The 23rd James Bond film set for release on October 26, 2012 will feature the Honda bike

In Tomorrow Never Dies, Pierce Bosnan rides a BMW R1200. Sean Connery rode a BSA Lightning in Thunderball and a Yamaha XJ650 in Never Say Never Again.

Now for the 23rd Bond film Skyfall, Daniel Craig (aka James Bond) and Ola Rapace (Patrice) will zoom through busy Turkey streets on two modified Honda CRF250Rs. Twenty bikes ‘dressed’ and adapted into two native style Hondas are used in this sequence. One is a Turkish police bike ridden by henchman Patrice and the other is a merchant’s bike that Craig rides. Both Hondas feature extensive modifications, courtesy Chris Corbould’s special effects team.

To track Bond’s stunts, two CRF450R bikes were used. “We needed a highly versatile and quality off-road motorbike that could be easily modified, without compromising performance or safety, for the opening sequence of Skyfall. Honda CRFs are probably the best off-roaders out there so it’s great that we’ve been able to partner with Honda as the bikes, whilst heavy modified, were superb to work with,” said Gary Powell, stunt co-ordinator for Skyfall.

The movie is set for release on October 26, 2012. The bikes used in the movie will be on display alongside the stock Honda CRF250R at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, which is currently hosting the ‘Bond in Motion’ exhibition that will continue till December 31, 2012. The exhibition celebrates 50 years of James Bond films and showcases 50 of the most iconic James Bond vehicles.