General Information

Soichiro Honda was a mechanic who first rebuilt the vehicles that had been damaged by the great Tokyo earthquake of 1923.  He tried his hand at racing for a brief period, then began manufacturing piston rings just before WWII.  After the war, he turned to the production of motorized bicycles and motorcycles.  Honda motorcycles were first imported to the U.S. in 1958, and the first Honda automobiles were built in 1962.  Those first cars had a lot in common with motorcycles, from their air-cooled engines to their chain drive.

The Honda 600 was one of the last air-cooled Hondas before the Civic appeared in 1973.  With the Civic, Honda had produced a solid car that met American performance requirements, and because the Japanese industry was so new and its products were evolving so rapidly, they were built with integrally engineered solutions to the newly imposed safety and emission laws while American and European answers to these issues tended to be afterthoughts.  With up-to-date, attractively priced cars, Honda, and the Japanese in general, became a major player in the U.S. marketplace and remain so to this day.

The 600 was produced from 1969 to 1972 and was the first Honda model sold in the U.S.  It featured front disc brakes, unibody construction, and front wheel drive.  A 3-speed Hondamatic transmission was optional, which was unusual for a small car but a feature that helped it succeed in the American market.  This example has only done 35,000 miles and is fully documented with its original purchase receipt, owners manual and every registration slip from new. It is fitted with optional fog lights and has been correctly restored to include new paint, upholstery, chrome, and trim.  The engine, clutch, transmission, suspension, steering, and exhaust system have all been rebuilt.  Tammy Allen bought this car at the 2010 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction.