the Ducati 999R (and the regular 999 it was based on) was met with mixed reviews with regards to the exterior styling when it was first released. But no one can deny the success that Ducati had in …