Tons of car enthusiasts are tempted by motorcycles. They promise much of what we love about cars—chief among them visceral appeal—in an almost absurdly affordable package. This author has certainly been tempted a number of times over the last few years, and these two bikes from Honda aren’t helping. The names are familiar—Super Cub and Monkey—and they’re both making a return to the U.S. market for 2019.
Both bikes use the same 125-cc air-cooled four-stroke single-cylinder motor from the lovely Grom; in the Monkey it’s paired with a four-speed manual transmission, while the Super Cub gets a four-speed semi-automatic. Both the original versions of the Super Cub and Monkey used single-cylinders like these, but these new engines are totally modern, with fuel injection and electronic ignition.
Really, the Monkey is just a Grom with retro scrambler styling, which is to say it looks fantastic. When it arrives at dealers in October, it’ll cost $4000, with anti-lock brakes (ABS) adding $200 to the bottom line.
The Super Cub is a slightly different proposition. Like the original 50-cc wonder that put Honda on the map—and mobilized so much of the world—the new Super Cub C125 is sort of halfway between a scooter and a motorcycle, with a step-through frame design. Super Cubs have been produced continuously since 1958, but American imports stopped in 1974. The new one will arrive in the states in January 2019, with a price of $3600. ABS will be standard.
In addition to their old-school styling, Honda brought back its classic wing logo for these bikes. The Super Cub only comes in blue, while the Monkey is offered in red and, appropriately, Banana Yellow.
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Honda has a hit with the Grom, and we’re thinking it’ll hit a home run with these, too. Both promise the same sort of simple, cheap fun, but with tantalizing retro styling. We love ’em.
This story originally appeared on Road & Track.
A car enthusiast since childhood, Chris Perkins served as Road & Track's engineering nerd and Porsche apologist.
