It's a simple equation. You watch "Tron" or "Tron: Legacy" and then you want a Light Cycle. But you can't have a Light Cycle, because they don't really exist (this crazy custom bike being an exception). You can, however, have an upcoming Lotus C-01 motorcycle, which has "Tron: Legacy" designer Daniel Simon's fingerprints all over it.
The clean lines, low riding position, and silhouette of the C-01 are definitely reminiscent of the "Tron" bikes. Instead of glowing blue, it has gold-painted accents, but you could always repaint it to get closer to the "Tron" look through a customization service that will be offered for the machines.
Though the C-01 is badged as a Lotus (the first with that distinction), the carmaker did not design, engineer, or produce the motorcycle. It's actually made by Kodewa Performance Motorcycles. At least the C-01 is more than a few steps up from just gluing a Mercedes logo to a Buddy 50 scooter.
A C-01 prototype with a 200-horsepower engine has been made and tested. Only 100 production bikes will be offered. Pricing is expected to be around $140,000.
"We have worked hard to create a motorcycle with very distinctive features such as a clean main body, an extremely low side profile, a bold stance, a unique air intake, logical partline solutions and clean graphics," says Simon, offering a description that could pretty much apply to a "Tron: Legacy" motorcycle.
Simon's geeky vehicle concept design credentials also include work for "Captain America: The First Avenger" and the creation of the Bubbleship for the Tom Cruise sci-fi film "Oblivion." In my dreams, Simon's next project is a collaboration with Huffy to design a "Tron"-like bicycle anyone can afford.