Mike Pero Motorcycle Gallery is a permanent public display of forty Japanese classic motorcycles from the 1970s, 80s and 1990s, gathered in one room in Avonhead, Christchurch. Curated by Mike Pero — six-time New Zealand National Motorcycle Racing Champion — the collection spans road and race machines, two-strokes and four-strokes, drawn from the great Japanese marques: Suzuki, Yamaha, Honda and Kawasaki.
Opened to the public in February 2017, the gallery runs as a not-for-profit organisation and has hosted thousands of visitors from all over the world. The line-up changes all the time, but the aim stays constant: bikes from a bygone era that, as the gallery itself puts it, will bring back fond memories. It makes no claim to be the biggest collection around — just a genuinely interesting one.
Pero's own story runs through the room. He bought his first bike, a Yamaha RD250, at fifteen, began his apprenticeship at Doug Cresswell Suzuki at sixteen, and won his first New Zealand Road Racing Championship the very next year, with five more national titles following through to 1983.
The gallery is open Friday 10:30–14:00 and Saturday and Sunday 10:30–15:30, with Monday to Thursday visits by appointment. Admission is $15 for adults, $5 for students aged 14 and over, and free for children under 14. Group bookings — clubs, tour buses and corporate events — are welcome outside normal hours, and the space is available for hire for special events. It sits alongside the JETex Flight Simulator, making it a two-for-one destination for machines of every kind.
Tucked into the Christchurch suburb of Avonhead is a single room that holds a lifetime of two-wheeled history. Mike Pero Motorcycle Gallery is a permanent public display of forty Japanese classic motorcycles from the 1970s, 80s and 90s — road bikes and race bikes, two-strokes and four-strokes, from the marques that defined an era: Suzuki, Yamaha, Honda and Kawasaki.
The gallery opened its doors in February 2017, and in the years since it has welcomed thousands of visitors from all over the world. It runs as a not-for-profit organisation, and that shapes the feel of the place. This is a labour of love rather than a showroom — nothing is pitched, nothing is for sale. You simply walk in and take, as Mike Pero himself puts it, a walk down memory lane.
Every collection has a curator, but few can match this one. Pero is a six-time New Zealand National Motorcycle Racing Champion, and bikes have framed his whole life. He bought his first machine — a Yamaha RD250 — at fifteen. At sixteen he began his apprenticeship at Doug Cresswell Suzuki, and the very next year he won his first New Zealand Road Racing Championship, the 'Up to 410cc Production Series'. Five more national titles followed through to 1983.
"Bikes have always been part of my life. They're a way of life," Pero says. "While this isn't the biggest collection of bikes, it's a genuinely interesting one, and a place I think will bring back memories." That honesty is part of the gallery's charm. It doesn't claim to be the biggest; it aims to be the most evocative — bikes from a bygone era that, as the gallery promises, will bring back fond memories.
The line-up changes all the time, so repeat visits are rewarded, but the shape of the collection stays true to its theme: three golden decades, 1970 to 1999. The main floor presents a panorama of machines, mixing road and race bikes in one sweep of classic lines. Two-stroke fans and four-stroke traditionalists are both well served, and the cluster of 80s superbikes — fairings and foam intact — is a magnet for photographers.
Because the display draws on the great Japanese manufacturers, the familiar names of Suzuki, Yamaha, Honda and Kawasaki are all part of the story. Whether you grew up lusting after these bikes or you're simply curious about two-wheeled history, it's an easy, welcoming way to spend an hour.
The gallery keeps friendly, part-time hours: Friday from 10:30 to 14:00, then Saturday and Sunday from 10:30 to 15:30. Monday to Thursday, visits can be arranged by appointment. Admission is $15 for adults, $5 for students aged 14 and over, and free for children under 14 — an affordable family outing for anyone with a rider in the family, past or present.
Groups are very much part of the picture. Clubs, tour buses and corporate events are welcome outside normal opening hours, with a flat $100 minimum for groups of up to 20, and the space is available for hire for special events. To arrange a visit, email [email protected].
There's one more reason to make the trip: the gallery is co-sited with the JETex Flight Simulator, so machines with wheels and machines with wings share a single destination. The gallery has even been featured on Kayak Travel Guides — a nod to just how far people travel for a look.
Christchurch has no shortage of attractions, but few are as personal as this. Forty bikes, one room, three decades of Japanese engineering and the eye of a national champion — that's the whole formula. Since the line-up is changing all the time, the floor you remember may not be the floor you find. Drop by and see how it looks now.