In 1969, Honda debuted the N600, the first Honda car that was imported to the US. Designed to combat bad fuel economy and high emissions, the N600 was roughly three feet shorter and half the weight of the average American car at the time.

Mechanic and restorer Tim Mings is the only full-time Honda N600 mechanic in the world – having worked on over 1,000 throughout the past 20 years. From the first 50 produced (serial #1 through 50), only 3 survived. After sitting under five decades of dust and dirt, Tim recently found this N600, purchasing it sight unseen, unaware of its’ pedigree. Now, it’s Tim’s mission to restore Serial One, the very first N600 that rolled off the line. Mings says it’s “humbling that I get to be the guy that does it. I’m the first person to take it apart since it was put together in 1967”. Once the restoration is complete, it will be going to the Honda Museum.

During the 12- to 18-month rebuild, Honda will be documenting the restoration of this special car at SerialOne.com – follow along, both with Honda and us, as we keep a close eye on the progress!

Images from: Honda Motor Co.