Post-Listing Update: This R75/5 did not meet reserve at $15,188. There’s lot of slash5 Beemers I sort through, and sometimes it can be hard to pick out the cream of the crop. In this case, it was easy. Used as a daily commuter by a rocket scientist (the original owner) for two and a half decades, this bike was sold …
1 Year Only – 1961 Triumph TR5AR
Only built for 1 year (mostly sold in the US), the Triumph TR5AR is a very rare bike. A 500cc Tiger unit-construction model, you could consider this bike to be a smaller version of the Trophy. According to Ian Falloon, one year later the TR5AR had evolved into the T100SS.
1968 BSA A50 Royal Star
A semi-popular export, the BSA A50 Royal Star was an evolution of the A50 Star, which was an example of BSA’s transition to full unit construction engines. The Royal Star had a 498cc twin that pushed 33 horsepower through a 4-speed transmission. For more on the Royal Star, check out this article from Motorcycle Classics.
Ex-Military – 1955 Moto Guzzi Airone
Produced for nearly two decades, the Moto Guzzi Airone (translates to Heron) featured a 250cc engine in varying forms like a Sport model and this military variant. The external flywheel was affectionately known as the “salami slicer” and it helped keep the dimensions of the engine case minimal.
1968 Puch 250 SGS
Imported to the US by Sears under the Allstate brand, the SGS was Puch’s big bike of the day. It featured a distinctive split single engine – two pistons that shared the same combustion chamber. Because of this, it was also known as the Twingle.
1915 Indian C-3 Big Twin
The Indian Big Twin was the last of an era – some even consider it to be the last “real” Indian as it was the end of the F-head engine in a cradle-spring frame. 1915 was the last year of production before Indian stopped racing efforts to help with the war, and debuted the flat head V-Twin dubbed the Power …
9 Miles – 2006 Triumph Bonneville Multi-Union
4 years after Triumph’s 100th anniversary, Paul Smith designed 9 different T100 Bonnevilles, each with a custom paint job. Triumph took two of the designs and sold 50 of each – one was called “Live Fast”, the other is what you see in front of you here, a Triumph Bonneville Multi-Union.
1997 Bimota Mantra DB3
The Bimota Mantra, to put it bluntly, is probably the ugliest motorcycle to come out of the Rimini company’s doors. With that said, I love that they took a chance – you may never see a bike that looks like this again.
1966 Moto Guzzi Lodola
Intorduced in 1956, the Moto Guzzi Lodola was Carlo Guzzi’s last design – unfortunately I can’t say I’m a big fan of the aesthetics. The bike started with a 175cc engine but by 1959 the “Gran Turismo” version was introduced with a 235cc engine that put out 11 horsepower, enough to get the Lodola up to 70 miles per hour. …
Completely Restored – 1979 Honda CBX
In the late 70s, the big four Japanese companies kicked off a horsepower war by stuffing big engines into their usual frames, creating the notion of superbikes. When it came to Big Red’s turn, Honda decided to push boundaries and utilize their first 6-cylinder engine in a production motorcycle. Benelli actually beat Honda to the punch in terms of 6-cylinder …
1949 Nimbus Model C
The Nimbus motorcycle dates back to 1919, the result of a vacuum cleaner manufacturer that decided expansion into bikes was a worthwhile endeavor. They were technologically advanced, with shaft drive, steel frames, and a telescopic front fork (a year before the BMW R12, though the latter was hydraulically damped). The first Nimbus was affectionately known as the Stovepipe…in 1932 the …
1983 Triumph TSX
The last time one of these was featured on Bike-urious, it needed some work (and was more expensive than this bike). Hopefully you’ll find this one to be a better deal.
1 of 3 Remaining – 1964 Marusho Lilac MF-19
Post-Sale Update: This MF-19 sold for $4,595 after 7 bids on eBay. Marusho/Lilac was a Japanese motorcycle manufacturer that was constantly under the shadow of Honda. After peaking in the late 50s, the company went bankrupt in 1962. The company was brought back to life just a year later, free of debts and configured to specifically target the American market …
1971 Triumph Tiger TR6R
The Triumph Tiger was the little brother of the Bonneville, born again in ’71 with the new oil-in-frame chassis. Here’s an example that’s cosmetically clean thanks to the fact that it has spent the last 20 years in storage.
1980 Moto Morini 250 2C
Post-Sale Update: After 24 bids on eBay, this Moto Morini 250 2C sold for $4,006. A very hard to find twin in the US, the Moto Morini 2C featured a 239cc engine that put 24 horsepower through a 6-speed transmission. This example (VIN: ZLMAJ2247AB03935) has 3,210 miles and has recently had plenty of work done to ensure that it’s in …