I've seen this video before: I didn't like the errant factoids in it, so I haven't been eager to share it here. After all, it was "Discovery" TV.
Honda was developing, at 1967, the "King of all motorcycles" as Sochiro put it: it was going to be a 1000cc twin with DOHC like the CB450, according to all reports. Bob Hansen changed history at the meeting Honda had arranged with him to unveil the design: he was the head of American Honda at the time. When he was at the big dinner with all the mucky-mucks of Honda (and Sochiro) and they were talking about this, one of Sochiro's advisors asked Bob what he thought of the idea. He replied, "That would be great, so long as it is not another Twin." The immediate response from the advisor, after translating this to Sochiro, was, "Why would you say this?" as they all knew it was a Twin, and was to be revealed to Bob after the dinner. Bob replied, "Well, even BSA is making a triple now." It was said the room went very quiet for a minute, and then Sochiro nodded and replied by asking Bob how much HP the BSA engine made. Bob replied with "67", which was the published spec at the time. Then after a conversation with his cohorts, Sochiro was reported to say that Honda would then make a Four, as they had Fours in their racing experience, and it would make 68 HP. It would also be the most beautiful motorcycle the world had seen.
The last statement sounded very much like Sochiro.
Bob never got to see the giant Twin, but pieces of its design leaked out in other engines after that, like counter-rotating weights in the bottom end to reduce the vibration typical of Twins. Some said it was the V-Twin that became the CX500, but I know that to be derived from the oval-piston V-twins of Honda's racing experience, so I'm dubious of that rumor.
