The 1958 Honda Super Cub was the first-generation C100: a compact commuter motorcycle designed to make everyday riding easier to approach. Its low step-through frame, automatic centrifugal clutch, three-speed transmission and protective leg shield paired accessible operation with practical utility. Honda records its 49cc four-stroke engine and the start of mass production in August 1958.
What was the 1958 Honda Super Cub?
It was Honda’s first-generation Super Cub, the C100, introduced in Japan in 1958. Honda developed it as a compact, easy-to-operate commuter, following the Cub F, which was an auxiliary engine and fuel tank mounted to a bicycle. The C100 was a purpose-built motorcycle rather than a bicycle conversion.
Honda’s historical account describes the C100 as a response to a period when two-stroke engines were common: it used a four-stroke overhead-valve (OHV) engine. Honda’s model history and 2017 production-milestone release identify the model and its original configuration.
What made the C100 distinctive?
Step-through access and practical protection
The low-floor backbone frame made it easier to mount than a conventional motorcycle with a high top tube. A large plastic leg shield helped protect the rider from dirt and wind. Honda’s longer 75-year corporate history also notes a fuel tank beneath the seat, 17-inch tires and a chain case.
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Simple clutch and transmission operation
The C100 combined a centrifugal clutch with a three-speed transmission. The clutch engaged automatically, so the rider did not operate a hand clutch lever; the rider still shifted through the gears. This pairing helped make ordinary riding less demanding without making the motorcycle a single-speed machine.
A small four-stroke engine
Honda specifies a 49cc, air-cooled, single-cylinder, four-stroke OHV engine producing 4.5 horsepower. Those figures describe the C100 in Honda’s 2017 release, not every later Super Cub. The C100’s engine type and displacement should not be confused with the specifications of later Cub generations.
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What equipment did early examples have?
Honda’s historical feature on the early model notes light bluish-gray plastic parts, a speedometer marked to 80 km/h with a red line at 25 km/h, and turn indicators. These are details Honda associates with the early model; a surviving 1958 motorcycle may differ because of market variation, replacement parts or restoration.
When and where was it built?
Honda records that C100 sales and mass production began in August 1958 at its Yamato Plant, a site later known as Wako Plant of Saitama Factory. The original model’s launch quickly led to growth beyond Japan: Honda says Super Cub exports to the United States began in 1959. In 1961, C100 production began in Taiwan using component parts sets from Japan, marking Honda’s first production outside Japan.
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How many Super Cubs did Honda produce in the first years?
Honda’s published figures are totals for the Super Cub series, not counts of the 1958 C100 alone. Its production table, published in 2002, gives these annual totals:
| Year | Honda-reported Super Cub series production | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | 24,195 | Super Cub series total, not C100-only |
| 1959 | 167,443 | Super Cub series total |
| 1960 | 564,365 | Super Cub series total |
The figures come from Honda’s 2002 production table. They show the rapid expansion of the series, but they should not be presented as production totals for the C100 specifically.
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How did the original differ from later Super Cubs?
“1958 Super Cub” refers here to the first-generation C100, not the whole family of motorcycles that followed. Honda records that the line evolved; for example, OHC versions began with the C65 in 1964. Engine design, displacement, frame details and equipment therefore depend on the particular model and year. A later Super Cub may share the step-through concept but is not automatically a C100.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What should a buyer or restorer verify?
For a motorcycle represented as a 1958 C100, verify its identity and configuration rather than relying on appearance alone. Decades of use and restoration can change components, and historical model specifications do not establish that every surviving example remains original.
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- Check frame and engine identifiers against reliable C100 documentation for the relevant market and year.
- Compare the frame, engine, clutch and body details with Honda’s C100 model history.
- For replacement parts, confirm explicit C100 and year fitment, along with market, serial range and part number. A general “Super Cub” label is not enough to establish compatibility.
Honda’s historical pages establish the model’s original design and chronology, but they do not verify current parts availability or the compatibility or quality of a particular seller’s listing.
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