I tend to see the same issues over and over again looking at used 1982/3 Honda BIG RED 200E’s. Below is a complied list in random order of what I have seen over many years that I wanted to share. I hope this list can help you if when you look at a used 200E or if you just bought one. This post will include some of the fixes to remedy the issues. Ok let’s get to it. 1. 1. Broken Fenders – At the time of this post the first generation BIG RED is 36-37 years old. In many cases t

There is some interchangeability between parts from the 1982 through 1984 BIG REDS. Note that there are some big differences between these models. The 1982 and 1983 200E models were chain driven with no reverse. The 1984 200ES models were shaft driven and have reverse. This article will only cover the main components that are interchangeable. Note this information is based on my research and my experience. Keep in mind that I am assuming that the parts are all OEM. I say this

There are a few differences between the two 200E models that Honda made in 1982 and 1983. This may not be a complete list as I am using Honda literature and Honda 200E atc’s that I have owned for sources of information. I will start with the most noticeable differences first and then go on from there. Here we go: Decals – The fuel tank and fender decals changed between the 1982 and 1983 models. The decals on the 1982 were different than all the rest while the decals used on t

This is just a quick post of the parts I found missing or worn on while restoring a 1982 and a 1983 Honda BIG RED 200E. I am not going to get into some the common worn parts like brake shoes or drive chain in this article. I did not have complete machines to start with so to make complete restorations I needed to scavenge some parts off of a few different 1982 - 1984 BIG REDS I have sitting around. If you didn’t already know the 1982 and 1983 BIG REDS share a lot of parts and

I stepped back from the Handy lift and looked at the finished 1982 Honda 200E Big Red. I am happy. All of the hard work has paid off - it turned out great. It looks and runs the way I planned. There is no substitute in my mind to "doing the work". For me doing is the best experience and it just keeps on building on itself. I have started the restoration on the 1983 Honda Big Red and I am confident that this restoration will be easier and quicker than the 82. I am looking for

I was just about to finish up installing the chaincase on the 1982 BIG RED 200E when I noticed that one of the 6mm screws was actually a battery terminal bolt. The one with the hex and the phillips head . I'm a bit of a perfectionist so 2 out of 3 correct is not acceptable. What do do? Simple just walk over to the other 1982 BIG RED sitting in the shop and see if I can find one. I bend down and yep I'm in luck. I did not have this luxury in the past since I did not duplicates

I wiped the last coat of plastic renew on the rear fender and steeped back. They look good I thought to myself. Almost done just need to clearcoat the fenders. I looked at my watch - 9:30PM damn I should be in bed now getting ready for work tomorrow morning. I thought about calling it quits but stopped and thought to myself. If I finish the fenders tonight they will dry overnight and then I can move them and prime the fuel tank, front forks and headlight housing tomorrow nigh

I climbed over the last of the four BIG REDS in the shop. I pulled up on the left rear fender and sighed in disappointment. Not one of these BIG REDS had the chaincase clips and rubber plugs for the access ports in the chaincase. This does not surprise me since in my opinion putting the chaincase on the 1982 and 1983 BIG REDS was a mistake. Why cover a part that needs to be regularly maintained? Honda tried to add access plugs to check the chain tension and lube the chain. Th

I took a sip of the hot coffee and walked into my shop. I turned the stereo on and put some kindling in the wood stove. I stepped back and thought man I wish I could do this every morning. I am on vacation this week for christmas and new years and it has been great. Since there is not enough snow to use the snow machines I am using the time to get caught up on the restoration of the 1982 200E BIG RED. I hardly ever have a week off and I am using it to my advantage. I have alm

The restoration process of these Honda BIG RED 3 wheelers ATC's can be satisfying because you can see the results of your efforts.

Rup rup rup rup. The starter motor on my truck was having a hard time turning over the crankshaft in my truck that spent all night in the driveway soaking up the cold wind. When the ambient temperature gets in the single digits I usually decide to take a night off in the shop. That doesn't mean I stop work it just means I move the work into the kitchen where the wood stove puts out great heat. Yes I can heat the shop but for a weeknight is it worth burning all that fuel for t

What a dumb design. I said this in my head as I squeezed the trigger of the air cutoff tool. zooop zooop. As the metal turned red hot my nostrils were filled with the scent of burning plastic. I gripped the channel locks and pulled the head through the gooey plastic. What I was doing was removing the mudflaps from the rear fenders. I still have not found and easy way of removing these. Like I said this is a poor design. The setup just invites moisture and mud from the tires t

Looking out the single pane windows of the garage doors I could see about six inches of snow on the grey car cover used to protect an old 1986 250ES. I looked back into the shop and saw the bare frame of the 1982 Honda 200E sitting on the lift. All the parts were organized on shelves or on the service cart. Man I'm making some real progress here I thought to myself. With the season changing my shop schedule is changing too. I leave for work and it is dark. I get home from wor

As I dumped a little bit of gasoline into the tank I didn't have any doubts that when I pressed the little black start button on the left handlebar switch that the 200cc Honda motor powering the 1982 BIG RED would turn over and fire up. I mashed the button and it came to life with that deep exhaust note. I pulled it off the lift opened the garage door for a late night "test and tune". I gunned the throttle a few times, turned the light on, and tapped the shifter down. The thr

I was staring at the pipe wrench jaw marks as I threaded the castle nut on to the rusty rear axle of the 1982 BIG RED. I picked up the 3 pound dead blow hammer and exhaled heavily. When you have restored enough of these vehicles you know the results you are about to get will have a lot of weight on your progress. The axle could come out nice and easy or pounding, penetrating oil, and heat are in the future for you. The anticipation before the first few makes me concerned beca

When you are restoring 30 year old BIG REDs nothing is easy. You better plan on spending extra time doing simple tasks that you think are no problem. Just this week I was working on the rear end of a 1982 BIG RED 200E. I took the right rear wheel, wheel hub and brake drum off with no issue. On to the right rear wheel. Just looking at the contorted cotter pin I know I’m going to have problems. First using needle nose pliers I find the cotter pin on the hub castle nut won’t com

I decided today was the day. Tuesday was the night I picked out to work on the BIG REDS out in the shop. I have a lot of other projects going but I have been dedicating at least one weeknight to drop everything and work on the BIG REDS. This forced schedule is necessary to keep moving forward with the restorations and used parts. Tonight as I got into checking the front brakes and removing the front end off a 1982 BIG RED I was "at peace" for at least a few moments. I really

This week I spent some time sorting out the restoration on the 1982 Honda BIG RED 200E. I have two of them and I’m trying to figure out which ATC has the best parts to use for the restoration. This sounds easy and it is in a way but if you make the wrong decisions here it can cost you time and money. With experience you learn how to properly examine the parts to know they are good. In some case this will require some disassembly. You also need to know if it is the correct par

Now that the restoration on the 1984 200ES BIG RED is complete I filled the shop with my next projects. The next goal is to restore a 1982 Honda BIG RED 200E. Well I have two of those but since the 1982 and 1983 BIG RED 200E’s share a lot of parts I brought my two 1983 200E’s in also. Here is the plan - use the best parts out of the 4 BIG REDS to restore One 1982 200E and one 1983 200E. The remaining good usable parts will be sold on ebay. The plan sounds simple but I’m sure