HONDA The Power of Dreams

The Monkey Z100, originally designed as an amusement park ride, was Honda’s first leisure model and the root of the Monkey series.

In February 1961, Motorsports Land Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honda, was established.

Motorsports Land (currently Honda Mobilityland Corp.) was incorporated to handle major projects, such as preparing for the opening of Tama Tech (Tokyo) and Ikoma Tech (Nara Prefecture) motor vehicle amusement parks, and the construction of the Suzuka Circuit, aiming to establish and foster a healthy motorsports culture in Japan.

In October 1961, both Tama Tech and Ikoma Tech opened their doors to the public.

These parks were unique, each combining a motorsports facility with an amusement park, where the whole family could learn techniques on an undulating hare scramble (off-road) course, and enjoy engine-powered rides. The Monkey Z100 was built as a ride for these amusement parks.

At the time, the Monkey was called the “Monkey Auto” or the “Monkey Motorbike”.

The Monkey was compact, with 5-inch tires, so small kids to ride.

Powered by the Super Cub engine, well-received for its ease of handling, children and adults alike could enjoy the joy of riding the Monkey within the amusement park.

As the Monkey Z100 was initially built as an amusement park ride, there were no plans to release it as a production model.

In 1962, Honda exhibited the Monkey Z100 at the Frankfurt and London shows in October and November respectively, and seeing the huge response the uniquely styled Monkey, small enough to fit in a car trunk, Honda shipped twenty Z100 units to Honda Europe in December. (According to Honda’s company newsletter at the time)