Hot Rod XR from Italy’s GPgarage Moto…
Introduced in 1985, the Honda XR600R was destined to become one of the most successful off-road bikes in motorcycling history. The air-cooled thumper would win the Baja 1000 five times, rivaling the mighty Kawasaki KX500 two-stroke as king of the desert. More surprisingly, the big XR would also make a great woods bike — something few expected from the big 600.
“On the east side of the country, the championships flowed freely thanks to the freakish abilities of Scott Summers. He won five GNCC titles, four National Hare Scrambles Championships, 69 individual national races and earned three ISDE gold medals on the XR.” –Dirt Bike
The original twin-carb models were a bit overweight, but the ’88 model dropped nearly 20 pounds with a nikasil cylinder, single-carb, and redesigned chassis. It gained a cartridge fork in ’91 and minor engine changes in ’93, but remained relatively unchanged until 2000, when the liquid-cooled XR650R replaced it. In those 15+ years, the air-cooled XR left a legacy that would be tough to duplicate.
“The bike’s racing history really started in 1982 when Al Baker and Jack Johnson won the SCORE Baja 1000 on the second-year, single-shock XR500R. The XR500R won again in ‘84 and then the XR600R took over in ‘85. The 600 continued to win in ‘86 and ‘87. After a Kawasaki-created dry spell in Baja, the Honda XR600R again won the 1000 in ‘97 and ‘98, after which a redesigned XR650R took over.” –Dirt Bike
One of the world’s air-cooled XR maestros is our friend Matteo Gualandi of Italy’s GPgarage Moto, a former motocross racer whose workshop fields a pair of modern CRF rally bikes in the Italian Rally Championship. Over the years, Matteo has painstakingly recreated replicas of Honda’s factory Baja racers — machines like his Johnny Campbell XR628R, ’94 XR680R, and XR667 Baja Monster.
With his stable of replicas complete, Matteo is now free to build XRs according to his own designs, though his builds are still very much inspired by Honda’s air-cooled Baja bikes. In this case, a customer wanted a street-legal version of Matteo’s XR628 Baja build — a bike he made to resemble that of a 90s privateer racer.
The bike includes most of the same upgrades as the off-road-only build: 628cc big-bore kit, custom front-mount oil-cooler to keep the air-cooled single’s temps down, special oil decanter kit, FCR carb with bespoke double-pipe exhaust and LeoVince silencers, 3D-printed front light, and much more.
Meanwhile, it has the minimum legal necessities for street-legality, including an LED headlight, longer rear fender with license plate mount, brake-light switches, and road-certified Michelin Tracker tires.
Most of the finishes have been done in highly durable Cerakote, and Matteo is duly proud of the graphics kit — a mix of OEM graphics from various years.
The result is a knobby-tired hot rod that brims with 90s flash and Baja heritage — a bike that tips its hat to Honda off-road legends like Johnny Campbell and Scott Summers while providing its new owner plenty of fun both on the road and off. This is one XR we’d love to have in the stable.
Honda XR600R: Builder Interview
• What’s the make, model, and year of the bike?
Honda XR600, 1998.
• Why was this bike built?
Customer request.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
It’s a street replica of our race XR628 Baja Tribute.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
Oil radiator kit, custom double exhaust, oil decanter kit, custom 3D-printed front light, cerakote paint.
• Does the bike have a nickname?
“XR P.A.M.” (The owner’s initials.)
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
Yes the graphics scheme, a mix of different years of OEM graphics.
Follow the Builder
Website: gpgarage.it
Instagram: @gpgarage.moto
Facebook: Gpgaragemoto
Youtube: Gpgarage Moto
More GPgarage Moto Builds
Honda XR628R: Street-Legal Baja Tribute - Hot Rod XR from Italy’s GPgarage Moto… Introduced in 1985, the Honda XR600R was destined to become one of the most successful off-road bikes in motorcycling history. The air-cooled thumper would win the Baja 1000 […]
Triple XL: Three Honda XL500 Motocrossers! - GPgarage Moto builds a trio of four-stroke Honda motocrossers… Introduced in 1979, the Honda XL500 would become one of the most successful dual-purpose bikes of the era, combining a 32-hp version of the XR500 engine […]
Baja Monster: Honda XR667 Desert Racer - GPmoto Garage recreates Honda’s 1991 “Stealth Boomer”… In the 1990 Baja 1000, Honda’s XR600R entry ran a near flawless race against the mighty Kawasaki KX500 two-strokes…and still lost, keeping pace in the rough sections but […]
Big Red Baja: Honda XR680R Desert Racer - From 1988 to 1996, the big-bore Kawasaki two-strokes ruled the Baja 1000, ripping across the desert chaparral at more than 100 mph, covering the 1000-mile race in 10-20 hours. However, their arch-rival, Honda, has never […]
Flash Red: Honda XR600R Golden Years Edition - Italy’s GPgarage Moto builds an 80s-style XR600R… The Honda XR600R is the big-bore four-stroke weapon that unseated Kawasaki’s KX500 two-stroke to become the new king of Baja. Over its 15-year production run, the open-class thumper […]
Honda XL600LM “Bulldog” by GPgarage Moto - The Honda XL600LM was a tribute to the HRC Paris-Dakar Rally machines of the 1980s. In 1982, Cyril Neveu won the legendary trans-Saharan race on an XR550, and Honda was intent on repeating that victory, […]
Baja Commander: Honda XL500R Baja - GPgarage Moto builds a Baja restomod! The XL500R was Honda’s 500cc dual-sport in the early 1980s, a mono-shock (Pro-Link) evolution of the twin-shock XL500S, featuring a 32-hp SOHC engine with counterbalancers, long-travel suspension, and a […]
Johnny Campbell Tribute: Honda XR628R Baja! - Desert King: GPgarage Moto builds a tribute to the King of Baja… Johnny Campbell is a living legend of off-road racing, a man known as “The King of Baja” for his 11 Baja 1000 victories […]
