If you’re already familiar with Bandit9, chances are pretty good that it’s because of the company’s wildly futuristic custom motorcycles. Since 2011, the Vietnam-based shop has been turning out bikes the likes of which the world has never seen, with soft edges, swooping curves, and space-age materials. (We even featured Bandit9 founder Daryl Villanueva on the cover of Issue One of Iron & Air.) It’s a unique aesthetic that challenges the relationship between form and function, blurring the lines between art and motorcycle in the process.
Even the avant-garde can get to be a little stale after a while — at least once it has garnered its fair share of competition. But Villanueva didn’t quit his day job to do what was expected or what the rest of the custom scene could; on the contrary. Never content to rest on their laurels, the Bandit9 crew have announced what is — easily — their most ambitious project yet. Meet the Monaco.
It’s rare to see a custom motorcycle builder who can apply their skills to the realm of four-wheeled transport — at least, with any degree of success. The math usually doesn’t work out; the talent, for some reason, doesn’t seem to translate. Assuming things do come together, the resulting build is typically half-baked in execution or indistinct from a horde of like-minded examples.
As Villanueva puts it: “I would argue that building a car is closer to building a house than a motorcycle. I see a motorcycle as a singular unit. Everything is right there in front of you. But a car has an exterior and an interior. You need to consider the experience on the outside, which is completely different than the experience on the inside. And like a house, there’s another world behind the façade: the electricals, the plumbing, the structure, safety, etc. Also, the effects of aerodynamics, weight distribution, material weight is 10-fold compared to a motorcycle. Designing a car is a mammoth task.”
Bearing all of this in mind, Bandit9 has managed to deliver in remarkable fashion. And it’s precisely because the team decided to go its own way and create a car from the ground up. However, where most of Bandit9’s bikes are distinctly forward-looking, the inspiration for the Monaco is — conversely — firmly grounded in tradition. And yet, at the same time, the design stands apart as something unto itself. Villanueva likes to say, “The Monaco is our tribute to racing. Rather than a particular car, it was the legendary designers and their philosophies that inspired us. Enzo Ferrari’s character, Colin Chapman’s emphasis on lightness over pure power, Shelby’s racing pedigree. These are the key ingredients behind the Monaco.”
It shows in the end product. The Monaco’s body is composed of a carbon fiber monocoque beneath a carbon fiber shell, sculpted with sharp lines and rounded corners such that it looks like the lovechild of a ’60s Brabham and a Lancia Stratos. Open-cockpit and open-wheel in design, it does away with complications like a front wing and a large spoiler in favor of a simple, streamlined aesthetic. From tip to tail, it’s smooth and slippery, with only a pair of gaping side ducts, a rear diffuser, and a set of forged magnesium aero wheels to interrupt its clean lines. To maintain its road legality, the Monaco includes some courtesies like lights, signals, and mirrors, but they’re so inconspicuous that you’d hardly even know they’re there.
Per Bandit9: “If it didn’t add to performance, it was scrapped. If it did, we made it compact, light, and efficient. It’s easy to add. It’s hard to subtract.” But subtract they did; the final curb weight comes in at just 795 kilograms (1,753 pounds).
Inside, the car is equally spartan; you won’t find any creature comforts like music or air conditioning. It’s wholly focused on its purpose, built with a deep race-ready bucket seat, a removable, programmable yoke steering wheel, and a 1080p display for use with a rear-facing ultrawide camera. In other words, the Monaco isn’t a vehicle meant to numb you from the experience or take your attention away from the road ahead; it’s a tool, a driver’s car for unlocking pure, unadulterated thrill.
For that matter, not even the drivetrain will distract you from the next turn. That’s because, instead of shoehorning some raspy V8 behind the cockpit, Bandit9 opted for a pair of electric motors and some lithium iron phosphate batteries — the same as those found in the Tesla Model S. On the road, this means that it makes in excess of 536 horsepower and 445 pound-feet of torque, enabling a silent-but-face-melting 2.7-second sprint to 60 miles per hour.
It’s this kind of potential that made an EV such a natural choice for the Monaco. “Let’s face it: it is inevitable,” says Villanueva. “It’s like the advent of the combustion engine in the steam era or the lightbulb in the age of candlelight. I think we should stop resisting and instead nurture and expedite its possibilities. Batteries will get smaller, lighter, more efficient, and cheaper. Same with the engine.”
What about the range, you ask? Never fret. Because of its featherweight chassis, the Monaco is good for as many as 250 miles from plug to plug. Or, as Bandit9 puts it: “more than an entire F1 race on a single charge.”
Of course, there will be some petrol-blooded purists who will take issue with the fact that such a vintage-leaning car is actually electric. To this, Villanueva says, “I totally get why people think EVs are soulless. To be honest, I share the sentiment. I like the warmth of LPs vs. mp3, the feel and grain of a true film camera over digital, a mechanical watch vs. quartz. But I think, besides the sound factor, you’ll miss little. Once you feel the blood go to the back of your head from the 2gs of acceleration, it’s over. You’re hooked.”
Yep, you read that right: 2gs — and Bandit9 claims as much as 4gs through turns. That’s because the Monaco mounts its powertrain low and behind the driver. Beyond improving weight distribution, this also helps with grip, driving the wheels into the road for maximum traction. When combined with a push-rod and pull-rod suspension setup, this makes for some ludicrous downforce. In fact, Bandit9 says, “The experience of jumping into the cockpit of the Monaco is closer to a fighter jet than a car.”
Good thing you’ll be able to catch it all on camera, as Bandit9 has enlisted the help of Forcite and its cutting-edge MK1S smart helmet. Between its 1080p video recording, its built-in Harman Kardon comm system, its hazard alert feature, and its voice-control technology, the lid is laden with gadgets to help you unlock your inner Speed Racer.
Price-wise, the Monaco isn’t exactly what you’d call cheap; it starts at $150,000 for the aluminum-framed base model. That being said, this isn’t a car intended for the masses or the casual weekend canyon warrior. Bandit9 also hopes that owners will sign up for its Race Subscription, a service that unlocks access to exclusive team events, expert engineer consultation, and ongoing customization opportunities to optimize the car for your driving style.
Only time will tell when we’ll see our first Monaco on the road. If you want to experience it in person for yourself, you can catch it at the Bonneville Salt Flats come 2023. There, Bandit9 will be attempting a world record, something Villanueva calls “a pure engineering exercise.” He goes on to explain, “My team is pretty solid right now; we’ve got folks who build military helicopters and airplanes, so we’re covered. What we actually need are sponsors. I don’t need to explain the economics of building a car, but it is expensive. We need the lightest and toughest materials paired with the biggest, baddest battery and engine combination around.”
This article first appeared in Iron & Air Magazine, and is reproduced here under license.
Words by Gray Van Dyke | Images Courtesy Bandit9
