BIKES: Honda trademark filing could mean a new Motocompo

Honda has submitted a trademark application for the name “Motocompacto” with the US Patent and Trademark Office. The name immediately conjures visions of the 1981-85 Honda Motocompo, a folding scooter designed to fit in the cargo area of the Honda City hatchback. Could this mean a new trunk-mounted suitcase bike for a modern Honda car? 

The filing was discovered by Motorcycle.com, which also states that the Motocompacto might be electric: “The new trademark application lists the intended use as being for ‘land vehicles, namely, electric scooters.'” If that’s the case, perhaps it will fit in the back of the new Honda e.

This isn’t the first time Honda has revived the idea of the Motocompo. Back in 2011, Honda came up with the Motor Compo, a foldable electric bike for use with something called the Micro Commuter Concept. That bike had a removable battery pack that could be used to power source in your home, office, or at a picnic.

It should be said noted that the trademark application doesn’t necessarily mean the bike is certain to enter production, but we love the idea of a foldable e-scooter that can fit in the back of a car. We’d get one, even if we don’t have a Honda.

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13 Responses to BIKES: Honda trademark filing could mean a new Motocompo

  1. Erik V says:

    sign me up!

  2. Brian G. says:

    Putting a Motocompo-like e-scooter in the back of a Honda e would be an extra pinch of salt in the wound that is Honda not selling these in the US market.

  3. A folding electric scooter? That goes in the back of a Honda E?

    Could a new series of Taiho Shichauzo be far behind?

  4. Negishi no Keibajo says:

    Always wanted one. I saw one for sale but I didn’t know how to get it back to the states.

  5. dankan says:

    Would be nice to see Honda getting their mojo back like this. All they’d need to do after that would be down a couple shots of shochu, loosen their tie a little, and find the bravery to deliver on the Sports EV.

    I really think they’re missing out by not chasing that. I can understand why they did another NSX as their halo car, but it suffers from the same problem the original did. People shopping in that price bracket are badge snobs and Honda’s merits are never enough for them. Throwing the engineering budget at a Sports EV that delivers say base 911 performance with the technology of the future and doesn’t weigh what the other EVs weigh, for Cayman S money would have been an amazing statement that would get a lot more notice.

    • Max says:

      If Honda makes a sports EV that shows off what’s to come in the future, they’d better call it a Prelude!

      • dankan says:

        I think they’d be more likely to call it a Honda S, given the easy tie-in with the rest of their rear-wheel drive sports cars.

        As a prelude is what comes before, I’d think the current NSX or a CRZ would be preludes.

        • Max says:

          The Prelude always had some weird new tech in it and was used as “a Prelude of things to come”. I know they likely won’t use it, but there is any time to reuse the name, its to show the Prelude of things to come n the EV sports touring segment.

  6. Jesse C. says:

    Love the ad with Madness!

  7. Scotty G says:

    If a gas-powered Motocompo weighs around 90 pounds, I wonder what a battery-powered one would weigh? Probably not much less in order to have a decent range. I love my Motocompo but I think I love my early/mid-1970s Aurenthetic Charger EV minibikes even more.

  8. RKaji says:

    That’s interesting. Any update on this news?

  9. RKaji says:

    Actually, the Motocompo might be the most memorable mass-market release of a bike in this style, but it’s an old idea. Designed to fit inside the hatch of the City, the Motocompo was powered by a 2.5ps 50cc 2stroke that enabled it to hit a dizzying top speed of 30km/h. The concept of an ultra-compact, easily-transportable motorcycle goes at least as far back as World War II, when Allied soldiers had the Welbike. It was made for air transport, not a car trunk, but it was the same general idea, with folding handlebars and tiny wheels. At https://www.scootersnchairs.com/blogs/mobility-scooters/best-4-wheel-mobility-scooters you can find valuable information about the best 4 wheel mobility scooters available on the market.

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