Yahoo Autos The Most Fun Honda in America Is a Motorcycle-Powered N600
The N600 was Honda's first probe into the US market. Basically, the automaker upgraded the Japanese-market N360 kei car with a 598cc big block engine, as a sort of American experiment before the Civic arrived and changed the automotive landscape forever. Yet if you want to build a Honda hot rod based on the lightest car they made, the N600 is the perfect donor.
Putting motorcycle engines into small economy cars is nothing new. People do it with Minis, all the kei cars, tiny Fiats and even Reliant Robins. Yet you don't often see a conversion done as thoroughly as this 1972 Honda, built by Dean Williams over the course of five years. Under the hood, he jammed a 1998 Honda Interceptor's 800cc V4, mated to a sequential gearbox. With a redline at 12,000rpm, the engine sends 115 horsepower to a Ford rear axle located by NA Miata suspension. There is no reverse, but there is a button to bypass the mufflers and go open-header. That's all you need, really. We've written about this monster mini before, but the package is so compelling, it bears a second look.
Having such a wide power band in a rear-wheel drive car that weighs 1400 lbs. is unmatched by anything else on the road. Complete with a super direct steering rack, this N600 offers the full classic Formula 1 experience, enjoyed at reasonable speeds.
The N600 was Honda's first probe into the US market. Basically, the automaker upgraded the Japanese-market N360 kei car with a 598cc big block engine, as a sort of American experiment before the Civic arrived and changed the automotive landscape forever. Yet if you want to build a Honda hot rod based on the lightest car they made, the N600 is the perfect donor.
Putting motorcycle engines into small economy cars is nothing new. People do it with Minis, all the kei cars, tiny Fiats and even Reliant Robins. Yet you don't often see a conversion done as thoroughly as this 1972 Honda, built by Dean Williams over the course of five years. Under the hood, he jammed a 1998 Honda Interceptor's 800cc V4, mated to a sequential gearbox. With a redline at 12,000rpm, the engine sends 115 horsepower to a Ford rear axle located by NA Miata suspension. There is no reverse, but there is a button to bypass the mufflers and go open-header. That's all you need, really. We've written about this monster mini before, but the package is so compelling, it bears a second look.
Having such a wide power band in a rear-wheel drive car that weighs 1400 lbs. is unmatched by anything else on the road. Complete with a super direct steering rack, this N600 offers the full classic Formula 1 experience, enjoyed at reasonable speeds.
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