Report From Japan
REPORT FROM JAPAN
W. B. SWIM
SEVEN MOTORCYCLE and two motorscooter makers will exhibit their products at the 10th Tokyo Motor Show. Showing motorcycles are Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Tohatsu, Bridgestone, Pointer, Lilac and Kawasaki-Meguro, while Silver Pigeon and Rabbit scooters will be on display. This leaves only one motorcycle manufacturer not in the show; Iseki. The paucity of exhibitors is mute testimony to the rough time it has been trying to make motorcycles in Japan since the war, and the cut-throat quality of the competition. More than 30 motorcycle manufacturers showed their products at the 1st Tokyo Motor Show held in April, 1954. One by one they fell by the wayside until by the time of the 6th show only 22 makers participated. From then until now it was 19 makers at the 7th Show in 1960, 15 at the 8th, 12 at the 9th last year and now only 10 in this year’s Motor Show.
Everyone’s being secretive about what they’ll be displaying at the Motor Show, of course, and there may be some surprises in store. Three that ought to be there, having just been announced this month, include the Suzuki 50 Selpet model M30, the Yamaha 80cc Trail model YG-1T, a modified version of the hotselling Yamaha Junior YG-1, which is boosted to 80cc for export, and a new version of the Yamaha Junior YG-1 with an electric starter.
The Suzuki 50 Selpet M30 49cc engine gives 4.0 ps @ 6,800 rpm and has a torque maximum of 0.45 kg-m @ 5,000 rpm. A top speed of 70 kmh (44 mph) through a 3-speed rotary transmission with automatic clutch is claimed for this 41 x 38mm cycle. With a dry weight of 123 pounds, this neat two-stroke machine gets more than 200 miles per gallon of fuel. The clean V-frame sets the fuel tank under the seat, and pipe handlebars and splash guards to keep the pants clean are standard equipment. It is kick started and has flywheel magneto ignition.
The Yamaha 80cc Trail YG-1T has a 51-tooth trail sprocket, Western-style handlebars and a neat front fender. Road clearance with a skid plate installed under the engine is 7(4 inches. The engine gives 6.5 hp @ 7,000 rpm for a maximum speed of around 40 mph with 4 speeds. Tires front and rear are knobby 2.50-16 and a dry weight of 139 pounds gives a 30° climbing ability to this latest in the off-the road machine models.
One new one which won’t be seen at the Tokyo Motor Show, unfortunately, is a 500cc V-twin with overhead valves which Lilac will be announcing, probably next month. No pictures or details of this unique 4-stroke motorcycle are available as it is still under wraps until the official announcement. Too bad Lilac decided not to participate in the Show this year, as this new machine would certainly have drawn a lot of interest.
Kawasaki tuned up 10 of their 125cc twins as scramblers a few weeks ago and got them into the hands of some pretty good moto-cross riders in the Tokyo area. The firm had done practically nothing in the way of competition until this. With some fair showings in local moto-cross events, Kawasaki decided to tune up 100 scramblers and sell them through their dealers. This is the first time any Japanese firm has put a scrambler on general sale here. Kawasaki slapped a low price of just over $250 on the 125cc scrambler, as opposed to production costs of nearly $500, intending to take the loss in hopes of getting more back in publicity for the brand name.
Honda went hog-wild when more than 7,000 employes took over the ancient capital and cultural city of Kyoto Sept. 22 and 23 for an all-expense-paid celebration of the firm’s 15th anniversary which
caused management to dip into its coffers to the tune of more than $275,000. The major hotels, night clubs, cabarets, theaters and auditoriums were booked for the Honda employees, who were entertained by some 350 of Japan’s top vocalists, bands and comedians flown into the city from throughout Japan.
Suzuki is not waiting for the Japan Grand Prix Nov. 10, but is throwing a huge victory party to celebrate the firm’s showing in the classic events this year. Suzuki, with the Argentine and Japan G.P. races still to be run, has already copped the maker’s championship in both the 50cc and 125cc classes, while Suzuki’s Hugh Anderson of New Zealand has cinched the 125cc World Championship and is in hot contention for the 50cc title as well.
Jim Redman, who has already won the 1963 350cc World Championship for Honda and leads in the 250cc rankings as well, was flown to Japan before the Italian G.P. and tested a 125cc 4-cylinder racer Honda has been working on in secret. After whizzing around the Suzuka Circuit, where the Japan G.P. will be run, and breaking the 2 min. 50 sec. record, Redman pronounced this secret weapon ready to go. It is expected to make its bow in the Japan Grand Prix, with Honda hoping it will beat the Suzuki 125cc which copped this year’s championship. The most interesting details on the Honda Four are its sixteen valves (4-per cylinder); its horsepower is rated at 23 hp, measured at the transmission! On the other hand, the Suzuki rotary valve 4-cylinder 250cc racer is reported ready to challenge Honda's supremacy in this class. So the J.G.P. may just find the 125cc champion Suzuki beaten by Honda’s new Four, and the 250cc champ Honda beaten by Suzuki's new Four. That would be quite a switch.
Meanwhile, preparations for the big race are going smoothly, and the fuel committee has decided on three Japanese and one foreign oil company whose products will be authorized for the event. Shell, Nippon, Daikyo and Toa oil companies will supply 100 octane gasoline at the track. As the Japanese companies do not make 100 octane fuel, they are each going to halt production at their refineries to switch over and turn out 100 octane gas specially for the races.
Famed rider and former world champion Geoff Duke is reported to be organizing a group of at least 30 motorcycle fans in England to fly to Japan for the Grand Prix at a tab of over $1,500 each. A group from California will come to the races for $1,000 each if 15 interested fans can be gathered into one group.
Honda is flying 50 of its dealers in England to Japan, probably in November, to show appreciation for their sales efforts and let them see the company’s plants, etc. A competition to pick the lucky 50 is under way, with sales, appearance of the shops, etc., being taken into consideration. The top dealer, in addition to the trip, also picks up a prize of £100 (about $300) in cash.
Suzuki’s first shipment of motorcycles arrived in England in October, under a large contract with the Associated Motor Cycle group, who expect to sell several thousand, mostly 50cc models, the first year. The group reportedly already has around 600 dealers lined up to handle the Suzuki line. Suzuki is the world’s largest maker of 2-cycle motorcycles.
Exports of Honda motorcycles soared during the March-Sept, half year period to 167,599 machines. A fat 48.5 percent, or 81,367 motorcycles, went to North America, which topped the list of importers. Precisely 79,035 motorcycles were sold in the United States during these six months. Broken down by models, this includes 18,978 250/300cc, 9,678 125/150cc, 4
90cc, 21,469 Honda 50 Sports and 28,906 of the popular Honda 50 motorcycles. England ranked second after the U.S. with 20,779 and Belgium was third with 16,757. Total exports amounted to 9,722,885 yen (over $27,000,000), a Honda spokesman told CYCLE WORLD. Honda is the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer and now claims more than half the new motorcycle sales in the United States.
President Soichiro Honda presided at the official opening of Honda’s factory in Alost, Belgium, which was attended by some 250 officials, industrialists and businessmen on Sept. 5. He pointed out in his speech that this is the only plant whollyowned by Japanese on the European continent. The factory aims to assemble 10,000 50cc moped machines monthly with about 200 employes.
Ten hours up and IV2 hours down. The director of the Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, Dr. Juro Hayashi, is going on a scientific expedition to Africa next year. While there, he decided a few weeks ago, he would like to ride to the top of 19,565-foot Mt. Kilimanjaro on a motorcycle. So the 51-year old zoo director, who had never ridden a motorcycle in his life, got in touch with Tamatech motorcycle sportsland riding instructor Takamasa Akutsu, 30, who taught him how to ride, with emphasis on hill climbing. As a sort of practice run, Dr. Hayashi, instructor Akutsu, Tamatech mechanic Masaru Kobayashi, 22, and Techniland publicity man Yozo Yoshida, 28, took two Honda 55cc Hunter trail machines and two Honda bantam motorcycles out to 12,388-foot Mt. Fuji, the highest in Japan, the other day and rode them to the top. Although they had to get off and push occasionally, particularly on the lower stretches where deep ash gave no traction, they never did have to haul out the ropes they had brought along and pull the machines up. They were able to ride right up to the top. It took about 4 liters of gasoline per machine for the 10kilometer (6 mile) ascent, Yoshida related to CYCLE WORLD, and about 10 hours including rest stops. Sliding straight down instead of following the twisting climbing trail took about an hour and a half, he added. This is the sixth or seventh time a group has managed to get a motorcycle to the top of Mt. Fuji (your reporter tried it all alone, unsuccessfully, 13 years ago) but it is the first time anyone has been able to ride up the mountain all the way. Earlier efforts ended with the motorcycle being pulled and pushed or carried up the last steep stretches.
The 1963 All Japan Moto-cross Rankings have been announced. A Tohatsu rider tops the two smallest classes and two Suzuki riders have the other four. Kazuyuki Miyoshi is first in the 50cc class with a 20 point perfect score and first in the 90cc class (on a 60cc Tohatsu) with a perfect 10 points. He also ranks second in the 125cc list with 18 points against the first man’s 19 and 4th in the Open class with 9 points. Suzuki-mounted Kazuo Kubo is first in the 125cc with 19 points, the 250cc with a perfect 20 points and the Open with 19 points. He also ranks 2nd in the 50cc with 16 points and 2nd in the Over 251cc class with 10 points. The 251cc is headed by Kenkichi Mochizuki, Suzuki, with 14 points. •
