Hodaka

Hodaka was a joint Japanese and American company that manufactured motorcycles in the 1960s and 1970s.

The company also went by the name PABATCO, for Pacific Basin Trading Company. Its headquarters were in the rural town of Athena, Oregon. Pabatco was owned by Shell Oil Company from 1965 to 1978. The name Hodaka is rumored to have been borrowed from a mountain near the factory. Opening its doors in 1964, Hodaka is credited by some with starting the trail bike craze in the United States. Hodaka models included the Ace 90, Ace 100, Wombat, Combat Wombat, Super Combat, Super Rat, Dirt Squirt, Road Toad and Thunderdog.

In the late 1970s, a combination of events led to the demise of Hodaka. Falling US dollar exchange rates against the Japanese yen, a shift in demand from dirt bikes to larger road bikes, and general economic weakness fatally wounded the company. Hodaka attempted a purchase of Fuji Heavy Industries —the Japanese company which manufactured most Hodaka engines—but were rebuffed. Around 1980, Hodaka ceased all operations. Its tooling was later sold to the Korean company Daelim.