The last production Vincent, a 1955 Vincent Black Prince to be exact, will be auctioned off on March 1st by H&H Classic Auctions. It rolled off the line Friday, December 16th, 1955 and then everyone turned off the lights and headed for the pub to reminisce about better times, at least I can imagine them doing that, but whatever the case, this was it.
The fully enclosed bodywork may work well but Vincent engines are some of the best looking V-twins ever produced and I can’t say hiding it behind fiberglass did the marque any favors. From a functional standpoint, everything seemed well thought out but, though there may be demand for these bikes today, during the time they were being produced they were simply compared to the other bikes of the day and sometimes the comparison favored another brand. Funny how a bit of distance and hindsight changes our view.
Link: H&H Classic Auctions
anon says
“Funny how a bit of distance and hindsight changes our view.”
Hindsight isn’t in play, rose colored glasses are.
The cost/function/reliability/value tradeoffs and poor business decisions that put them out of business don’t come into play when (now) we are talking about a weekend toy or, god forbid, an unridden collectible. But at the time? Well, the open market knows best.
Please don’t think I bashing the bikes, should I hit the lottery, I will have a Black Shadow in my garage (warehouse?) because it is a thing of beauty.
If you want to play hindsight: Just think, what might have been if they had spent money on engineering improvements or production cost reductions instead of body cladding?
Sean says
I hate do to it, and I’ll probably be lynched for it, but I agree with the anonymous person above. Vincent made some bad decisions, sure they made some beautiful bikes that went fast but they were plagued with bad management. I’d love Vincent to still be making bikes, just like I’d love Norton to still be making bikes, and Indian and…. The point is, some things just die. It was sad, but given what happened it was inevitable. And besides, now they’re classic pieces, so it could have been a good thing.