‘Akira’ Anime Motorcycle Brought To Life—And To Market

Specific cinematic motorcycles most people can think of off the top of their heads are few and far between: Peter Fonda’s “Captain America” Harley-Davidson chopper from Easy Rider is one, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s black Harley Fat Boy from Terminator 2 is another easy pick. Marlon Brando’s trophied Triumph T120 ‘6T’ Thunderbird from The Wild One certainly makes the cut, as does the Vespa scooter Audrey Hepburn buzzed around Italy on in Roman Holiday. And Tom Cruise’s 900 Ninja in Top Gun helped Kawasaki establish a sportbike dynasty that made it into a sequel almost four decades later. But for many movie motorcycle enthusiasts, one iconic movie motorbike has remained elusive, simply because it never physically existed. Until now.

It’s best known as the “Kaneda Bike” (say “Kah-nay-duh”, not “Canada”) from the 1988 Japanese anime classic Akira. The fictional high-powered recumbent electric motorcycle is ridden by teenage biker gang leader Shotaro Kaneda as his crew battles other biker gangs - and supernatural forces - in “Neo Tokyo” in the year 2019. Quick tip: Akira is an intense animated movie for adults and is not a cartoon for children, as you can see from the trailer below, which includes some key clips of the Kaneda Bike including the famous “Akira Slide,” which is now a meme and is often imitated:

Many cinephiles credit Akira and the 1970s Speed Racer TV show with essentially bringing the anime art form to America (and far beyond).

After the movie debuted and swept into motorcycle riders’ collective consciousness, there’s been a clamor to bring the animated red street missile into the realm of the real, an Morpheus might say. And over the decades since the movie came out, there have been several custom fan-built incarnations of the Kaneda Bike, one of which took many years and well over $100,000 to create. Decades after Akira came out, dreams of owning and riding the iconic red bike remain strong. It is the Batmobile of the motorcycle world.

Good news, then: Barcelona-based transportation-themed art studio Bel&Bel has created a new and highly accurate replica of the fantasy bike, and will now build them to order on a limited basis for less than $30,000USD. According to New Atlas, once the studio has completed two scratch-built custom Kaneda bikes currently on order, they will begin producing a limited series of the motorcycles using all-electric drive systems. The current custom builds in process utilize a 250cc gas Yamaha engine for the rear wheel and an electric drive system for the front wheel.

The series-built Kaneda bikes will be all electric and rear-wheel drive, with a 5,000 Watt motor driving the rear wheel by way of a carbon belt. Thankfully, there will be a reverse gear as the long wheelbase of the bike would likely make backing it up a challenge. While the motor isn’t big on horsepower - 5,000 Watts is just under seven horsepower - there will be no shortage of torque, with a reported 383 pound feet of twist at the rear wheel. Top speed is said to be just over 90 mph. No battery specs or range estimates have been released as of yet.

Stills and video clips on the Bel&Bel Instagram page show the custom builds now under way hew very close to the bike in the movie, with a self-lowering frame, wheels ringed by LED strips and an instrument cluster that closely mimics the animated machine.

Freeway speeds for what is essentially a bespoke electric scooter should suffice for most buyers interested in the series production units, as the iconic look and backstory of the Kaneda Bike is the draw more than its outright performance. However, with battery and motor tech quickly evolving, improved performance isn’t out of the question over time.

Bel&Bel have not said how many of the bikes they are planning on producing, but creating motorized art isn’t a new venture for the company. Nonetheless, serious buyers should likely get their $5,000 deposit in sooner than later.