{"id":54015,"date":"2019-04-24T12:02:04","date_gmt":"2019-04-24T11:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.influx.co.uk\/?p=54015"},"modified":"2022-06-21T15:07:13","modified_gmt":"2022-06-21T14:07:13","slug":"motocompo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/motocompo\/","title":{"rendered":"Honda Motocompo: the cool commuter"},"content":{"rendered":"

Riding the current wave of retro classics are 1980s cars. But if you want a cool set of two wheels rather than four, hop on the bike that looks like a box, the Honda Motocompo.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The 1980s. Brought back into focus thanks to smash hit TV series such as Stranger Things and movies like Ready Player One, its neon-lit brashness evokes geek game nostalgia for Generation X-ers and Millennials, who fondly remember waggling their joysticks in the driving seat next to a pixelated blonde in Out Run\u2019s Ferrari Testarossa or sitting in a car-shaped machine down their local arcade, hunting down baddies in Chase HQ.<\/p>\n

Huge waves of Eighties sentimentality are also ridden now thanks to the appeal of modern classic cars from the decade, but how about a two-wheeled machine, very definitely of the greed and yuppies era? Ladies and gentlemen, the Honda Motocompo is that very vehicle and it\u2019s undeniably the cutest and coolest commuter.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/figure>\n

Cute? Yes. What else would you call something so diminutive. It\u2019s as diddy as the car that carries it. The car that carries it? Yes, let me explain. While not as mini as the Honda N360, the City of 1981 was a tiny \u2018Tall Boy\u2019 of a car. The City\u2019s angular yet adorable appearance made it an easy four-seater, but not to the expense of style \u2013 it didn\u2019t look like a wardrobe unlike some of its later kei car cousins. But, it had the space of one, because under that rear hatch was room for a motorbike. Yes, that\u2019s right, space for a fully-operational two-wheeler!<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/figure>\n

OK, the Motocompo \u2013 or NCZ 50 Motocompo to give it its full name \u2013 was technically a \u2018Trunk Bike\u2019, but whatever it was called, it was a proper petrol-powered mini motorcycle. The City\u2019s luggage compartment had actually been designed around the Motocompo, which at 1.185m long, was little bigger than a large suitcase. In a decade known for excess, the Motocompo was the opposite. And therein, thought Honda, was the appeal: City drivers who commuted could park the car out of the space-limited urban sprawl and then ride the last mile perched atop the Motocompo.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/figure>\n

And riders were perched on top of Honda\u2019s smallest ever scooter. The handlebars, foot pegs and seat may have ingeniously unfolded from the body when in use, but brochure images depicted adults riding what looks like a slightly inflated child\u2019s bike. Not generally cool, but, that\u2019s exactly what the Motocompo now is. There may have been an ironic wink in portraits of young dudes at outside burger bars and leotard or legging-clad ladies with their Motocompos in tow back in 1981, but fast forward almost four decades and a fervent owners\u2019 scene gives credence to Honda\u2019s vision.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/figure>\n

Fast is one thing the Motocompo wasn\u2019t. Powered by a 49cc, air-cooled two-stroke engine, output was an equally Lilliputian 2.5bhp, but just look at it! Available in red, white or yellow, its simple primary colour palette aids its retro appeal now. Cheeky and cheery, the Motocompo\u2019s diddy demeanour were seized upon in its sales brochures. If you think the idea of a miniature motorbike is madness, so did Honda \u2013 it used the energetic British ska lads to promote it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n