This Rear-Wheel Drive Honda N600 With A Crotch-Rocket Swap Is Insanely Cool

The N600 has the distinction of being the very first Honda model to hit U.S. shores back in the late 1960s. Compared to our 18-foot land yachts at the time, the mini-sized N600 could’ve been a hood ornament. Front-wheel drive and itty-bitty, they weren’t very popular in the States, but they did warm up the market for the soon-to-arrive Civic, and we all know how that turned out. Still, the N600 was endearing in its own way, and with a cute 600cc engine under the bonnet, they could almost hit 80 mph.

This particular 1972 N600 currently for sale on eBay in California goes a bit faster. That’s because its engine came from a 1998 Honda VFR800 sport bike, spinning 12,000 RPM and generating roughly 110bhp. That may not sound like much for a car, but when the car weighs around 500kg, it’s a recipe for insanity. And just when you thought things couldn’t get more interesting, this N600 turns the back tyres, not the front.

The seller built this little runabout from the ground up, and though we have no idea what kind of mind creates something like this, the witty auction banter and rich descriptions of the work performed very much lend an air of confidence and professionalism to this project. The front and rear suspension is borrowed from a first-generation Miata, including the brakes and master cylinder. The rear differential is Ford. It rides on Koni shocks, and silly-wide 175-50-13 tyres meet the pavement at all four corners.

Inside, the seller went with Polaris RZR seats, along with all-new upholstery. He says it’s a great autocross car and not bad for a daily driver, but with a dash-mounted handbrake and steering-wheel mounted paddle-shifters for the transmission, this tiny terror is just a rollcage away from being an epic rally racer.

There are a few issues, as the seller says it’s “95 per cent complete.” Among them are no reverse gear, no windshield wipers, and fender flares that should be mounted to cover the wide rubber. Technically speaking, the lack of a windshield wiper and fender flares over the tyres would make the car illegal to drive, but apparently the seller has it licensed in California and uses it daily. One would suppose that it’s light enough to just push backward with your foot, and are you really going to drive it in the rain? As for the fender flares, we don’t need no stinkin’ fender flares. Why? Because racecar, that’s why.

Bidding on this FrankenHonda is up to $11,500 and the reserve hasn’t been met. There’s no mention on what it will take to own this one-of-a-kind mini-missile, but that’s a good question to ask all you CTzens out there. What would pay for this unlikely import superstar?