John Lennon’s Monkey Bike just sold for $79,350 (£57,500)

It was the era of the White Album. Now that it was out, John Lennon, Ringo and the boys had time to relax. In 1969, John Lennon was new to motorcycling. Like many, he was hooked by the Honda Monkey Trail Z50 A. He bought the compact bike to get around his Tittenhurst Park estate in Ascot, where he lived from 1969 to 1971. Tittenhurst comprised of more than 70 acres of forest 40 km west of London and the monkey bike was a cheerful way to get around. John Lennon, used it as a sort of pit bike before he moved to New York and sold the Tittenhurst estate to Ringo Starr.

Lennon's same Monkey Trail bike Z50A just fetched USD$79,000 at auction by H&H Classics.

The 1969 Honda Z50A ‘Monkey Bike’ was sold for close to double the estimated £30,000 when it went under the hammer with H&H Classics at the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull.

The bike was sold by John Harington, who had owned it for 47 years and displayed it at various shows.

Before hand, it was owned by Henry Graham, of Hook, Hampshire, owner of Park Motor Cycle City, who said he bought the motorbike from Lennon when he was living at Tittenhurst in around 1971. Via The Independent.ie

According to Lance Oliver on Revzilla's Common Tread, the same bike was apparently sold at auction by Bonhams in 2008 for about $48,000.

Considering that a bit of haggling could get you a brand new Z50 for about $300 at a dealership in the United States in 1969, that’s decent appreciation. It would have been worth about $2,000 in today dollars.

About the Monkey Trail's HP

The engine and gearing get you to a top speed of something approaching 25 mph in top, and singular climbing ability in first gear. As with any other mini trail, the Z50 A could be lifted over boulders, paddled through sand and turned in a 50-inch circle, by the simple expedient of grabbing hold of the bike and hefting it around.

The handlebars folded down, it had a fuel tank air vent stopper, a positive fuel shut-off valve and carburettor float bowl drain are the Z50A’s concession to the fold-and-stow-it concept presented by Bennelli and Tecnomoto Junior in 1968.

This mini bike’s power plant is the familiar 49-cc four-stroke engine that has powered a variety of Honda trail and street machinery. In its Z50A configuration, it develops 1.95 bhp at the rear wheel at 5000 rpm. This engine is coupled to a three-speed transmission, which is driven through the Honda automatic centrifugal clutch. Gear changes are made simply by rolling off throttle and tip-toeing the left foot lever down for an up change. There is no handlebar clutch lever.

Final drive is through single chain and sprocket. Engine and gearbox unit castings are glossy smooth in finish. The cylinder head and cam cover are cast in aluminium alloy. The cylinder barrel is of grey cast iron. Front suspension consists of a pair of fairly spongy springs, in a telescopic fork. Rigid rear suspension and low 14 psi inflation on 3.50-8 tires provide modicum comfort over trail irregularities.

Unfortunately, even folded the Z50A still weighed at 108 pounds dry, 115 pounds wet. At 115 lbs it is too much to raise to the lift over height of a station wagon tailgate, too much to press into the baggage compartment of a Cessna 172, or a bit too much to carry up the gangway of a power cruiser.

Via H&H Classics

The Monkey Bike became hugely popular when it was released. Fun for the whole family, the Z50A was marketed as a bike anyone could ride and that you can take anywhere you want to go.

You'll be pleased to know, last year at the Tokyo Motor Show, Honda announced the new Honda Monkey in a 125cc engine is on the way and is rumoured to be in production in 2019.