In the ’80s, Honda sold three-wheeled ATVs in the U.S., but their design was problematic, leading to a ban. Decades later, they’re still popping up at auction.
Honda was in an interesting place in the 1980s. The Tokyo-based company had its first major successes in the American market with the first-generation Accord and Civic, which still rank among America’s most popular cars (via Honda Global). Those models weren’t the economic juggernauts they’d become, however, and, per Hagerty, Honda’s fortunes still depended on the enormous Asian market for light, inexpensive motorcycles.
In short, as of the mid-’80s Honda hadn’t yet determined its destiny in the American marketplace. Experimentation was called for. If we at SlashGear can say anything for certain, it’s that when experimentation is called for in automotive engineering, weird stuff starts to happen.
