There are customs that tinker at the edges, and then there are customs that blow the whole rulebook clean off the workbench. Led by the fast-rising legend Imanuel ‘Nuel’ Prakoso, Bali’s Treasure Garage has built a reputation for turning motorcycles into rolling sculptures, machines that don’t just appear otherworldly, but ride every bit as good as they look. Their latest creation, a 2013 Ducati Diavel reborn under the glow of anime and Italian fury, might just be their boldest strike yet. They call it Evangelion, part digital dream, part hand-beaten reality, and it conquered all comers at the recent Kustomfest show.
The original Diavel was never what you’d call subtle. The Bologna factory wanted a cruiser, and they built it to intimidate; low, wide, and muscular, the kind of bike that looks like it should come with its own sledgehammer and AC/DC soundtrack. But where the Italian designers left off, Treasure Garage stepped in with a vision that feels like it rode straight out of a cyberpunk storyboard. The concept began not in metal, but on a screen, conceived by Radite Octavanka (aka @raxe97ninetyseven), whose ArtStation render of an “Evangelion-inspired Diavel” set the tone for everything that followed.
The partnership between Radite and his digital designs, and Nuel and his team of incredible craftsmen, has produced a catalogue of killer bikes. But as Radite pushes the envelope of what is possible in the digital realm, it only makes Nuel’s job harder; crafting such lines out of metal is no easy task. So, the Treasure Garage crew set about the daunting challenge of translating pixels into panels, and the result is nothing short of transformative. Stripping back the Diavel reveals the first challenge: there’s the solid style subframe at the rear, perimeter trellis frame in the middle and radiators and other mechanical components to be navigated at the front of the bike.
To first bring the shape into the 3D world, the team uses metal rods, literally hundreds of them, all bent and tacked together to create a complete silhouette of the final product. This not only provides a template to make each panel, but also serves as the guidelines for each mounting point, the amount of clearance they will need around hot components, and where airflow will need to be directed. All of which is critical, you could leave this step out and have a stationary and static display, but to achieve a motorcycle that looks a million dollars and rides like it too, that’s where the genius really shines through.
Every piece of bodywork has been replaced or reshaped, sleek, faceted fairings up front, new side shrouds that draw your eye toward the tank, and a tail section so tight it looks vacuum-sealed to the frame. The stock Ducati silhouette is still there somewhere, but only if you squint. The rest is pure Treasure Garage imagination. Lighting, too, gets the sci-fi treatment and is designed to be integral with the body shape. The factory headlamp is gone, replaced by bi-LED projectors framed in sculpted acrylic, giving the bike a cold, electric stare. Additional acrylic lighting elements run through the body like veins of neon, illuminating the bike’s edges and echoing its Evangelion influence.
It’s both functional and theatrical, a rare combo that feels futuristic without crossing into cosplay. Out back, the custom tail and seat carry the shop’s signature craftsmanship, complete with a “Treasure Garage” badge sunk into the upholstery. The front is all drama, from those hulking solid alloy fork covers, to the Rhino horn like aero and the angry snarl of the cowling, it’s sheer brutality at its best. The colour is custom as always: being a Ducati red could have been appealing, black would be tough but would hide the lines, so Nuel settled on a one-off blue and then used the other two hues simply for the highlights, and it’s flawless.
Beneath the beast, a full Termignoni exhaust system snakes along the belly, ditching Ducati’s bulk for a hand-crafted flow of stainless curves and carbon tips. It’s not just for looks; the Termi system gives the Diavel the voice it always deserved, deep, brutal, and borderline sacrilegious indoors. To handle the power, Treasure Garage wrapped the stock rims in fat Pirelli rubber, chosen as much for grip as for presence. The wide rear, already a Diavel trademark, looks even meaner under the custom tail. And ensuring the stopping power is just as power-packed, the Brembo calipers grab enormous drilled discs.
Every angle screams intent, from the low-slung stance to the ridged tank line that seems to flex under tension. What’s remarkable isn’t just the aesthetics, it’s the translation. This build began as a digital dream, rendered in a virtual environment, and the Treasure Garage team turned that concept into something that starts, idles, and roars down real roads. The fabrication, metal shaping, acrylic work, and fairing integration isn’t off-the-shelf wizardry. It’s hours of shaping, sanding, and fitting by hand, each piece measured against the original render until the vision became tangible. Bali’s Treasure Garage isn’t just part of the global custom scene; they’re expanding its vocabulary. If Ducati’s Diavel was the devil you knew, this is the one that lives in neon dreams and carbon-scented nightmares.
[ Treasure Garage ]