1981 Honda CX500 Custom For Sale
I have a little soft spot for the Honda CX500. There used to be one that often parked across the street from our Toronto office, and its two twisted cylinder heads pointing up from below the fuel tank always caught my eye.
The CX was the company's first ever V-Twin, but Honda couldn't just go for a conventional configuration, deciding instead to have the crankshaft run longitudinally, like a Moto Guzzi. As an added twist (literally), Honda rotated the cylinder heads by 22° to provide a bit extra room for a rider's knees. This made the CX500 much different from the bikes Honda was making at the time — or since.
It's not surprising, then, that this nicely preserved 1981 CX500 Custom in Timmins, Ontario, caught my attention. Listed on CX500Forum.com for $1,500 Canadian (US$1,050), it's not priced too badly, especially with under 10,000 miles on the odometer.
From the seller's description, it sounds fairly well kept, and for those who don't mind tinkering, there are some extra spare parts including an extra engine as well.
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Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.
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In the UK rather unkindly called the 'plastic maggot', not sure quite why. Widely used by despatch riders in London in the 1980's, scurrying with packages from office to office. Despite frequent lack of maintenance and harsh treatment, many racked up a huge mileage. I had a Guzzi at the time and recognised a kindred spirit.
Dad had one, back in the day, that I regularly “borrowed” for extended periods. Dad had a Goldwing, too, so it was pretty much my bike. The girl who became my wife and I rode all over the desert southwest on that bike. I loved that little CX 500. 😃🥰