All the mechanical elements are hidden behind a sculpted sheet of steel, while the drivers sit in individual saddles that have ample leg protection to prevent the grime of the city streets from dirtying their elegant Italian trousers. Today, a Lambretta is a stylish and affordable vehicle. In 2021, Shannon’s Insurance in Australia presented a beautiful bright white example in immaculate condition and advertised it for AU$12,500. At current exchange rates, that equates to about US$8,000, but what you get in terms of elegance and taste is a little harder to quantify. , and to explore the narrow medieval streets, there are few better options than this.
While still in its heyday, BSA built the Rocket Gold Star from 1962 to 1963, a highly sought-after BSA style created as a factory-built café racer. The folded handlebars and sturdy motor make a wonderful mix for hitting the track. which is what many homeowners used to do at the time. In addition, the abundance of chrome makes it a perfectly beautiful and brilliant example of the most productive British motorcycles of its time. With a limited production, they have a price: the last ever built. sold at Bonham’s for £19,550, or around $25,000, in 2022.
The MGS-01 was produced in limited quantities of 130 to 150 units in total and was first sold for $24,990. It’s a striking motorcycle that looks fast despite its condition, and the large, protruding, air-cooled cylinders its machismo. Buyers when it was new were rewarded with a smart appreciation as the one sold through Sothethrough’s in 2016 finished with a bid of €39,780.
With a few years to manufacture normal production styles under its belt, BMW took its R32 and traded it in for racing. The race-ready style was called the R37, and it still had the same boxer engine, it developed twice the power, allowing drivers to win the German championship from 1925 to 1929. These early BMWs managed to identify the company as a manufacturer of high-end motorcycles and today they are quite rare. To be lucky enough to own one, you may have to shell out as much as $220,000, as one customer did at a Mecum auction in 2019.
The Indian track racer of 1915 managed to reach a speed of 210 km/h in 1922, a feat that contemplates the generation of the time. This record remained undisputed until the 1930s. It is known that only four of those early Indian runners still exist today. , making it one of the rarest special vintage motorcycles. When Mecum auctioned one off in Monterey in 2023, it sold for a staggering $285,000, putting it on the most sensible rung of vintage motorcycles sold.