1987 Honda VT500E for Sale on eBay
Miles: 29,050
Clean North Carolina Title
Listing Price: $3,800
Listing ends: May 19th, 2024
Bit of an oddball for this Sunday, a bike I didn’t even know existed, as it was never imported for the US market and wasn’t sporty enough to feature in the British motorcycle magazines during the 1990s… This Honda VT500E [The “E” is for “European.” Really.] was aimed at the less extreme end of the sporting market, with a 52° degree v-twin that was chosen for its compact design, rather than overall smoothness: with just 491cc, vibration wasn’t too likely to be a problem. The middleweight twin had three valves per cylinder, two spark plugs per cylinder, and a single overhead-cam that put its claimed 50hp to the rear wheel through a six-speed gearbox and shaft drive. Interestingly, the engine, transmission, and likely frame of the VT500E did make it to the US, albeit in the VT500 Ascot, a dirt-track-styled machine that most have forgotten. The Comstar wheels are a cool, very 80s design you probably either love or hate. Of interesting note is the “inboard” disc brake at the front, an idea Honda flirted with in the period. “Inboard” is in quotation marks because, in the automotive world, the advantage of inboard disc brakes on a production vehicle is that they significantly reduce unsprung weight. Not sure what advantage they provide here, but they do look cool. The styling in general resembles Moto Morinis of the period, which to my mind is no bad thing. Period reviews of the Honda VT500E are very positive, although not especially exuberant, which is probably appropriate and entirely in keeping with the bike’s basic mission statement. Handling was good, the motor was peppy for its displacement, the gearbox shifted with typical Honda smoothness, and the bike could happily cruise at 90mph.
1986 VT500E, German import, similar to Honda’s VT500 Ascot, 29,050 miles, recent fork seals, tires, new OEM coils, stainless front brake line.
Six speed, driveshaft, inboard ventilated disc, one factory key for ignition, one factory key for gas cap, helmet lock.
Ready to ride, fun bike, handles very well. Fairly light, comfortable ergonomics.Has some paint chips, scratches. Engine, frame are very clean, check all pictures.
Located in Raleigh, NC, clean NC title in my name. $3800.
Here in the US the VT500 Ascot did not sell well, and that bike is largely forgotten. Likely because the US market has always been power-hungry, and Honda’s mission to create a middleweight bike to cater to big-twin fans was almost destined to fail from the outset. That being said, the basic drivetrain package proved an excellent performer and found its way into a wide range of bikes over the years. This particular example of the Honda VT500E has reasonable miles and appears to have been well-kept. The paint is shiny, but has some chips and the grab handle is worn, but the bike is very clean overall. I’d expect original body panels would be very hard to source here in the US, so it’s very good news that they’re in excellent shape. It’s certainly not a high-performance sportbike, but its an excellent motorcycle, should be very reliable and easy to maintain, and the $3,800 asking price means it could be a really fun impulse buy for someone.
-tad