Riddle me this - What minor impairment of Soichiro Honda led to our VFR ?

Ok time for the answer.

Soichiro Honda was colour blind, now the next question is does anyone know how that lead indirectly to the VFR ?
( no 50th Anniversary jokes please )

 

Well not sure about the dream of motorcycle engines, but he made pistons for the Zero aircraft engine back in the day.

 

He had Vitriolic Fluid of the Retina (no, I have no idea if that means anything it just fit the initials) and then had to come up with a bike that worked with VFR?

 

Cheers didn't know it was Zero engines he was building, I'm sure their is a lot of history of his background out there but had only just read this little tidbit in UK's RiDE Mag and thought it interesting enough to share.


Being colour blind allowed Soichiro to escape being drafted in the military to fight and being a competent mechanic before the war set him up to work in a manufacturing plant. Working in building of engine parts for planes gave him valuable experience in the production process which helped him after the war to realise his dream of making personal transport for the people. ie our VFRs . :smile:

 

thanks John, nice thread.

 

As I understand it, and this may be picking nits, but Soichiro Honda started out making piston rings.

 

According to the local harleydoods, everything made in Japan came from old beer cans we sent them.

 

That line made me think of the movie 1941 and what John Belushi said to Robert Stack after shooting down what he thought to be a Japanese Zero. I was probably the only one but I loved that movie.

"Bombs! I don't hear any bombs! Now they're up there. They came all the way from Asia. Don't you think they'd bring a few bombs along?"

 

John Belushi shot up a speedball and it killed him.