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Honda Collection Hall
Motegi facility is a petrol-head
wonderland
April 17, 2026, by
Guy 'Guido' Allen
Today we wandered through Honda's incredible corporate
museum, nestled in the hills a little east of Motegi,
Japan. Here is our quick preview...
The long drive onto the
Mobility Park, via the south gate, is a pretty strong
hint of just how big this facility is. Then you're
confronted by the substantial three-storey building,
opened in 1998 and refurbished in 2023.
Setting the tone in the
foyer is a giant glass and steel sculpture, honouring
founder Soichiro Honda and his start in manufacturing
by producing piston rings (note the gap at top). In
the background, you're greeted by a race bike and car,
an S-series sports car and Cub stepthru. In the
background is a full-size HondaJet, albeit with its
main wings clipped. You're invited to step into the
cabin of the latter. (Pic by Honda)
As you might expect, the place is strong
on the early history of its motorcycles. Here is the Dream
E of 1951, the company's first four-stroke motorcycle.
Soichiro Honda
posing with what is billed as Japan's first F1 car
– the RA271 of 1964. It ran a Honda engine and
chassis and was debuted at the West German round
that year with American Ronnie Bucknam at the
wheel.
Sixties legends:
CB750-Four K0 and CB450 Black Bomber.
X-Takazumi%20Katayama%20Brit%20GP%201979.jpg)
Early oval-piston V-four NR500 0X, as
ridden by Takazumi Katayama in the 1979 British GP.
It doesn't matter how many times you see it, the wild
32-valve and eight-conrod set-up remains intriguing.
Paris-Dakar winners: NXR750 from 1989 ridden by Gilles
Lalay and 1982 XR500R ridden by Cyril Neveau.
Star NSR500s: Wayne Gardner's mount at
left, and two ridden by Freddie Spencer.
That's it for the moment – we'll bring
you a more comprehensive version of this in the near
future.
Meanwhile, if you plan to visit you need
to book ahead. See the website
***
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Top banner pic by the talented Stuart Grant!
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