Honda S800 Cabriolet, 1967

As successful manufacturer of motorcycles Honda entered the world of motorcar manufacturing in the year 1962. In the year 1962 Honda presented the S500. The Honda S500 featured a 531 cc. four cylinder engine, independent suspension all round and the rear wheels where chain driven. In the year 1964 the Honda S600 was introduced with a 606 cc. engine.
In 1966 the legendary Honda S800 was presented. The car was available as coupe and cabriolet model. The S800 was a high tech machine regarding it's mechanical construction, however the use of a separate chassis was already a little old fashioned those days. The four cylinder engine was a jewel of mechanical engineering with double overhead camshafts (DOHC) hemispherical combustion chambers and, crankshaft with roller bearings and four carburettors. The engine was very powerful and it managed to squeeze 70 bhp. from only 791 cc. cylinder capacity! The light (740 kg.) S800 was a little bomb on wheels, fast and agile, a real sports car! The S800 featured independent front suspension with torsion bars and a live rear axle. The suspension was very stiff and feels like a the contemporary Mini Cooper. From 1968 disc brakes on the front wheels and a dual circuit brake system were fitted to the S800. From 1966 until 1970 11.406 Honda S800 (coupe and cabriolet) cars were built. Not many survived because of bad maintenance of the high tech mechanics. Top specimen are hard to find! The Honda clubs worldwide receive very good support from the Honda factory.

Technical data

Four cylinder in-line engine DOHC
cylinder capacity: 791 cc.
capacity: 70 bhp. at 8000 rpm.
top-speed: 160 km/h.
gearbox: 4-speed, manual
weight: 740 kg.