Description
This motorcycle is Lot 19 to be auctioned by Bonhams at The Spring Stafford Sale (The International Classic MotorCycle Show) on April 25th & 26th, please see the Bonhams Motorcycles Website for full details.
Auction Timings:
Lots 1 - 94 are to be sold from 14:30 on Saturday 25th April 2026.
Lots 201 - 353 are to be sold from 11:30am on Sunday 26th April 2026.
Public Viewing:
Available 25th & 26th April 2026 from 09:00 until 17:00, at The Staffordshire County Showground (The International Classic MotorCycle Show).
The Connoisseurs Collection, Part II
** c. 1939 Zündapp K500**
Registration no. not registered
Frame no. 182875
Engine no. 182875
** The Lot is from outside the UK. Shippio Ltd must automatically uplift this Lot after the auction, complete all post sale import or export customs administration, and store this Lot until it is customs cleared. A compulsory fee of £350 + VAT will be added to the buyer's invoice for this. This Lot cannot be collected from the auction venue by the purchaser or any alternative transporter.
If the Lot is to stay in the UK or is not exported within 90 days of sale, Import VAT at 5% on the hammer price is payable.**
Founded at the height of WWI to manufacture armaments, Zündapp found a new role post-war as a producer of motorcycles under the direction of new owner, Dr Fritz Neumeyer, building its first machine, a Levis-powered two-stroke, in 1921. The firm began making its own engines in 1924, selling more than 10, 000 machines that year, and in 1933 introduced the first of the horizontally opposed, four-stroke twins that it is best remembered for. The initial 398cc and 496cc sidevalve 'K' models were followed in 1936 by the overhead-valve KS500 which, like its predecessors, employed designer Richard Küchen's unconventional all-chain four-speed 'gearbox' and shaft final drive. Common to all the larger models and eminently suited to withstanding the stresses and strains imposed by travel on unmade roads, the robust frame and girder forks were made of pressed steel, an advanced feature at the time.
This Zündapp K500 is presented in restored condition and currently displays a total of only 0. 6 kilometres on the odometer (the engine turns over). Offered unregistered and without documents, aside from a few post-restoration photographs.
Following a period of inactivity, this motorcycle will require recommissioning and/ or restoration to a greater or lesser extent before returning to the road and thus is sold strictly as viewed. Prospective purchasers should satisfy themselves with regard to this motorcycle's completeness, history, authenticity, originality and mechanical condition prior to bidding.
Offered with key
All lots are sold ‘as is/ where is’ and Bidders must satisfy themselves as to the provenance, condition, age, completeness and originality prior to bidding. Visit the Bonhams Motorcycles website for all pertinent auction information.
