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World’s Oldest Production Motorcycle Sells For $212,000

By General Posts

This example may be the earliest one still in existence in 2023.
World’s Oldest Production Motorcycle Sells For $212,000 At Auction

by Janaki Jitchotvisut from https://www.rideapart.com

The early days of motorcycling were a wild time. From strapping engines to the frames of unsuspecting bicycles, to steam-powered velocipedes, people were eager to find new and improved ways to get around. New technological frontiers are typically a time of great experimentation, and this era in motorcycling was certainly no different.

In February, 2023, an extremely interesting piece of that early history went up for auction at Bonhams Paris The machine in question is an extremely rare 1894 Hildebrand & Wolfmüller, which bears the reputation of “the first powered two-wheeler to enter series production,” as well as the first vehicle to be called by the name “motorcycle” (or “motorrad,” in German). It ultimately sold for €195,500, or roughly $212,000 Yankee dollars including the premium.

Brothers Heinrich and Wilhelm Hildebrand set to work crafting their first powered two-wheeler designs during the crucial transition between steam-powered and gasoline-powered vehicles. As the story goes, they started with steam, but eventually turned to a two-stroke design in cooperation with two other individuals: Alois Wolfmüller and his mechanic Hans Geisenhof.

Development is often an iterative process, and what the team eventually came up with to make this production vehicle was a water-cooled, four-stroke, parallel twin engine with what must have been a breathtaking displacement at the time: 1,489cc. This reportedly made about 2.5 brake horsepower at 240 RPM, and resulted in a machine that could top out around 30 miles per hour. That might seem terribly slow in 2023, but was likely more impressive in a time when motor vehicles (let alone faster ones) weren’t so commonplace.

If this machine seems like an alien contraption to your modern eyes, that’s because it’s quite different from any motorcycle we know today. Here’s how the Bonhams listing describes some key features of this bike:

“Steam locomotive practice was further recalled by the long connecting rods directly linking the pistons to the rear wheel, which opened and closed the mechanical exhaust valves via pushrods actuated by a cam on the hub. The latter contained an epicyclic reduction gear and there was no crankshaft flywheel, the solid disc rear wheel serving that purpose. Rubber bands assisted the pistons on the return stroke. Fuel was fed from the tank to a surface carburetor and thence via atmospheric inlet valves to the cylinders where it was ignited by platinum hot tube, as developed by Daimler. The box-like rear mudguard acted as a reservoir for the engine’s cooling water, while one of the frame tubes served as the oil tank. The tires, manufactured under license from Dunlop by Veith in Germany, were the first of the pneumatic variety ever fitted to a motorcycle,” it reads.

Also, this bike didn’t have a clutch. Instead, the starting procedure involved pushing it until the engine fired up, then jumping into the saddle and riding it wherever you needed to go. (Perhaps it wasn’t only the world’s first production motorcycle, but also the world’s first production exercise bike?)

The design for this bike was patented in 1894, and the machines were produced both in Munich, by parent company Motofahrrad-Fabrik Hildebrand & Wolfmüller , and also under license in France as La Petrolette. People of the time were reportedly optimistic about the new bikes, but their optimism was soon tinged with regret and demands for their money back due to starting difficulties and unsatisfactory running performance. By 1897, after French licensee Duncan, Superbie et Cie lost a court case with a customer about these issues, both the German and French concerns went bust. It’s unclear how many of these machines were ever made, but it’s believed to be somewhere between 800 and 2,000 in total.

This specific example is believed to be the earliest numbered example still existing today, with frame number 619 and engine number 69. It was last sold in 1990, and documentation that accompanies this sale includes papers from that time, as well as period marque literature (mostly, if not all, in German). The tires and bands have been replaced (and one of the bands needs replacing yet again), but this bike is otherwise in mostly untouched condition—which makes it even more remarkable, given the fact that it’s almost 130 years old.

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Oldest known motorcycle coming to Queensland in world exclusive exhibition

By General Posts

by Toby Crockford from https://www.smh.com.au/

The oldest motorcycle in existence – a steam-powered velocipede – is coming to Brisbane in an exhibition that is a world-exclusive coup for Queensland.

The exhibition, The Motorcycle: Design, Art, Desire, will showcase the most innovative and influential motorcycles from the past 150 years and will run from November 28 to April 26, 2021.

A world exclusive for Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art, the exhibition will feature more than 100 bikes from the 1860s to the present day, drawn from private and public collections across the world.

“It includes the earliest 19th-century steam-powered motorcycle, right through to electric motorcycles and exciting design propositions for the future,” GOMA director Chris Saines said.

“The motorcycle has undergone extraordinary reinvention, from steam power to petrol-fuelled internal combustion engines to battery, and from humble backyard creations to custom-made, high-tech chrome speed machines.”

Co-curator Professor Charles M. Falco said the collaboration with GOMA started a few years ago, when the gallery approached him and co-curator Ultan Guilfoyle.

“This has the equivalent visitorship of the Guggenheim Museum in New York; it also has an international flavour to it,” Professor Falco said.

“Two-thirds of motorcycles are sold in China, India or Indonesia – that’s the Asia-Pacific region; this is the centre of motorcycle activity in the world in the 21st century.

“So doing it here makes all sorts of sense. We’re creating it with a specific Asia-Pacific and Australian slant to it.”

Professor Falco said the exhibition would feature something for everyone.

“People who know motorcycles will see machines they have never seen before,” he said.

“People who might just go to the museum because it’s on their holiday checklist will see the motorcycles and go, ‘I had no idea, they’re beautifully designed’.

“People who think about the future and climate change will see the base upon which the future is built because the exhibition looks to the future with electric motorcycles.”

Exhibition highlights include an 1868 Michaux-Perreaux: the first steam-powered velocipede and oldest-known motorcycle in the world.

There will also be the earliest Australian machines, including a Spencer, which was produced in Brisbane in 1906, and a 1951 Vincent Black Lightning, which set an Australian land-speed record and a world record for the highest price paid at auction for a motorcycle.

The futuristic electric motorcycles will be accompanied by speed demons such as a 1930s Triumph Speed Twin, a 1970s Ducati 750 SuperSport and the 1990s Britten V1000.

Arts Minister Leeanne Enoch said the state government’s $4 million in funding over two years was helping GOMA attract exclusive exhibitions and international visitors to the Sunshine State.

“From The Great Escape, Easy Rider and Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2, motorcycles have been a mainstay of popular culture for decades and continue to provide endless fascination for millions of people around the world,” Minister Enoch said.

“The one-of-a-kind exhibition at GOMA is set to tap into the appeal of this iconic object of design and art through a thrilling and immersive installation experience that will not be shown anywhere else in the world and will be must-see for locals and visitors to Queensland.”