HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- It was upshift after upshift on the set of “Fast and Furious 10: FasTEN Your Seatbelts” today as a rare, but welcomed, motorcycle scene was filmed.
The Kawasaki Ninja H2 ridden by Vin Diesel’s character (Dom) eventually managed to reach top gear after Dom went 1 down, 11 up.
“We take pride in knowing every detail about the vehicles we bring on set,” said Justin Lin, director of many of the Fast and Furious movies. “After all, this is a franchise known for its realistic portrayal of road racing, family dynamics, physics, foreign policy, and space travel.”
In the action-packed scene you can clearly hear the H2 -- one of the fastest production motorcycles available -- bang through a dozen gears at full throttle without ever downshifting. This happens while a GMC Yukon loaded with 1,000 pounds of bulletproof armor effortlessly keeps up. Because Hollywood.
“Continuously having the motorcycle upshift lets the audience know that it’s going fast,” Justin said. “Everyone knows a vehicle can’t go fast using just six gears. Just like everyone knows a quarter-mile race between 10-second cars takes several minutes.”
Once the scene was concluded, Vin Diesel requested that the Ninja H2 be swapped out for another bike because the H2 is “more of a badass” and “steals too much spotlight.” In an effort to find a bike that isn’t cooler than Vin Diesel, producers are now searching for a Vespa… with an 8-speed gearbox.