1976 Honda CB

CB750A-7001550

Clear

800x600 1976 HONDA CB750 AUTOMATIC – ALL ORIGINAL SURVIVOR! 332 ORIGINAL MILES, 1 Owner, FRAME #CB750A-7001550, Manufactured 2/76 This Honda 750 Automatic epitomizes the late 1970’s sportbike/cruiser that became a permanent part of Honda lore and still represents the classic style… The condition of this machine is highly original and un-restored. It has 332 original miles from new. The frame and engine numbers are factory correct and original. It is the 750 cc engine. The gearbox is also original to the machine. This Honda 750 Automatic is completely original and has never been apart. I am the third owner from new. It is in un-restored showroom new condition, and is a true historical document. This machine has been in my collection for some time, is started on a regular basis, and is ridden around the parking lot at my office occasionally, just to make sure everything still works. When I purchased the bike, it had been sitting for some time in completely original condition. I went through the machine top to bottom and checked all of the major engine, transmission, and braking components for functionality and safety. The gas tank was still in as new condition, with no wear evident, the carburetors were inspected, cleaned, and re-installed, the air filter checked, all fluids changed, and both front and rear brakes were taken apart cleaned, re-built, and re-installed, the consequence of the bike sitting idle for a long period of time. The tire on the front is the original Bridgestone Super Speed 21 F2, 3.50H19, and the rear the original Bridgestone Super Speed 21 R2, 4.50H17A. The tires and tubes have NOT been replaced and, while not as soft and pliable as when they were new, are in amazing original condition, with no cracking or dry rot evident. The wheels are also the original D.I.D. rims, and and are in excellent original condition. The seat is original and the upholstery is in perfect condition with no rips, tears, or wear of any kind. The engine and transmission are in excellent interior condition due to the low mileage and absence of any type of harsh conditions or abuse throughout its life. A complete cleaning and detailing was performed, and although detailing on an original machine is never completed, the overall condition of the finishes is remarkable considering the age of the machine, and is in line with the low original mileage. The aluminum parts are in excellent condition overall, but due to the originality, I did not want to go too far polishing any parts. The paint is the original Muscat Green Metallic, and is nearly flawless. The original decals are still applied to the gas tank, fairing, sidecovers, and tail section. All of the plastic fairings, covers, etc. are in excellent condition and are not in need of any type of repair. The 750 Automatic on the road is very easy to handle, and rides down the road very tight, with no shakes, shimmies, or rattles. It shifts and accelerates smoothly and holds the road as it should. This bike is really interesting to ride and a lot faster than you think. There is absolutely NOTHING that needs to be done to this machine to ride it occasionally and enjoy it as a showpiece. Unlike a lot of collector motorcycles for sale on the internet, this 750 is ready to ride and not in need of any expensive service once you get it home. I am always looking for new machines to add to my collection and have several other motorcycles for sale, including Honda CB750s, '68-'78 Mini Trail 50s, and a '79 CBX, a brand new '76 Suzuki RE5 Rotary with 0 miles, and motocross and enduro machines, including early Maico machines as well as Gilera and Can Ams. Please contact me if you are interested or have something interesting for sale. …And if you like the gallery photo in this ad, the process is called Studio Effect by Dimostra. Studio Effect utilizes a photograph of your favorite car, truck, or motorcycle and replicates the photo as if it was taken in a professional studio. Please contact me for more information! TERMS: $500 DEPOSIT WITHIN 48 HOURS OF AUCTION CLOSE. BALANCE OF AUCTION AMOUNT MUST BE PAID BY CASH IN PERSON, BANK TO BANK TRANSFER, OR CERTIFIED FUNDS (WITH VERIFICATION) ONLY WITHIN 7 DAYS OF AUCTION CLOSE. SORRY, NO C.O.D. AND NO PAYPAL. The description of this motorcycle is written to the best of my knowledge. However, I am by no means an expert on vintage Honda motorcycles. Please don’t hesitate to ask for more photos and, if possible, come and look in person before the auction ends. ALL SALES ARE FINAL! If you have any questions, please contact me before the auction ends. If you have any questions, please contact me. If you live close to Chicago, I encourage you to come and inspect the motorcycle in person! In an effort to protect the eBay user information and to help ensure the authenticity of correspondence between sellers and bidders, eBay’s new listing format does NOT display any bidder information. Nevertheless, I STRONGLY encourage bidders to contact me directly to answer questions or to verify correspondence. Seller reserves the right to not accept bids or sell the vehicle to anyone with a zero or negative eBay feedback rating. This motorcycle is being sold as is, where is with no warranty, expressed, written or implied unless there is a warranty in effect from the factory. The seller shall not be responsible for the correct description, authenticity, genuineness, or defects herein, and makes no warranty in connection therewith. No allowance or set aside will be made on account of any incorrectness, imperfection, defect or damage. Any descriptions or representations are for identification purposes only and are not to be construed as a warranty of any type. It is the responsibility of the buyer to have thoroughly inspected the motorcycle and to have satisfied himself or herself as to the condition and value and to bid based upon that judgement solely. The seller shall and will make every reasonable effort to disclose any known defects associated with this motorcycle at the buyer's request PRIOR to the close of sale. Seller assumes no responsibility for any statements regardless of any oral statements about the part. Please remember that your bid constitutes a legally binding contract to purchase this item. If you require an inspection, have it done prior to bidding. I strongly encourage all bidders to inspect the motorcycle personally or enlist the services of a professional inspector prior to placing a bid. After the sale, inspections are not recognized as a contingency to completing your obligation to your winning bid. If there are any questions regarding the above terms, please e-mail prior to bidding. Please do not waste my time or yours bidding on an item you do not intend to pay for. If you bid on this item and win, you are expected to pay for the item and pick it up in a timely manner! I welcome ALL international bidders and am happy to assist with making shipping arrangements. I can also arrange crating for shipment on my end for a nominal extra charge. If you are an international buyer, I understand it can take some time to arrange shipping, so I do not mind keeping the motorcycle for a longer period of time until pick up. Please contact me before the sale ends, if possible, to discuss the specifics. Thanks for your interest! For more on the Honda 750 Automatic, read on… History: Honda of Japan introduced the CB750 motorcycle to the US and European markets in 1969 after experiencing success with their smaller motorcycles. The bike was targeted directly at the US market after Honda officials, including founder Soichiro Honda, repeatedly met with US dealers and understood the opportunity for a larger bike. Under development for a year, the CB750 offered two unprecedented features, a front disc brake and a transverse straight-4 engine with an overhead camshaft, neither of which was previously available on a mainstream, affordable production bike. These two features, along with the introductory price of US$1,495 (US$9,475 in current money), gave the CB750 a considerable advantage over its competition, particularly its British rivals. Cycle magazine called the CB750 "the most sophisticated production bike ever" upon its introduction. Cycle World called it a masterpiece, highlighting Honda's painstaking durability testing, the bike's 120 mph (190 km/h) top speed, the fade-free performance of the braking, the comfortable ride and excellent instrumentation. The CB750 was the first modern four-cylinder machine from a mainstream manufacturer, and the term superbike was coined to describe it. The bike offered other important features that added to its compelling value: electric starter, kill switch, dual mirrors, flashing turn signals, easily maintained valves and overall smoothness and freedom from vibration both underway and at a standstill; later models (1991 on) included maintenance-free hydraulic valves. On the other hand, the bike was difficult to get on its center stand and tended to throw chain oil onto its muffler. Unable to gauge demand for the new bike accurately, Honda limited its initial investment in the production dies for the CB750 by using a technique called permanent mold casting (often erroneously referred to as sandcasting) rather than diecasting for the engines – the factory being unsure of the bike's reception. The bike remained in the Honda lineup for ten years, with sales totaling over 400,000 in its life span. The CB750 is sometimes referred to as a Universal Japanese Motorcycle or UJM. The Discovery Channel ranked the Honda CB750 third among the top ten greatest motorbikes of all time. In 1976, Honda introduced the CB750A to the United States, the A suffix implying "automatic." Although the two-speed transmission included a torque converter typical of an automatic transmission, the transmission did not automatically change gears for the rider. Each gear was selected by a foot-controlled hydraulic valve/selector (similar in operation as a manual transmission motorcycle). The foot selector controlled the application of high pressure oil to a single clutch pack (one clutch for each gear), causing the selected clutch (and gear) to engage. The selected gear would remain selected until changed by the rider, or the kickstand was lowered (which shifted the transmission to neutral). The CB750A was sold in the North American market only. The name Hondamatic was shared with Honda cars of the 1970s, but the motorcycle transmission was not fully automatic. The design of the transmission is similar in concept to the transmission in Honda's N360AT, a kei car sold in Japan from 1967 to 1972. The CB750A used the same engine as the CB750, but detuned with lower 7.7:1 compression and smaller carburetors producing a lower output, 47.0 hp (35.0 kW). The same oil was used for both the engine and transmission, and the engine was changed to a wet sump instead of dry sump type. A lockout safety device prevented the transmission from moving out of neutral if the side stand was down. There was no tachometer but the instruments did include a fuel gauge and gear indicator. For 1977 the gearing was revised, and the exhaust changed to a four into two with a silencer on either side. Due to slow sales the model was discontinued in 1978, though Honda did later introduce smaller Hondamatic motorcycles (namely the CB400A, CM400A, and CM450A). Specifications: Also called: Hondamatic Production: 1976–1978 Engine: 736.6 cc (44.95 cu in) inline-four, SOHC air-cooled Bore / Stroke: 61 mm × 63 mm (2.4 in × 2.5 in) Compression ratio: 7.7:1 Power : 47 hp (35 kW) @ 7,500 rpm[18] Torque: 5.0 kg·m (49 N·m; 36 lb·ft) @ 6,000 rpm[18] Ignition type: Coil Transmission: Two speed, w/torque converter, chain Brakes: Front: 296 mm (11.7 in) disc Rear: 180 mm (7.1 in) drum Tires: Front: 3.5" x 19" Rear: 4.5" x 17" Wheelbase: 58.1 in (1,480 mm) Dimensions: L 89.0 in (2,260 mm) W 33.7 in (860 mm) Fuel capacity: 18 l (4.0 imp gal; 4.8 US gal) The following article is a road test on the Hondamatic from Motorcycle Classics magazine: The part of riding a motorcycle that newcomers typically find most difficult is balancing clutch and throttle control when taking off from a standstill. So a motorcycle without a clutch should be a no-brainer — shouldn’t it? That’s presumably what Honda thought when they brought the Honda CB750A Hondamatic to market in 1976. Superficially, the A model can be thought of as a Honda CB750F with a torque converter and two-speed transmission instead of the regular bike’s five-speed cog box. In practice, though, the 736cc inline four got pretty much a complete makeover. Revisions to the combustion chambers lowered compression, which, with smaller carbs, camshaft changes and a four-into-one exhaust revised the power curve for more low-down thrust to suit the characteristics of the torque converter. An accelerator pump fitted to the number two carburetor (but feeding all four) helped to alleviate a known flat spot off idle in the standard power delivery of the Honda CB750F. A new Hy-Vo chain drove a jackshaft behind the crank, and powered the torque converter’s oil pump, with gear drive to the two-speed tranny. To provide an oil bath for the transmission and torque converter, the engine’s lubrication was switched from dry to wet sump. Just two speeds? With the torque converter doing the hard work, that’s all Honda’s suits decided it needed. But while the torque converter replaced the clutch, shifting between the two gears was done manually with a conventional foot pedal. The reason? Honda figured an unexpected shift mid-turn might alarm an inexperienced rider — arguably their target demographic. In any case, the Honda CB750A would comfortably pull away from a standstill in high gear (“drive”): it just did it more quickly in “low.” For the engine to turn when the starter was pressed, the transmission had to be in neutral. And if you forgot to shift into neutral before parking the Honda CB750A, deploying the side stand would do it for you. Both of these features were obviously intended to prevent unintended launches. Similarly, a push-button parking brake acting on the rear wheel prevented the bike from rolling away if parked on a slope, there being no direct gear linkage between engine and wheels. Even after the brake button was released, the brake remained on and the bike wouldn’t roll until the rider dabbed the brake pedal. Instruments were also different on the Honda CB750A Hondamatic. No tachometer was fitted, although the speedometer showed the maximum speeds in low and drive, 60 and 105mph, respectively. Idiot lights indicated low, drive and neutral, as well as more usual functions like oil pressure, high beam and turn indicators. More detail differences came in a wider rear tire on a smaller rim (4.5 x 17in vs. 4 x 18in), with both front and rear using alloy rims, as well as bigger fenders. There was also a new gas tank, seat and side covers, and an upgraded 290-watt charging system fed a larger battery with a bigger power reserve. But how did the Honda CB750A work? Although overall performance was less brisk than the F model, testers found the A still swift enough to leave most other traffic behind on acceleration, while not having to pause for shifting — which also meant they were able to pay more attention to city traffic. Also on the plus side was a complete absence of transmission “snatch” and — surprisingly — better ground clearance than the F. On the downside, performance was definitely compromised, with the A struggling to reach an indicated 100mph and giving away two seconds in the standing quarter. And while some testers thought the gearing seemed too low, they also missed the ability to shift down a couple of gears for assertive passing. Overall, the A seemed to work best if left in low gear in the city and high (drive) on the highway — though low was also considered useful on tight mountain roads. Cycle World ran a side-by-side comparison of the 750F and A in its September 1976 issue and concluded that rather than a learner bike (too big and heavy), the A would appeal instead to older, more experienced riders looking for a sophisticated ride, and speculated that a mid-size Honda with the torque converter tranny might be a better bet for beginners. (Like a 400, perhaps ... ?) But appeal it did not, and it was dropped after two years. Honda tried the “Hondamatic” idea again with the Honda CB/CM400A (see below), but it didn’t fare much better. Contenders: Automatic Options to the Honda CB750A Hondamatic Honda CB400A and CM400A • 43hp @ 9,500rpm/93mph (claimed) • 395cc air-cooled, SOHC parallel twin • Two-speed with torque converter • Disc brake front, drum rear • 411lb (wet) • 45-55mpg Just as Honda was preparing to drop the Honda CB750A Hondamatic, it introduced the smaller, new-for-1978 Honda CB400A Hawk Hondamatic. Similar in most respects to the new five-speed CB400T1, the A used smaller carburetors (28mm instead of 32mm), with accelerator pumps to combat any off-idle leanness. Like the CB750A, the CB400A’s transmission used a fluid-coupled torque converter and two-speed gearbox selectable by a foot lever. The engine for the Honda CB400A and CM400A was a 395cc 360-degree parallel twin with 3-valves per cylinder and a single overhead camshaft. First-year CB400As had a flat seat, while CM models (1979-1981) suffered from the era’s “custom” styling, sporting steeply stepped seats, shorty mufflers and two-tone paint jobs. All A models rolled on Honda’s controversial Comstar wheels. Like the CB750A, performance was compromised by transmission losses, but the CB/CM400A was still the equal of most cars in the city. Honda sought to dispel performance concerns by advertising the CM400A’s standing-quarter time as “quick as a Porsche 924.” Nevertheless, it faired poorly amongst its rivals, being more than two seconds slower in the quarter mile than the Suzuki GS400, while its stable mate, the standard-shifting CB400T1, was three seconds and 11mph faster — and $300 cheaper. Even so, owners swear by them, and they’ve achieved a certain level of cult status for their longevity and reliability. *Courtesy of Motorcycle Classics Magazine, Nov./Dec., 2011 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4