Posts Tagged ‘ Honda Camino ’
ROAD TRIP!
I’m collecting my moped on Saturday, I hope it fits in the back of the Renault Scenic – I’m sure it will. Off to Somerset on saturday will be a 5 hour round trip. My plan is to leave early doors to get there around 10am. This will mean I’ll be back home by 1pm-2pm.
Very exciting for me – I’m looking forward to this.
After the previous post I had a reply from the seller of my moped that they were happy to accept Paypal. So today I initiated the payment and dropped him an email asking whether i can collect on Saturday.
I plan to take the scenic down the M5 and back to get it this weekend. Hopefully he is able to. If he can’t do this weekend then I may have to take up FvdE on the offer of collecting it for me.
The seller has taken it out for a quick spin and confirmed it is all working ok.
Is it wrong of me to be getting excited?
Here is a copy of the service manual and also the user manual for the Honda Camino Moped.
Honda Camino PA50 1983 Owners Manual
Honda Camino PA50 Service Manual
A great website for info is Mopedarmy.com which has a specific link for the PAII moped.
Honda_PA50_II on MopedArmy Website
Due to the cool colour my moped has I’m thinking about whether it will fit in the back of my ‘fun’ car as a bit of a run-about when I go to shows and the like. Luckily someone has Honda PA50 Service for the 1983 Honda Camino (my model) so I’m able to check the dimensions
So it is just over a metre high and 1.65m long. This *might* fit behind the back seats of the wizard but I’m not sure. I’m guessing that both height and length will be a problem. When I get the bike I should be able to see how ‘collapsible’ it may just be a case of removing the front wheel or moving the handlebars.
Until I collect my moped I’m searching the internet to find out as much as I can about it. One of the things I’m interested in is what I can do to improve the speed/power of the scooter. It appears there are 2 engines used by Honda on the Camino, which are refered to as the PA50I and the PA50II.
A great webpage to do with these bikes can be found here but I’ve reproduced it below.
Before you start the process of tuning your PA50I, you should consider the pros and cons. In the Honda PA50 section of the Wiki, the differences between a PA50I and a PA50II are listed. This list is longer than you think!
In summary though, here’s my own two cents. What you choose depends on your desired top speed.
Mid to upper twenties: Depends on parts prices. This speed can be reached by buying/installing a PA50II carb or re-boring a PA50I carb, PA50II reed cage, and PA50II variator ramp plate. So, if you can buy a complete PA50II engine for less than the price of a PA50II carb, reed cage, and variator ramp plate, then do it. Otherwise, buy the piece parts and upgrade your PA50I motor. (Or, if you don’t want the hassle of the parts swapping work, just buy the PA50II motor).
Mid to upper 30’s: If you want mid to upper 30’s, it will be cheaper to start out with a complete PA50II engine, and just bolt on an aftermarket exhaust. You may reach 40 if you combine this setup with a notched variator.
40’s and up: Now you’re porting/machining your PA50I 50cc cylinder, or buying a “kit” made for a honda motor, meaning you are going to buy a cylinder and exhaust. Either way, the decision whether or not you should start out with a PA50I engine or a PA50II engine boils down to the cost factor – the same as described above. If you can buy a complete PA50II engine for less than the price of a PA50II carb, reed cage, and variator ramp plate, then do it. Otherwise, buy the piece parts and upgrade your PA50I motor. The reason: the crank and block are essentially the same. The differences (motor wise) then boil down to the carb, reed, manifold, ramp plate, and rollers.
I’ve personally pursued both paths, having upgraded a PA50I and a PA50II. In my case, it was cheaper (at that particular time) to buy a PA50II carb, reed cage, and ramp plate. But – it was all a matter of timing and patience. When I was shopping for a complete motor, they were hard to come by, and expensive. I’ve seen a number of “long blocks” for sale on ebay lately (the carbs being sold separately most of the time).
Content is available under GNU Free Documentation License 1.2.
I’m trying to find out more about the bike before I collect it. A search on-line has led me to believe my model is a 1983 version of the bike.
“Introducing the 1983 PA50 Moped, a zippy little two-stroke that’ll take you all over town without taking you to the cleaners at the fuel pumps. For ’83, we’ve added some snazzy new striping and hot new colours. So this year our PA50 is as easy on the eye as it is on the gas.”
Colors:
Fuel tank stripe: red/silver
Battery: standard equipment
Engine type: two-stroke
Displacement: 49cc
Bore & Stroke: 40×39.3mm
Compression ratio: 6.5:1
Carburetion: 12mm butterfly valve type
Fuel: Gasoline with automatic oil injection system
Lubrication: pre-mixing the fuel and two-stroke oil
Transmission: Honda V-maticTM variablle ratio
Clutch: Dry centrifugal automatic
Exhaust system: Single muffler
Brakes: Front and rear drum
Front Suspension: Telescoic fork
Rear Suspension: Swing arm
Tire size: 2.25-17
Wheels: Wire spoke type
Ignition: Solid state CD with flywheel magneto
Starting system: Pedal starter
Wheelbase: 1064mm (41.9 in.)
Dry weight: 50.5 kg (111.5 lb)
Overall length: 1670mm (65.7 in.)
Overall width: 620mm (24.4 in.)
Seat height: 780mm (30.7 in.)
Drive: Fully-enclosed drive system
Electricals: Turn signals
Fuel capacity: 3 liter (0.8 US gal.) (.66 Imp gal.)
Serial number began: YC1AB090XDB300001
Apparently it also has indicators (Turn Signals) but I can’t see them on any of the photos I’ve got of it. I also think that a small change in exhaust could create a 40mph BEAST! Its nice to read a power upgrade which doesn’t rely on an increase in CC.
Honda PA50
Manufacturer = Honda
Also called = Hobbit (US) / Camino (UK & Europe)
Production = 1976-1991 (UK & Europe) /1978-1983 (US)
Assembly = Belgium
Class = Moped
Engine =49 cc single-cylinder two-stroke
Transmission = Automatic clutch single-speed Variomatic CVT
The Honda PA50 is a moped produced by Honda between 1976 and 1991. It was marketed as the Honda Hobbit in the USA and as the Honda Camino in the UK and Europe. The vehicle itself was manufactured in a factory in Belgium until 1991. Though it has mostly disappeared from the streets of the USA and the UK like most mopeds of similar type (e.g. Motobecane Mobylette and Puch Maxi), it remains popular very in Belgium, where it is often modified using high performance parts.
Models
The following models of the Honda PA50 were produced between 1976 and 1991:
Honda PA50 L Camino. 49 cc. UK July 1976 to February 1978
Honda PA50 VL Camino. 49 cc. UK July 1976 to November 1978, September 1984 to 1986
Legend
L= Basic Model
M= 25 km/h
V= Variomatic (continuously variable transmission)
C= Chrome Fenders and Indicator Lights
S= Sport/Young Camino (with double saddle and cast alloy wheels)
DX= Deluxe (with double saddle)
H= 1987 model
Model varieties
(all info taken from the Wikipedia Page)
I was invited round for dinner at friends of mine. We had a lovely evening with most excellent food and plenty to drink. During the hour and a half we were drinking before dinner was served I told people I was doing this John O’Groats to Land’s End challenge with my VW friends. ‘Great’, was their response, so you’ll all be doing it in your beetles? “Not quite” was my reply….
I explained to them I was going to do it on a 50cc moped and that my biggest challenge at the moment was that I didn’t own a scooter, nor did I want to own a scooter. They had the very good suggestion of hiring one but I decided that this was far too sensible. What I needed to do was buy one. And as luck would have it, one I was interested in was actually finishing on ebay that very evening! I had originally planned to wait until the end of the summer but a big worry of mine was how well I could ride a scooter so I thought it be best I get one sooner rather than later.
So I set an alarm on my phone and explained that I’ll be bidding on the bike in the last couple of seconds. We enjoy a lovely dinner and between the main course and the dessert I excuse myself from the table and make my way to their computer. I log into my ebay account and see the moped there with 5 minutes to go. The bidding is at £162.90. This is where I have to decide how to bid. My tactic for bidding on auctions is place my maximum bid in the final seconds and that’s it. I was willing to pay £200 for a moped with MOT and tax as it wouldn’t be the end of the world if I didn’t get my money back after the long journey. But, in cases where you do want something on ebay you should always choose a non-rounded up number to bid. This makes sure that anyone else bidding who puts £200, doesn’t win it for a matter of pence more than you would have bid. So I click the ‘bid’ button and enter a figure….
£232.50
And I start watching the countdown…. The final minute starts ticking down. The way eBay works is that you click on bid and then enter your bid and then click ‘Confirm bid’. This meant I could watch the clock tick down and my plan was to bid at 5 seconds. I was hoping my friends internet connection was going to be fast enough to allow me to make the bid and get the bike. Bidding at 5 seconds means that most people wont have time to ‘re-bid’ by the time the countdown hits zero. This has worked well for me before and I didn’t think this technique would let me down.
At the clock ticked to 5 seconds I clicked the ‘Confirm Bid’ button and hope for the best…. The screen refreshes and I’m the highest bidder, it then re-refreshes and that’s it, the auction is over and the new owner of a moped…the final price? £202.
The Ebay bidding history for the moped I won
More ebay searching and I like the look of this one. It doesn’t have a basket (booooo!) but it does have a lockbox on the back which could be useful.
This looks in really good nick
I’m loving the style of this one and it looks in really good nick, the ebay description also says it has had some work done to the engine so it could be a good investment.
Showing the bike from the front
I bought this last year TO GO IN my VW Camper .It fits behind the front seats nicely.
It had been taken down to the last nut and bolt, all cleaned and rebuilt, everything repaired or replaced as needed. It was built for daily use and not concours but is in very good condition with a little pitting on the wheels and all other bright parts are in good condition.
Engine rebuilt with new piston,rings,seals etc and there is a CD with over 100 photos showingwhat was done by the previous owner.
Service and new MOT in the last few weeks. Also taxed to end June 2012 .Runs very well.
Collection from Taunton off J25 M5. As I said fitted in my T2 Camper and previous owner used to take the front wheel of and put it in his Fiesta with seats down!.
Viewing welcome and being sold due to move Cash on collection preferred but PayPal accepted.
NO RESERVE.
Side view of Honda Camino PA50 Showing the lock box
Not sure that seat looks that comfortable!
This looks really well looked after
twonjogle4brads 