The 1970 Honda CB750

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1970 Honda CB750

Photo by Jeff Buchanan

Without question, one of the most important machines in the history and evolution of motorcycles is Honda’s CB750. A genuine game changer, the CB750 was saddled with a revolutionary in-line, 750 cc, 4-cylinder engine (which seemed gargantuan at the time) that ran with smooth, quiet precision, completely usurping the accepted norm of the heavy vibration and noise of the majority of American, British, and other European of the time. The CB750 was an extremely stylish, high-performance machine that took motorcycles to a new level of modern sophistication. The bike had the same accessibility Honda had captured with their step-through 50 and the highly successful Mini-Trail. The CB750 was available in bright colors that defied the seemingly ubiquitous black paint offered by so many manufacturers. It also benefitted from Honda’s reputation for outstanding reliability, which overshadowed the sketchy dependability of the British, American, and Italian machines—all of which were famous for dripping oil. Ultimately, the CB750 rode the crest of the motorcycle craze of the early ’70s, helping to usher in a new respectability for motorcyclists.