1991 Honda Beat
My latest build, A 1991 Honda Beat.
You won't find one of these on your local used car lot. The Beat was never sold in the USA. A few have made their way here as grey market cars.
The Beat was manufactured from 1991 to 1996. The design originated with Pininfarina and was purchased by Honda. Fun fact, the Beat was the last Honda design authorized by Soichiro Honda before his death in 1991.
The Beat is a “Kei” car. Kei is a special class of cars sold in Japan. Kei cars enjoy lower registration and insurance rates. The spec for Kei cars has changed over the years. At the time the Beat was in production Kei cars were limited to a maximum of 660cc displacement and 63 horsepower. The beat features a turbocharged DOHC three cylinder engine mounded in a mid-rear configuration.
The kit is Aoshima #39, a beautifully executed curbside. Even though it is a curbside the chassis and suspension is reproduced with nice detail. My only complaint is the lack of detail in the door panels. The molding is top notch. It comes with masks for painting the black surround on the windshield, a sheet of shiny material for the mirrors, decals, and even stamped metal license plate frames. It was a lot of fun to build.
Great build Ken! I have seen Aoshima's Autozam AZ-1 it is also quite a kit. The Japanese mini cars are just too cute! If you really would like a Beat, try Duncan Imports in Tennessee or Virginia! (I found them looking for an AZ-1.) https://www.duncanimports.com/wholesale-used-inventory/index.htm The are fully legal imports as they follow 25 year rule and they have quite a few Beats for sale.
I just ordered one of the Aoshima Autozam AZ-1 kits. I'm impressed with the Aoshima kits. There are simple but beautifully executed.
Very cool Ken. Very clean build, probably feels more like a slot car than a 1/24th build, huh? 🙂
I worked with a guy who had one imported here to the States.. amazing how small they are.. and I used to drive a MkI MR2.
Another guy I met who autocrosses his said he enjoys making people guess what he owns.. he starts buy saying it's an imported high-revving mid-engine Honda... Of course with most people only the NSX comes to mind... Too fun.