The son of a blacksmith, Soichiro Honda was born in 1906 near Hamamatsu, Japan. At 15, without any formal education, he headed to Tokyo to look for work and became an apprentice at a garage in 1922. He worked as a mechanic before returning home to start his own auto repair business in 1928 at the age of 22.
His foray into motorcycles began in 1948 with production of a complete motorized bicycle, the Type A. Powered by the first mass-produced engine designed by Honda, the Type A was sold until 1951.
The Type D in 1949 was a true motorcycle with a pressed-steel frame designed and produced by Honda and motivated by a 98cc 2-stroke producing 3 hp which became the first model in the Dream series of motorcycles. The Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan lists both the Type A and the Type D models as two of their 240 Landmarks of Japanese Automotive Technology.
In 1959, Honda Motorcycles opened its first dealership in the United States and the rest is history! #ThePowerOfDreams