Skip to main content

Three wheels, motorcycle bars, an electric powertrain, and a roof over your head. The brand new Honda Gyro Canopy:e encompasses all of the above. It’s a three-wheeled electric scooter with a roof, ready to debut in Japan. So let’s dive into this electric scooter you’ve never heard of, and probably can’t buy (unless you live in Japan).

Honda Gyro Canopy:e electric scooter
Honda Gyro Canopy:e electric scooter | Honda

The Honda Gyro Canopy:e is a clever electric scooter with a roof

The Honda Gyro Canopy:e is a small three-wheeled scooter with a few nifty features. For starters, while the Honda Gyro is an electric scooter, the batteries are swappable, a trend among other Asian manufacturers. And the Honda Gyro takes two of these removable batteries and can be recharged in just five hours. In other words, it’s basically an electric scooter that runs on two AA batteries, except those batteries are a little bigger.

On top of that, the major selling point is that the Honda Gyro Canopy:e has a canopy (it’s in the name, in case you didn’t know). And beyond that, the Honda Gyro has a full windscreen and wiper blade. In other words, unlike traditional scooters, the Honda Gyro can operate in the rain.

But all those goodness comes at a cost. That is, if you even live in the country where you can buy it.

Unless you’re in Japan, you can’t buy the Honda Gyro, but you probably wouldn’t want to anyway

Honda Gyro Canopy:e electric scooter profile
Honda Gyro Canopy:e electric scooter | Honda

If you don’t live in Japan, then you can’t buy the Honda Gyro Canopy:e electric scooter. But at 715,000 yen, or $6,295, you probably wouldn’t want to. Unless you live somewhere it’s always raining, the Honda Gyro Canopy:e seems a bit overpriced.

And we haven’t even looked at the power and electric range yet. The Honda Gyro is rated at less than five horsepower squeezed from the motor. And while it has an electric range of 48 miles, Honda tested that going a consistent 18 miles per hour. While that’s fine for urban traffic, it’s not usable just about anywhere else.

But even in rainy conditions, $6,295 might not be worth it. After all, there are other Honda electric scooter options that’ll cost way less.

There are cheaper Honda electric scooters than the Honda Gyro

Honda U-be electric scooter
Honda U-be electric scooter | Honda

If you’re looking for a budget Honda scooter, look no further than the U line of bikes. The Honda U-go starts at just $1,150 in China. And while it has just 2.5 horsepower, about half of the Honda Gyro, the U-go can still reach a top speed of 33 miles per hour. On top of that, there’s room for two, whereas the Gryo can only seat one person.

But if even $1,150 is too much for you, consider the Honda U-be. It only has one seat and costs a microscopic $475. Sure, it only has a top speed of 15.5 miles per hour, and a battery range from 34 miles to 50 miles depending on the battery pack you install. But it’s a road-legal electric scooter that costs less than a smartphone.

No, you wouldn’t want to drive any of these electric scooters in the states. But in Asian countries, where there are literal highways for scooters, these are incredibly cost-effective modes of transportation.