Keanu Reeves Starts Arch Motorcycle Company – Production to Begin in 2013

Actor Keanu Reeves is getting into the motorcycle business, starting up the Arch Motorcycle Company with Gard Hollinger of L.A. County Choprods. The new company will build motorcycles based on the KR GT-1 prototype pictured above, with production set to begin in 2013.

The partnership first began after Reeves approached Hollinger about producing a custom motorcycle. The motorcycle enthusiast and the builder hit it off and project changed from a one-off custom to a potential mass production model. The KR GT-1 prototype was completed in the fall of 2011

“We have a common vision,” says Hollinger. “We started with the idea of a performance-based modern machine. Once the bike was complete, it looked like a production motorcycle but unlike anything we had ever seen. It’s unique and we can’t wait to introduce it to the world.”

Reeves has been riding motorcycle since 1986, starting with a Kawasaki 600 Enduro purchased while filming in Germany.

“I’m a guy that loves everything about motorcycles – the sounds, the style and the aesthetic combined with the function, but most of all the riding experience. I’ve enjoyed motorcycles for as long as I can remember and I’m ready to share my passion with the world,” says Reeves.

Arch Motorcycles isn’t prepared to release specifications for the KR GT-1, though L.A. County Choprods website credits a number of parts suppliers including Bennett’s Performance for the V-Twin engine. Other components are sourced from Yoshimura RD, Ohlins, K&N and other parts producers.

The company’s official website says the KR GT-1 is based on a 1984 Harley-Davidson Shovelhead. The KR GT-1 prototype features forward-mount foot controls, an inverted fork and an unusual swingarm design made of a V-shaped metal tube with the Ohlins rear shock at an inclined angle from its attachment point under the single seat.

Of course, it is still a prototype, but for the production version should not be much different considering its expected small production numbers.

[Source: Arch Motorcycle Company]

By Dennis Chung