1983 V65 Magna

This is a machine that is near and dear to my heart.

Riding my two (I owned two, one at a time - more on that in a second) "Candy Apple Purple" 1983 V65 Magna's holds some of the best and one of the worst memories in my life:

• In August of 1988, along with my Best Man and his wife, we rode much of the "Circle Tour" around Lake Superior. We left the official route to venture North and East to Escanaba and Macanac Island in Michigan.
  
• In the Spring of 1989 Mrs. Roosh mentioned marriage and me in the same sentence for the first time on the back of my bike as we cruised one weekend looking at homes.
  
• On Saint Patrick's day of 1988 I could have died on my first V65 Magna when another driver turned left across my path at the intersection of Cleveland Avenue and County Road B in Roseville. I replaced the totalled bike the following Saturday...and showed up on crutches.
  
• With my youngest brother on the back I achieved my personal land speed record of over 130MPH on I-94 on the way back to Saint John's University North of St. Cloud.

When the V65 Magna was first introduced, it was the fastest production motorcycle available. It also soon achieved the dubious status as the most deadly motorcycle on the road at the time.

There were stories of riders breaking the rear wheel loose at all different speeds and ending up either dead or mangled.

I appreciated this machine for the unique sound it made, for its narrow stance despite its 1100cc power plant, and the way it almost lugged in sixth gear at normal highway speeds, which made it an ideal long distance cruiser for one. When you punched it, the shaft drive would load up and the whole bike would lift underneath you.

Its digital displays were cutting edge at the time and it’s liquid-cooled Honda V4 was able to handle high mileage like nothing before it in the marketplace.

From Cycle magazine's March 1983 road test: "The best part of the V65 is a mid-range punch that would do justice to Larry Holmes." The liquid-cooled, 1098cc, 90-degree V-4 engine delivered a staggering flow of power from 1500 rpm to its 10,000 rpm redline. But how quick was it? On October 3, 1982, Honda brought drag-strip maestro Jay "Pee-Wee" Gleason and a standard V65 to Southern California's Orange County International Raceway to find out. Gleason's 10.92 — second 1/4-mile sprint made the V65 America's fastest production street machine, inspiring ads with one powerfully simple headline: Bad News Travels Fast.”

"Its horsepower translates directly into an immediate gut-wrenching rush, unmatched by any other production street machine."

I sold my second V65 Magna for a down payment on an engagement ring and haven't owned a motorcycle since. But that will change...some day.

Specifications:

Displacement: 1097.00 ccm (66.94 cubic inches)

Engine type: V4

Power: 116.00 HP

Valves per cylinder: 4

Gearbox: 6-speed

Shaft drive

Weight incl. oil, gas, etc: 591 pounds

Top speed: 165.0 mph