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The motorcycle industry is not that keen on revealing its plans for the future through concept bikes – at least, not to the degree the auto industry does this. Yet, from time to time, exciting design ideas on two wheels do pop up, accompanied now and then by exciting mechanical innovations.

By: Daniel Patrascu Courtesy: AutoEvolution

The beginning of this month marked an important moment for the Japanese moto and auto industries, as the Japan Mobility Show 2025 opened its doors in the country's capital to a flood of new cars and bikes. Among them was something called the EV Outlier concept, which had its world premiere as a sort of offspring of the motorcycles from 'Tron' and the BMW scooters of today.

The Outlier is a motorcycle by trade, and it was designed over at Honda by Yuya Tsutsumi. It's not meant to turn into a production version, at least not yet, but it will be a sort of preview of what to expect from motorcycles in the coming decades.

The design was not conceived as an extension of existing motorcycles, for the simple reason that it doesn't share their mechanical components. You see, the Outlier is an electric motorcycle and, knowing that, Honda considered itself free of design constraints, creating something I don't remember ever seeing before.

The concept draws inspiration from the EV Fun Concept and EV Urban Concept that were shown by Honda at last year's Esposizione Internazionale del Ciclo, Motociclo e Accessori (EICMA) show in Milan, Italy. Yet, it adopts a philosophy that doesn't take an existing ICE motorcycle platform and electrifies it, but builds everything from scratch.

Honda did not bother going into the details of the electric powertrain that powers this thing, but it did share that the concept was put together in such a way as to accommodate in-wheel motors on both the front and rear wheels.

It's the bike's design, though, that is the source of excitement. Imagined, just like the two concepts from 2024, using the Honda Precision of Intrinsic Design philosophy, it appears long and pointy, with a futuristic, angular aesthetic stemming from the use of a long and low front section, faceted surfaces, and as few curves as possible.

There are a few tell-tale signs that this bike is meant to be electric. I'm talking about the solid side panels that have taken the place of cylinders, the apparent power module visible in the frame, and the complete absence of an exhaust system.

The shape of the Outlier is supposed not only to turn heads, but also to help the bike become one with its rider. The shape of the bodywork is supposed to make the transition between acceleration and deceleration, but also turning behavior, as smooth as possible.

Because this is an electric motorcycle we're talking about, the ride comes with instant acceleration and huge torque levels. On top of that, the concept offers the rider the option of controlling which of the wheels move the bike.

To make sure the rider can take the expectedly brutal behavior of the Outlier, Honda sank the seat as low as possible and installed a bucket-type backrest to help the human in control take what's thrown at them. This backrest also has a functional side, as it helps the rider pivot through corners using their hips as an axis.

Up front, the dashboard of the concept is truly something else. At the core of it all is a sizeable instrument cluster screen, slim and wide, powered by a user interface that displays all the required info, down to the motorcycle's lean angle.

An additional sub-display is used to show real-time changes in the drive status and output characteristics of the front and rear motors as soon as the rider switches between ride modes. The same tool is used to link to the rider's personal data, allowing the bike to suggest destinations and other trip ideas depending on schedule and preferences.

There are no mirrors on this bike, as they've been replaced by cameras. Separately, the handlebars are integrated directly into the instrument cluster area, making the entire thing look even more futuristic than it already is.

Honda says the name chosen for the bike, Outlier, is supposed to be a nod to all the design ideas that went into putting the concept together, as it signifies "something unconstrained by boundaries." There is, however, one significant boundary that needs to be addressed: this is only a concept, and an extreme one at that, meaning there are slim to none chances of it actually making it into production.

In fact, electric motorcycles as a breed are very slow to come into this world, despite the fact that their four-wheeled counterparts fully embraced electrification more than a decade ago. But who knows, maybe something transformational happens, and the world will get bikes such as this one from the 2030s, as Honda hopes.