L-CONCEPT
BY BANDIT9 MOTORCYCLES
From Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
COLLECTION OF THE PETERSEN AUTOMOTIVE MUSEUM
PHOTOS BY WING CHAN
While the motorcycle industry in the West has grappled with attracting non-riders onto two wheels, Vietnam’s Bandit9 makes it looks easy. Their formula? Take a totally utilitarian bike built in the millions around the world, and give it the Cinderella touch with an ultra-chic transformation. Throw in a collaboration with a hot Ukranian fashion designer Konstantin Kofta, and a photo shoot in an arresting Modernist style by Wing Chan, and you’ve won over the design and fashion crowds…and anyone else who likes futuristic, shapely machines that could have been made 100 years ago, or 100 years from now.
Looking like a jet-pistol in profile, the ultra-light, 297-pound “L-Concept” has a top speed of 68 mph, and is powered by a 125cc, four-speed, air-cooled, four-stroke engine. Only 90 inches long, with 21-inch wheels, the “L-Concept” was built in a limited series of nine machines, and the bike in Custom Revolution has been acquired by the Petersen for its permanent collection. If that isn’t a vote of confidence in the future, I’m not sure what is.
Follow the Builder: Bandit9 Motorcycles
