‘Holy Grail’ 1986 Honda Three-Wheeled Vehicle Located in Crate Sold for $200,000

      Travis Gisclair / D&A Restorations

      A mysterious owner in New York put up for sale a collection of Honda all-terrain cycles that featured a still-boxed 1986 ATC250R, and it was quickly bought by affluent customers. The collection was consigned to D&A Restorations, located in Louisiana, and sold within days. Following significant excitement in the vintage off-road and ATV community, the three-wheeler that had never been unboxed commanded an astonishing price: $200,000 in total.

      Travis Gisclair, who provided the update on behalf of D&A, indicated that the presence of the 1986 ATC250R in the collection led to an offer that effectively terminated bidding immediately. The lot was referred to in the initial listing as the “holy grail,” and it's evident that D&A was not exaggerating its value; $200,000 is still sufficient to purchase a house in many areas of the USA. Honda’s trike set the standard for high-performance three-wheelers in the early ’80s, and despite its age, it continues to be viewed as a defining all-terrain vehicle.

      In this instance, the fortunate buyer spent $200,000 for a new-in-box 1986 Honda ATC (“All Terrain Cycle”) 250R. The 246cc two-stroke engine produced a remarkable 38 horsepower and 29 pound-feet of torque. That’s roughly half the power of the typical economy car from the mid-1980s, especially considering its curb weight was just over 300 pounds. For their own safety, we hope our wealthy mystery buyer uses a helmet.

      Who am I kidding? This vehicle is unlikely to see any action in the mud. Regardless of personal opinions, several comments on the original Facebook post pointed out that it is not much different from a piece of art.

      The 1985-1986 models are particularly sought after as they represent the peak of design and performance for the original ATC250R. This was Honda’s third iteration for the trike, which had first launched in 1981. According to comments on the posts listed above, this specific example was not entirely flawless, having developed some patina over its nearly 40 years of storage.

      A barn find is a barn find, whether we’re discussing unmodified Camaros or unopened Honda trikes. Both seem to fetch similar prices, and while the market for the latter might appear smaller, it unquestionably exists.

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