The advert ran like this: Honda Automatic 400, 1979, £350 or swap for trail bike. I read the advert again but didn't really fancy riding an automatic. My only experience of one being a Honda Lead and I didn't enjoy the feeling very much. Anyway I was looking for something different to replace an aged Superdream with which I'd had no trouble with in over 18 months of commuting. Cosmetically it was a disaster, desperately needed money spending on it.
I couldn't see the point, and, anyway, I operate on buying cheap commuters to run for a year, then selling on again. Now for around £300 you're not going to buy the bike of your dreams. I would like a GT550 or GS550 but funds don't permit. I've found you have to be very careful not to end up with a dog. Bikes such as Superdreams, Z200s, CD185/200's are my staple diet. Excellent buys in their way and never let me down.
The only bike that proved to be a bad buy was the XS250, a nasty unreliable machine that would never start in poor weather and let me down on numerous occasions. I'd seen a Z400 advertised, which tempted me very much but the engine needed work so I steered clear. There was nothing else worth buying so I thought I'd take a look at the 400 Auto.
When we met the guy selling the bike we'd spent three hours looking for the house and it was dark. I once bought a nasty 2CV6 on a dark night and promised never again, but as the chap wheeled the bike into the street, my mate who knows absolutely nothing about motorcycles, looked at me and grinned.
Surely this wasn't it he whispered, an immaculate and original (less front mudguard) 400 Auto with only 16000 miles on the clock from new. He wanted £350. I haggled over a lack of MOT and poor rear tyre, so we settled for slightly less. I didn't even test ride it and was having doubts whether I could ride it, after the chap explained the handbrake lever on the left bar to me! He started her up first time and drove it to my pal's house where he unloaded all the old MOT certificates, showing about 900 miles done each year. We must have stood admiring her for an hour before I restarted it and got ready for a 40 mile ride up the motorway to my home.
The engine seemed very similar to the old Superdream with a lot more low down torque, and was soon keeping me out of trouble by overtaking with ease. It cruised nicely at 65mph, I just sat back in the seat getting a feel for the bike. The saddle was plush enough to be new whilst the suspension felt nicer than any motorcycle I'd
ever owned before.
ever owned before.
Everything was fine until I hit a seam in the road and the rear end went haywire. The rear tyre skewed around making me lose confidence in the handling until months later when I replaced the back tyre with a Metzeler. That cured the problem even with a front Roadrunner, although I'm looking forward to the time it wears out when I can replace it with a Metz.
Coming off the slip road I had my second fright on the ride home. Easing off the throttle I was expecting some engine braking but there wasn't any on the automatic and the give-way sign came up at an alarming rate. I soon learnt to counteract the lack of engine braking but it does take some getting used to!
After owning the bike over a period of time I find the brakes need to be kept in top condition, especially since the 400 Auto does not have the twin disc system of the other 400 models. I never understood why Honda decided to put the 250 braking system into this bike. Perhaps I will upgrade the brakes if the chance turns up.
As a confidence booster in the machine we have a very steep hill on a long dual carriageway which is a good indicator of engine condition. On the last lap of the journey home the bike sailed up it at 75mph and I arrived home well pleased with the purchase.
My wife must've thought I'd paid a lot for the bike as she wouldn't believe that it had cost only £100 more than the Superslug. I couldn't believe my luck either, especially as it passed an MOT the next day without any attention. I wasn't happy with a rattle from the camchain, so the head came off to do the valves and camchain then new plugs and oil. The local dealer sold me an original 400A manual and I was ready to use the bike for commuting almost every day.
To date I've done 3000 miles on the bike, mainly to work every day because the car bores me. The 400A has never let me down and has proved to be a reliable workhouse, ideal for town and dual carriageway. Its petrol consumption is not good, however, about 45mpg. It stayed constant, some quirk of the automatic gearbox made frugality independent of throttle abuse.
In place of the tacho there was a gear indicator - first, second or neutral, the gears selected by the usual lever. The bike will pull away nicely in either gear as long as you remember not to blip the throttle. However, there was a slight creeping action so I usually knocked it into neutral.
First gear will take you nicely to around 35 to 40mph before second can be selected and you wonder what you can do with your left hand. For the first few weeks I had a tendency to grab at the clutch which was actually the brake! I soon realised that this was going to be a dangerous habit to fall into!
I haven't used the handbrake yet but I suppose struck in a traffic jam going up a steep hill then I'll need to find out quickly. To operate it you push a plunger button on the base of the left handlebar lever before pulling in the clutch (sorry) brake lever. God knows how I'll be able to return to a clutch again! Top speed is around the ton, but being an old lady I stick at between 60 to 80mph on the motorway to stretch longevity.
Oil changes are kept to 800 miles as I'll never conquer my fear of camchain snapping on me at 80mph. It always amazes me when I read in the UMG of old bikes being thrashed at high speeds then owners' telling tales of rebuilds, etc. Sensible speeds may squeeze an extra year or two out of their lives. I oil the chain weekly and retighten it every six months. A Scotoiler beckons.
As I mentioned earlier, good tyres are essential for improved handling and the rear Metz makes the world of difference. The front brake needs a yearly stripdown to keep up its performance as I found some parts seize up badly. The brake piston was a sod to extract, obviously due to standing in the previous owner's garage. In fact, when the tyre was changed the inner-tube was fused with the rim! Something to watch out for on a bike that hasn't been used in a while.
Reports often state that style-wise the bike's a disaster but it grows on you and had a rather timeless feel. Most people are attracted to its looks, one priest went so far as to bless it against all evils. I've received offers for the bike from people in the street and the usual greetings from dealers is I haven't seen one of those for a long time, so it must have something going for it.
The chrome's superb for its age and only the front mudguard needs to be changed to return it to OE spec, also the exhaust is about due for replacement and I don't want a 2-1 as it'd spoil the shape. I'll definitely keep the bike as it's been a real find and I've been told that the engines don't suffer from the ultimate disgrace of main bearing failure like the other Dreams as it's very hard to thrash them. It's worth keeping an open mind when hunting down old bikes because you never know when a bargain will turn up.
T.Mackie