Honda Juno
Encyclopedia
The Honda Juno is a scooter
. Two versions were produced, the K-series of 1954 (K, KA, KB), and the M-series of 1962 (M80, M85).
and Mitsubishi Silver Pigeon
. It featured the first electric start, a full windscreen with a tilt-back sun-shade, and built-in signal lamps. It also introduced Fibre-Reinforced Plastic
body construction to Japan.
Only 5,980 were produced in a year and a half. Kihachiro Kawashima, who retired as executive vice-president in 1979, remembered the bike as a "splendid failure": it was too expensive, the engine overheated, the FRP body was heavier than expected and made the bike underpowered and clumsy, the new cantilevered suspension was problematic, and customers did not like the motorcycle-style clutch operation.
The final Juno KB model can be distinguished by enlarged rear vents and new vents added to the windscreen.
Technology developed for the Juno K would be applied to later bikes. The electric start was re-introduced with the C71 Dream
in 1957, and the new Plastics department under Shozo Tsuchida developed polyethylene components that would distinguish the Super Cub.
The M80 and M85 are essentially the same vehicle, with the M85 designation indicating a mid-year engine enlargement. The Juno was discontinued by year-end with only 5,880 produced.
Scooter (motorcycle)
A scooter is a motorcycle with step-through frame and a platform for the operator's feet. Elements of scooter design have been present in some of the earliest motorcycles, and motorcycles identifiable as scooters have been made from 1914 or earlier...
. Two versions were produced, the K-series of 1954 (K, KA, KB), and the M-series of 1962 (M80, M85).
Juno K
The Juno K was a deliberately elaborate bike in 1954. It was Honda's first scooter and would be competing with the well established Fuji RabbitFuji Rabbit
The Fuji Rabbit was a motor scooter produced in Japan by Fuji Heavy Industries from 1946 through 1968.Production of the initial model, the S-1 began in 1946, some six months before the Vespa went into production and was largely inspired by scooters used by American servicemen during and after World...
and Mitsubishi Silver Pigeon
Mitsubishi Silver Pigeon
The Mitsubishi Silver Pigeon is a series of scooters made in Japan by Mitsubishi between 1946 and 1963. The first was the C-10, based on a scooter imported from the United States by Koujiro Maruyama, which began production at the Nagoya Machinery Works of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries...
. It featured the first electric start, a full windscreen with a tilt-back sun-shade, and built-in signal lamps. It also introduced Fibre-Reinforced Plastic
Fibre-reinforced plastic
Fibre-reinforced plastic is a composite material made of a polymer matrix reinforced with fibres. The fibres are usually fibreglass, carbon, or aramid, while the polymer is usually an epoxy, vinylester or polyester thermosetting plastic...
body construction to Japan.
Only 5,980 were produced in a year and a half. Kihachiro Kawashima, who retired as executive vice-president in 1979, remembered the bike as a "splendid failure": it was too expensive, the engine overheated, the FRP body was heavier than expected and made the bike underpowered and clumsy, the new cantilevered suspension was problematic, and customers did not like the motorcycle-style clutch operation.
The final Juno KB model can be distinguished by enlarged rear vents and new vents added to the windscreen.
Technology developed for the Juno K would be applied to later bikes. The electric start was re-introduced with the C71 Dream
Honda C71, C76, C72, C77 Dream
The 250cc Honda C71 and C72 Dream and the identical C76 and C77 bikes with 305cc capacity) were the first larger-capacity motorcycles that Honda mass-exported...
in 1957, and the new Plastics department under Shozo Tsuchida developed polyethylene components that would distinguish the Super Cub.
Juno M80/M85
The Juno M80/M85 was a different approach introduced in November 1961. Unlike the K-series, there is no upper windscreen, the engine is an exposed horizontal-twin rather than an enclosed fan-cooled unit, and the body construction is conventional monocoque steel rather than FRP panels over tube. The M80/M85 also introduced a clutchless Badalini-type hydraulic-mechanical transmission which would provide the basis for the later Hondamatic motorcycle transmissions.The M80 and M85 are essentially the same vehicle, with the M85 designation indicating a mid-year engine enlargement. The Juno was discontinued by year-end with only 5,880 produced.