Starting as a motorcycle manufacturer in 1948, Honda expanded its business operations to include automobiles in 1963. Prior to that, founder Soichiro Honda (1906–1991) had his people construct the Suzuka Circuit in 1962, believing that a car could not be improved upon unless it was being raced. The first foray into this four-wheel avenue was the T360 truck, followed by the S500 sportscar in October 1963. Predictably, motorsport became embedded in Honda’s vision for his company, which included the automaker’s first participation in Formula 1 from 1964–1968, with only two victories coming in 1965 and 1967.
