Officially, it’s the Honda Z-series, but for the world over, it is the Honda “Monkey”. In production since 1961, the 50cc minibike has created it’s own base of fans who love the little machine. A fun fact: the first motorcycle I ever rode and worked on in my dirt-bike timeline was a Honda 50, a little machine I picked up when I was nine courtesy of my stepfather, a machine that was easy to ride and quick, but not fast enough to be of real danger to a first-time rider. I outgrew it quickly, but I always loved the little machine. 
The 50cc mill is now a 125cc engine, you can option anti-lock brakes, and you’ll deal with modern-day updates like LED lights and a digital display for the gauges, but overall, it looks and feels familiar. And it’s not the only retro-ride coming for 2019. The Super Cub C125 is coming back as well. The best-selling motorized vehicle ever at over 100 million units since it’s 1958 introduction, the C125 might give you hits of Vespa with it’s underbone, step-through design, but don’t write it off completely as hipster-bait. The Super Cub proved pivotal to Honda’s fortunes in America. Combined with the “You meet the nicest people on a Honda” ad campaign, the Beach Boys song “Little Honda”, and the feeling that anyone could ride one without being a leather-clad outcast gave Honda a surprising boost in the country, even with anti-Japanese sentiments still running strong after World War II.
Interested? Both bikes are expected to be around $4,000 when they finally make it to dealerships.
(Courtesy: Autoblog)
Like your fat girlfriend, everybody wants to ride the Super Cub but nobody wants to be seen on them. I bet the Honda Mini-Trail (that’s what I remember its name as) was the first ride for millions. It’s the first thing I rode with a motor
Willy Toshiki, who was a part-time student working at American Honda and later rose to become vice president of Honda’s North American automobile sales department, had this to say:
“The price of a Honda 50 was $295. The rent on the small, old student flat I was living in at the time was $40 per month, and my starting salary when I officially joined American Honda was roughly $500.”
So the price was less than a month’s pay if you had an entry level job. Now, let’s do the math. How many Subway sandwich makers can afford a $4,000 minibike?
My thoughts exactly . (Without all the math)
My first was a Honda Z50 . Rode the wheels off over and over , and it would still run ten years later .
Can get a decent little quad for that money .
Best Christmas ever was the year I received a yellow mini trail 50 and my older brother got a blue one. We rode the wheels off those things. Parents didn’t have a lot of money, it was a HUGE sacrifice for them. Good memories.
BTW, $4000 for a mini trail 50 is insane no matter the year!!
Like many the used Honda trail bike was my first motorized two wheel transport. So much fun. I agree for 4k, I could buy two used Rebel 250s for the kids!