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Bought a '67 CL90

WildeEngineer

WildeEngineer

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2022
Total Posts
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Location
Pasadena, CA, USA
So I pulled the trigger on an around town bike I found, bike runs, is titled, registration lapsed but only a few years, tank is clean inside, no holes in muffler, even has an old black license plate. I need to add a few things to make it street legal, replace boots and gaskets as it is leaking oil, put in a new ignition and add turn signals... but I'm excited for this and to ride it while still working on my 450. Got it for $900 so maybe payed a bit more than worth but I'm fine with it
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"Got it for $900 so maybe payed a bit more than worth but I'm fine with it"
I do not think that is too much...... 1.It's titled 2. It runs 3. It is a complete bike! It is very difficult to find a bike with all three of these items together. I love the 60's-70's single cylinder Hondas so I'm a fan!!!
 
Before you give the California DMV the $800 they will probably ask to register the bike, you need to know that you can ask for a waiver of all the fees and just pay this year's cost. First, you can go on to the dmv website and search for a registration fee calculator. You need the license plate number and the last five numbers of the VIN. If it reports the bike is not in their records you're free and clear automatically. If it says you owe hundreds of dollars, then you need to prepare a Form called "Statement of Facts" and explain why the fees can be waived. I have one that I used that I can attach to a post here, but it's on my other computer, so be patient.
 
Cal. DMV Form 256 to Waive fees

View attachment reg256 90 Elite.pdf I am not sure I added the .pdf file correctly, so here's the language you use in section G.

Form 256
Section G

I am a collector and rebuilder of old Honda motorcycles like this 1967 Honda CL90. I understand that all the late fees and penalties are waived by Sections VC4604 and VC5051. I will restore, preserve and maintain this vehicle for hobby and historical purposes. This is a special interest vehicle that is unaltered from its manufacturer’s original specifications and is no longer manufactured. Very few still exist in this condition. I want to register this vehicle.

Section C

You should decide whether you really want to register the bike. If you do, then do nothing here, but if you want to work on it first then check “title only” and set it up as Planned Non-Operational. When you are ready to register it, it’s very routine.


The Form itself is at this link:

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/uploads/2022/09/REG-256-R8-2008-AS-WWW.pdf

And good luck. I have had the DMV clerk refuse to waive the penalties or attempt to negotiate them, but whatever, if they don't do what you want ask to pay only the fees for transfer of title so penalties don't start for that, and tell them to forward the waiver request to Sacramento for a central office review.
 
Looks like your "new" bike should clean up pretty easily. I've got a '72 CL70, it was my father-in-laws, had not run since maybe 1988. I got it in 2015, worked on it for a few months but couldn't get it running. My son and I pulled it out in 2020 as a covid project. Got it running, licensed and insured, my son rode it around our neighborhood when he was 14. Still have it and hope to revisit it to clean and polish cases, etc. Fun little bikes.
 

Attachments

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My 72 CL100. Built if from box of parts
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Not a twin but a blast to ride.


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Those all look great! I definitely want to get in a paint job for it eventually.

I need to learn how to properly kickstart it. I know it's supposed to be easy and was a 1 kick start demonstrated to me on it but I have trouble with it

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WildeEngineer said:
I need to learn how to properly kickstart it. I know it's supposed to be easy and was a 1 kick start demonstrated to me on it but I have trouble with it

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When cold, pull up the choke lever fully (choke ON), leave the throttle at idle or just slightly above and kick it over. As soon as it fires and begins to run you'll want to move the choke lever down (toward choke OFF) a bit so it won't run too rich and lower the choke further as it warms up. Honda engines typically like the throttle close to idle position to start properly. Turning the throttle open a large amount during cranking (electric start) or kicking over doesn't actually help starting, and in case you weren't aware, most Honda carbs of that era do not have an accelerator pump so twisting the throttle repeatedly does nothing but lift the slide or open the butterflies.
 
More good news, the registration didn't lapse, its in PNO so I can just wait til the reg is due in March and be ready to go

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WildeEngineer said:
Those all look great! I definitely want to get in a paint job for it eventually.

I need to learn how to properly kickstart it. I know it's supposed to be easy and was a 1 kick start demonstrated to me on it but I have trouble with it

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Click to expand...


Be nice to your kickstart spindle, they are not cheap or easy to find. Little bikes can be push started easy too. I know some will push just to save wear and tear on that kicker.
 
wentwest said:
Before you give the California DMV the $800 they will probably ask to register the bike, you need to know that you can ask for a waiver of all the fees and just pay this year's cost. First, you can go on to the dmv website and search for a registration fee calculator. You need the license plate number and the last five numbers of the VIN. If it reports the bike is not in their records you're free and clear automatically. If it says you owe hundreds of dollars, then you need to prepare a Form called "Statement of Facts" and explain why the fees can be waived. I have one that I used that I can attach to a post here, but it's on my other computer, so be patient.
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wentwest, you should start a seperate thread for CA DMV circumnavigation do's and dont's and associated navigation how to's. It would be popular!
 
wentwest said:
I'll think about that. Some work arounds are best kept as oral history.
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Give me just a little. Will the DMV let me use the original black plate if the plate and vin are not in the system as is my case? C'mon man!
 
OK, here's the rule. It's Section 21.230 of the Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual (of the California DMV)

[h=3]21.230 Reassignment of Old License Plates to Collector Vehicles[/h][h=2]21.230 Reassignment of Old License Plates to Collector Vehicles[/h]A previously issued regular series license plate may be reassigned to a collector vehicle provided:

  • There is not a database record of the collector license plate.
  • The license plate configuration is not on the record as a special interest license plate.
  • An original or photocopy of the California Certificate of Title, registration card or renewal notice is presented as proof the license plates were previously assigned to the vehicle.
Requests for reassignment of old license plates must not be denied when there is a record of the vehicle license plates being assigned.
Definition of a Collector Vehicle (CVC §5051)—A Collector Vehicle is a special interest vehicle of any age, that is unaltered from the manufacturer’s original specifications, which, because of the vehicle’s significance, such as being out-of-production, or a model of which fewer than 2,000 were sold in California in any model year, the vehicle is being collected, preserved, restored, or maintained by a collector or hobbyist for restoration, maintenance, or exhibition. A 25-year old vehicle does not automatically qualify as a collector or historical vehicle.
Definition of a Collector (CVC §5051)—A collector is the owner of one or more historical or special interest vehicles who collects, purchases, acquires, trades, or disposes of such vehicle(s), or parts thereof, for his or her own use, in order to preserve, restore, and maintain such vehicle(s) for a hobby or historical purposes.
Reassignment of Old License plates—the following must be submitted:

  • An original or photocopy of the California Certificate of Title, registration card, or renewal notice is proof the license plates were previously assigned to the vehicle.
  • A Statement of Facts (REG 256) stating:
    — The old license plate number to be assigned to the vehicle.
    — The old license plate(s) will not be affixed to the vehicle until DMV sends approval.
    — The license plates currently on the vehicle will be surrendered to DMV if the old license plates are approved.
    — Their daytime telephone number.
  • The license plates on the vehicle must not be picked up.
  • Any fees due within 75 days of the license plate application date.
Due to programming limitations, a license plate that still has a record on the database cannot be reassigned. Therefore, customers returning to California after registering their vehicle out of state cannot have their old California license plate reassigned to their collector vehicle if the old license plate still has a record (unless the license plate is eligible under the Year of Manufacture (YOM) License Plate program) or is the owner’s personalized license plate.
Proof of Old License Plate Exception—If a customer was previously denied reassignment of old license plates due to the vehicle having a database record, and all documents proving the old license plates were once assigned to the vehicle were submitted to DMV with a prior transaction, accept the application.
 
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Thank you wentwest for digging that up!

Well according to what I am reading here, I cannot legally use the original black plates since I cannot provide the documentation that the third bullet point asks for. That's a bummer :sad:


A previously issued regular series license plate may be reassigned to a collector vehicle provided:

  • There is not a database record of the collector license plate.
  • The license plate configuration is not on the record as a special interest license plate.
  • An original or photocopy of the California Certificate of Title, registration card or renewal notice is presented as proof the license plates were previously assigned to the vehicle.
 
ausman1000 said:
Thank you wentwest for digging that up!

Well according to what I am reading here, I cannot legally use the original black plates since I cannot provide the documentation that the third bullet point asks for. That's a bummer :sad:


A previously issued regular series license plate may be reassigned to a collector vehicle provided:

  • There is not a database record of the collector license plate.
  • The license plate configuration is not on the record as a special interest license plate.
  • An original or photocopy of the California Certificate of Title, registration card or renewal notice is presented as proof the license plates were previously assigned to the vehicle.
Click to expand...

So I did some more research, and found this:

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/handb...lates/year-of-manufacture-yom-license-plates/

If the black plates you have show a 67 sticker, you might be able to pull this off. If there's a pile of stickers and you can peel off everything after 67, that should work. Or but a 67 plate off ebay?
 
ausman1000 said:
Thank you wentwest for digging that up!

Well according to what I am reading here, I cannot legally use the original black plates since I cannot provide the documentation that the third bullet point asks for. That's a bummer :sad:


A previously issued regular series license plate may be reassigned to a collector vehicle provided:

  • There is not a database record of the collector license plate.
  • The license plate configuration is not on the record as a special interest license plate.
  • An original or photocopy of the California Certificate of Title, registration card or renewal notice is presented as proof the license plates were previously assigned to the vehicle.
Click to expand...

Can't the DMV do a title search on the VIN and bike plate to establish the connection, or is it too far back with no records available?
 
Flyin900 said:
Can't the DMV do a title search on the VIN and bike plate to establish the connection, or is it too far back with no records available?
Click to expand...

I ran the query on the DMV website link that wentwest provided and no records turned up, basically a dead end regarding my VIN and plate number. Nothing else I can do since the system is not maintained by like thinking >55 year olds!
 
ausman1000 said:
I ran the query on the DMV website link that wentwest provided and no records turned up, basically a dead end regarding my VIN and plate number. Nothing else I can do since the system is not maintained by like thinking >55 year olds!
Click to expand...
It might be worth a personal visit to the local office and asking nicely. Who knows, you might end up with a clerk that can bend to rules a little.
 
California seems to drop vehicles off the database if there's no activity for some time span - maybe 10 years? That's not public. If it's still on there, with no renewals in years and no sign of the owner paying a small fee to record it as "non-operational", bad things happen. You pay for registration for this year and the past two years, and with penalties and all sorts of fees the total can be $800 -$900 minimum. If it's gone from the database you simply pay for current registration, transfer fees and maybe for the cake at the clerk's next birthday party. That should end up at around $200. With no title you have to bring it to the DMV so they can inspect the VIN and engine numbers; and it has be on the ground and "assembled" or they won't check it. There's a form for the seller to sign saying that the title has been lost Form 227 https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/file/reg-227-pdf/

With all of that you get a new title in the mail, and you either get plates or, if you choose "Non-op" you get a receipt. No safety inspection ever, no emissions inspection.

Now you can see why the waiver of fees deal can be very useful.
 
So I think I figured out what was wrong with the bike and why I couldn't kickstart it. I'm fairly certain water somehow got into the tank cause when some gas spilled as I was messing with the carbs after rebuilding that it didn't evaporate as in would expect gas to.

So now i gotta get some cleaner in the tank, clean the carbs out and get some fresh gas in and hopefully that does the trick.

I was getting super frustrated but getting to the point where I think I know it all went wrong definitely has me back on the fixing it up myself route. Definitely gonna get some stabilizer too

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If the tank has that layer of lacquer look to it a gallon of E85 fuel left soaking for a couple of days will dissolve it. Then you pour it out and recycle it - it's not fuel for your car or your bike. Don't drain it through the petcock either because it will ruin the rubber bits inside.
 
I think I got the gas out before it was that bad, I put in some seafoam and it seems to have gotten it out and the petcock only had a bit of the solidified stuff and it came out easily. On trashed the connecting fuel line and got the solids in the connectors out so the seafoam is flowing between the halves

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So I got it to run for a hot second but had to turn it off cause the carb was leaking and it wouldn't start up after that. Probably have to do another carb clean and hopefully that fixes it

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So the carb clean did the trick, bike started up on 1 -2 kicks. Is it usual for there to be white smoke coming from the engine?

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There's a fair amount of smoke and steam and stink that fills the air when a bike that's been sitting for some years starts running. I always start it outside in the yard, not in the garage or even too close. There can be oily glop in the mufflers that takes some time to burn away, too. Just check the oil level often.
 
I was just using an auxiliary fuel tank for testing, figured out how to start the bike when it's already warm too. Just having some issues adjusting the idle. I feel like it's idling too high but any adjustments I make don't seem to do much before it stalls out. It could be fine and I did set it to the manuals initial setting before messing with it so it could be that what I'm listening for is off. I'll just keep it at the manuals setting for now

Just gotta get the fuel tank cleaned out properly and maybe do a petcock rebuild cause it's not flowing like it should. Just got an impact screwdriver to try and get it out

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Was able to work on the bike during the dry days here in Cali. Was going to replace the wiring harness but the PO did a bit of a hack job on the wiring, solder and electrical tape all over, signal unit replaced with sears unit and placed in headlight bucket, signal wiring removed and replaced.
Didn't feel like doing a full rewire job, that'll be a project for another day, but removed the soldered wires in the brake light and added bullet connectors, used the hack job signal wiring to add rear turn signals, and swapped to agm 6v battery. Also rebuilt the forks and put on new boots.
All lights work so now just need to do some finishing touches like adding mirrors and putting tank and seat back on. Also replaced the foot peg rubber and realized PO had "patched" the originals with rtv to keep them on.
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I like and have used PJ1 for decades, I still have a can with a tiny bit left from when I had my second CBX (and it sold it 1994). It thickens up nicely and has graphite in it, works really well and stays on the chain pretty well too. Jim likes the blue label, I use the black label version. It also works really well for car door hinges and detents, lube them with it and it will be years before you'll need to do it again.
 
Adjusted the drive chain, cleaned and oiled it. It's now ready to go for when I register it tomorrow and take it for a ride. Interestingly the FSM says it should be .4-.8" of slack on the chain. I know the online "wisdom" says chains should have 1-1.5" but I trust the FSM. Anyone have experience with going 1" on a smaller bike like this?

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WildeEngineer said:
Adjusted the drive chain, cleaned and oiled it. It's now ready to go for when I register it tomorrow and take it for a ride. Interestingly the FSM says it should be .4-.8" of slack on the chain. I know the online "wisdom" says chains should have 1-1.5" but I trust the FSM. Anyone have experience with going 1" on a smaller bike like this?

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Use your best judgment based on your weight and how much the suspension travels, the chain gets tighter as the wheel rises up to the point of going past parallel to the line between the countershaft (front sprocket) and the rear axle.
 
You can use a ratchet load strap over the seat and a hook on each side of the swing arm to compress the rear suspension and still turn the wheel to check for tight spots.
 
WildeEngineer said:
Adjusted the drive chain, cleaned and oiled it. It's now ready to go for when I register it tomorrow and take it for a ride. Interestingly the FSM says it should be .4-.8" of slack on the chain. I know the online "wisdom" says chains should have 1-1.5" but I trust the FSM. Anyone have experience with going 1" on a smaller bike like this?

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Click to expand...
Trust the FSM first and foremost. None of my bikes have 1" of slack, 3/4" at most
 
After my practice on Sun noticed that the engine was leaking oil that it wasn't doing when cold so guess now I need to pull apart the engine and replace some gaskets and hopefully that solves the leak issue.

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So I've been having trouble with stalling out when going from neutral to 1st. Im sure I need more practice but it also feels to me like I need to give the bike a lot of gas at the start of releasing the clutch so it won't stall and then throttling down so I don't take off too fast. I can't do a gradual increasing of throttle to clutch release without stalling. Anyone know what the cause of this could be or is this just how these bikes tend to be?

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