For Sale: 1985 Ex-Gardner Rothmans Honda NS 500
A works Honda NS 500, swathed in the glorious Rothmans livery, ridden in its prime by one Wayne Gardner and campaigned in the 1985 500cc World Championship, this magnificent racer is up for sale at Classic Motorbikes.
It’s price on request, so if you have to ask..
Honda ran two official teams in 1985 and this bike comes from the Honda Britain team, which comprised Wayne Gardner, Randy Mamola, Ron Haslam and Takazumi Katayama. The top three would finish fourth, fifth and sixth in the riders’ championship, with Gardner taking the fourth place finish.
The other works Honda team included Freddie Spencer, who won both the 250cc and 500cc world championships that year in dominating style. The NS500 was his ride for the 500cc championship.
The NS prefix let’s us know that this is a works bike and not a privateer bike (RS). The works bikes were a little more developed, running three ATACs in their exhaust valve system, one on each cylinder, as opposed to the two on privateer bikes, along with Magnesium carburettors, three part magnesium wheels, magnesium fork front-arm and round rear silencers.
This particular machine has received a restoration, including the engine. Those special magnesium bits don’t age well, however, and you can’t just walk into a store and buy them, so work on them has not been completed. With a little work this storied and exceptional machine will be ready to go.
Head to Classic-Motorbikes.com for more info.
Images via Classic-Motorbikes.com
