Health Automobile Co., Ltd, Arakawa Ward, Tokyo, 1945-61
I have grouped several companies all in one place as they appear to just be arms of the same industrial complex. If I'm wrong, presumably someone will correct me. These include:
- Minato Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (株式会社ミナト製作所) (original company post WWII)
- Mikasa Giken Industry (三笠技研工業)
- Minato Seisakusho (ミナト製作所)
- Health Automobile Co., Ltd. (ヘルス自動車株式会社)
Health Automobile was in business between 1945 and 1961, and made the Emuro (エムロ号) and Health (ヘルス号) line of motorcycles. The Newport (ニューポート号) was originally sold Under the Minato brand in 1952, along with the New Minato (ニューミナト号), but by 1955 was being sold as a Health brand product. There is also mention of something called a Cellius(?) (セリウス号) in 1952 but I have not been able to find an example of it. Health Automobile was the first to produce a 500cc air cooled 2 stroke twin in 1957, and while it was not a sales success, they did beat out Suzuki's T500 by a decade. The product line included machines from 90cc through to 500cc, and the Emuro EL (500cc 2 stroke twin) product was used as a police bike by the Tokyo police department in 1957.
Mike sent me some scans from the June 1955 issue of the Japanese motorcycle magazine Auto-By showing the 1955 Newport or possibly New Boat?(ニューボート号).
The company right from the start also made frames both for motorcycles and for sidecars. The Ohno Frame Company (大野フレーム工業所) founded by Oono Hikabusaburo (である大野彦三郎は) who started at the Minato factory making frames immediately after WWII, is still in business today.