No Reserve – Honda NSR250 MC21/MC28 Display Engine

Description

In the mid-to-late 1980s, the small-displacement race replica market in Japan was booming. Legions of bright-eyed young riders were lining up to fork over their hard-earned yen for competition-derived road-legal runners like Yamaha’s TZR250, Kawasaki’s KR-1, and Suzuki’s RGV250. Manufacturers on the island were battling it out on the race track and in showrooms in an ongoing arms race to produce the most trick race bike for the streets. In 1985, Honda launched the NS250R MC11, laying the foundation for its line of quarter-liter oil-burners that followed.

The NS featured a liquid-cooled, 249cc, 90-degree V-Twin engine, two-stroke engine that made 45 hp (at 9,500 rpm) and utilized the ATAC (automatically-controlled torque amplification chamber) power-valve system.

Constant competition led to quick improvements in the model line, leading to the MC21 generation that was unveiled in 1990 and timing of the RC Valves were now controlled by a PGM-III ECU.

In 1994, the Japanese firm updated the NSR with an all new model dubbed the MC28. The result was arguably the ultimate 250cc street bike in Japan thanks in no small part to the PGM-IV ignition and Pro-Arm single sided swingarm. Also notable was the memory card used to start the bike.

The display engine was sent to Iconic from Parc Ferme out of Japan, a company specializing in motorcycle art, display engines, and fuel tanks cut-aways.

The piece measures 28L″x28W″x20H″ without the pipes and weighs approximately 80lbs. Per the seller, “Parc Ferme MotoArt display engine. Inspired by the NSR500 V4 Engine display with pipes that I saw at the Honda Collection Hall in Motegi Japan. I set out to make something similar with some spare engine parts that were damaged but still cosmetically ok. This is an actual NSR250 MC21/28 dry clutch engine. The cases had some damage from a thrown chain but were vapor blasted and cleaned up, the cylinders likewise had some wear and stud damage so were repurposed for this project. There are NO internals and it would not be able to be made to run in the future.

All of the engine hardware is either new OEM Honda or re-zinced. The engine stand is powder coated and was then custom painted in a mix of the 1992 and 1994 MC21/28 Rothmans liveries. The pipes can easily be removed in a few minutes to make it easier to move or display. I only made two of these and this is the only one I did in the Rothmans colors, I will be keeping the 2nd one.”

Cosmetic Blemishes: please see the album up top for all known cosmetic blemishes. Here is a selection:

Currently located in Panorama City, California, this engine is offered on a Bill of Sale only. Have any NSR250 stories or questions about this listing? Let us know in the “Comments” tab!