1966-1967 Honda CL 160: Brief But Successful

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by Clement Salvadori and Larry Coolidge
Larry says he feels like he is 16 again every time he rides his CL160.

It is one thing to build a successful motorcycle, another to market it. When Honda presented their low-piped road-oriented Honda CB160 back in 1965, it met with reasonable acclaim as a sporty small bike at a small price of $550. In 1966 the high-piped street-scrambler CL160 appeared, and it became a major hit because of The Look. Trying to be sporty with a top speed of 70mph was a bit of a challenge, but turning off the pavement and blasting up a dirt road — that was a different image.

Changing the CB to a CL, the Honda designers had sensibly left the 160 engine and chassis pretty much alone, although they did do some minor work to make the minimalist frame a bit stronger with the anticipation of some off-road bumps. Two short arms come down from the steering head and bolt to the top of the engine, which is a structural member of the chassis. The tubular backbone itself runs under the tank and back down to join with the rear of the gearbox, using a tubular swingarm and two mildly adjustable shock absorbers. Up front the CL uses the same forks as on the CB model, which made for some curious handling when puttering up a sandy road. A steering damper could tighten the turn of the handlebars should the occasion demand.

Making it go

The parallel twin engine, made mostly of aluminum but with shrink-fit steel cylinder liners, leans forward a few degrees. With a bore of 50mm and a stroke of 41mm, for a total of 161cc, it was highway legal. The two 20mm Keihin carburetors have a Siamese hookup, with a single cable running off the throttle, splitting to two cables under the tank. Using a chain-driven overhead camshaft, two valves per cylinder in a hemi-shaped head, and 8.5:1 compression ratio, that engine generates some 16.5 horses at 10,000rpm. Roughly 9 lb/ft of torque come into play at about 6,000rpm. The 360-degree crankshaft has the pistons running up and down side by side, but they fire 180 degrees apart, keeping the vibrations low. The crankshaft runs on four bearings, one ball and three rollers, which may be one reason we still see 160s running around today.

  • Updated on Jun 9, 2023
  • Originally Published on Jun 6, 2023
Tagged with: Clement Salvadori, Honda, Larry Coolidge
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