28th March 2015, 20:55 | #1 |
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| Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Disclaimer: I can neither confirm or deny accuracy of this post. It's not my intent to hurt feelings of vehicles or animals (including humans), if I do...deal with it. This post might be harmful to your wallet, consider yourself WARNED! Finally, I do not take any responsibility for this post, neither should you. Prologue The last bike I owned was the Pulsar 180 DTSi. I loved that bike. Drove it everywhere, including a 150KM round trip to my parents place every weekend. Though it was fun, the bike had it's share of problems. It was top heavy, engine was rough above 80 KM/Hr and gear shifts sometimes had a mind of their own. However, it was fun, and that's all that mattered. Then the proverbial life happened. You know how that goes....got married, sold the bike, bought a car....but lets park that story for some other time. This story is about a Royal Enfield and me. Royal Enfield and me Now, my friends would tell you that I am not a fan of Royal Enfield! Wait, What? Ya, that's true. I have always likened Enfield bikes to Elephants, majestic, but maintaining one would be back (and bank) breaking, literally! Both are good to see, occasionally ride, but you would rather not own one. The first time I rode an Enfield was back in 2003/2004. It was a Thunderbird Twinspark. Loved the torque, but there was something about it....maybe the fit and finish or probably my bias that made me not want to buy one. However it did prove that I could ride an Enfield! The second time I rode an Enfield was when my neighbour bought a Classic 350. Took it for a ten minute spin. The bike's a looker, and that torque was so enticing. However, that ten minute ride left my thighs paining for a day. So still wasn't convinced that an Enfield was for me! The third time I rode an Enfield was when I rented a Classic 350 in Goa for three days. Again, it was super fun, but same thing happened, left my thighs paining for next two days. That, along with the bouncy ride did it, Classic was not for me. Then, come 2012, Enfield launched the new Thunderbird. I had high hopes for this one, but there was/is something about that rake angle that I find a bit jarring. Still, I was still open to owing one....but life happened. Present Boy, do we have options in the market now....or maybe not! I do not like plastic bikes, and don't have a tonne of money to blow on a bike. That makes my options rather limited. Sub 10 lakhs, it's couple of models from either Harley Davidson, Triumph, Hyosung or an Enfield.
I was seriously considering saving up for a Bonneville....that's when I happened to talk to a bulleteer. I was in Wayanad, Kerala end of December 2014 on vacation when I came to know that a family friend had purchased Classic 350. Mountains and Enfield make for an enticing combination, so I landed at his house to borrow the bike for a day or two. I had heard about the launch of Continental GT but had not really followed the launch or the bike. I asked him why he did not buy Continental, his answer was "Continental is not really a bullet!". I found this reply rather intriguing. If Continental GT is not a bullet, then may be its something a non-bulleteer like me would find interesting. Rest of my vacation was spent searching the web on what Continental was all about....and I liked what I read! Decisions, decisions! Back home after vacation, I decided to check-out Continental GT in person. I wasn't really expecting my local Enfield dealer to have GT for a test drive, it being a halo model and all, but surprisingly they did. Landed at the dealership following evening for a test drive. Decided to check both Continental and Thunderbird. After completing the formalities, took Continental for a spin first. It was a revelation! This bike could move, it felt like Bullet's alter-ego! The engine felt peppy with oodles of torque, sitting position suited me fine (am used to a more aggressive position on my Trek 4300 and can ride it for hours), brakes actually worked, fit and finish was good (mostly) and is the bike a looker or what? Had an ear-to-ear smile at the end of the ride. Thunderbird was next. Again the rake angle looked awkward to me. Seats were comfortable, engine was powerful (but not as happy revving as the Continental) but the brakes were a let down. Also, after GT, Thunderbird felt....a bit obese! In short it did not excite me like Continental did. Handed in the keys to Thunderbird and took Continental GT for a second longish test drive. The 70MM grin was back on Overall dealership experience was good. The folks were polite and warm. This again busted a preconception I had about Enfield dealerships! Since I was going to plonk 2 Lakhs, I decided to check the competition as well:
Anyways, long story short, decided on Continental GT. Buying Experience You can have any colour as long as it's red or yellow. This turned out to be a difficult choice to make. Should I go with period correct red or that gorgeous yellow! This was made more difficult because no dealer in Mumbai or Thane had a yellow GT I could see. While I was mulling over the choice, got a call from my local dealer that they have a yellow GT in hand and it turned out to be a beauty. The dealer said that I could have it if I like it. So did a PDI, everything looked good. However, when I ran my hand over the tank, I encountered couple of places that I thought could do with some claying. This was odd! Wrote down the chassis number, paid the booking amount of Rs 5125 /- (Rs 125 extra because I paid by card, is this legal?) and told them that I'll call them to confirm if I wanted this particular bike. Turned out that the bike was an August 2014 make i.e almost 6 months old! Of-course, I refused and asked them to get me a 2015 manufactured bike. Couple of days later the dealer called me again offering the bike at 2014 price. If this was December made I would have considered it, but August was just too old, so refused again. Now the wait began. A week later, the dealer still had no idea when the bike would be delivered. If this was going to be a 6 month wait, I would rather have my money in a Fixed Deposit. So wrote to Enfield, they redirected me to their Area Manager, who asked me to give him couple of days to find out. Followed up in four days, got an update that the bike is in transit and should reach the dealer in about a week. This was fast! Delivery Experience Not much to write here actually. This was a somber affair. Booked the bike on 4th February, took the delivery on 21st March 2015. Reached dealership around 10:30 AM on the d-day, completed formalities, was handed the keys, road the bike home. Completely forgettable! This is where Enfield could do better, make the experience a bit memorable. Accessories purchased:
Dealer: Sonia Motors All set for delivery Dual seat looks good too Ownership Experience Have completed 550 KMS so far, here's my take: Likes:
Dislikes:
The bike definitely is a head turner. People unfailingly give it a second look, enquire about the price, want to know the mileage and sometimes even overtake you on their scooter just to give a thumbs-up (true story). Front View. Looks good in rear view mirrors too! Headlight works better than expected Cockpit Instrument cluster has everything you need The thumper Brakes Front: Brembo, notice steel braided brake lines Brakes Rear: Bybre, notice steel braided brake lines Paioli shocks Left side view. That's my Baleno in the background. Right side view Looks good from the back as well Blast from the past. Period inspired tail light. First Service I was really looking forward to the first service. Keeping the bike below 60 KMPH and taking ten minutes break every hour requires will power of a monk! The experience was decent enough. Was asked if I wanted oil additive added and chain cleaned and lubed (instead of simple greasing), said yes to both. Here's the cost breakup: Chain Lubing: Rs 168.54 /- Oil Filter: Rs 93 /- Engine Oil (2.50 liter): Rs 772.51 /- Oil Additive: Rs 270 /- (really curious to know what this is, I was told its a coolant) Consumable: Rs 50 /- (read as: we don't know what was used but are going to charge you 50 bucks anyway. This is a money making trick every workshop religiously follow) Whew! can finally take the bike to 90 KMPH, feels liberating. Relaxing atop Kasara Ghat One more Random Ramblings The sales folk hardly seem to make an effort to sell Continental at all! I was told it's only good for short drives and that the posture results in aching arms and back. These guys are doing Continental and Royal Enfield a great disservice! ODO was set to "Mile" when I took delivery. The dealership folks had no clue how to change it to "KM". Google gave me the answer. Turns out its very easy to switch units. Here's how you do it:
ODO in Miles ODO in KM Am still getting used to kick starting the bike. For practice I manually start the bike at-least once on the days I ride. I installed the bar end mirrors myself, it's fairly straight forward once you figure out how. Initially I ended up removing the bar-end weights, bad idea. Screwing it back on turned out to be an adventure in itself! Hint: You don't remove the bar-end weights. The orifice of the mirror "handle" is large enough for the bar weight to slide through. Bar End Mirrors Now that the old mirrors are gone, I am looking for some blanking nuts to plug the hole. Enfield do not provide the plugs, let me know if you guys know of something suitable and not weird looking like a Trishul or Gadha! Have put Anti-Puncture Fluid in both tubes, cost me Rs 1600 /-. I wish Kawasaki introduces W800 someday. Would love to own one. @arulpeem,@gopalmg: Your reviews helped in my decision process. Thank you. @neil.jericho: Special callout to Neil for taking out the time to upload all those photos I asked for. Thank you. Parting shot Last edited by sumithb : 4th April 2015 at 03:15. |
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4th April 2015, 23:24 | #2 |
Distinguished - BHPian | re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Note from Mod : Thread moved from Assembly Line to Motorbikes Section. Thanks for sharing |
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The following BHPian Thanks mobike008 for this useful post: | sumithb |
4th April 2015, 23:42 | #3 |
BHPian | Congrats Sumith! This is a lovely lovely bike and is the only Royal Enfield that I desire to own someday. And guess in which color...yes, has to be yellow! 😊 I wish you many many happy miles with the GT and hope you've already invested in a good set of riding gears. Keep revvin! |
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The following BHPian Thanks Porschefire for this useful post: | sumithb |
4th April 2015, 23:47 | #4 |
BHPian | re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT 'Find your cafe, we have built a racer.' Congrats on buying an iconic British motorcycle. Wish you miles of joyful and safe thumping. The Conti is a perfect blend of tech and heritage. You really feel like you are back in the 60's. The beast looks the part in yellow. RE bikes are not that hard to maintain. You just need a very good understanding with your bike and you should pamper her occasionally. What your friend told about the GT is absolutely correct. The GT is not at all a Bullet, and it should not be mistaken as one. Have heard much about the rorty after market exhaust from RE. Can you please post a video of the exhaust note? Ride safe. Gear up before you do so. And never try to hit the 'magical ton.' |
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5th April 2015, 22:08 | #5 | ||
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| re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
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I do intend to hit the 'magical ton', in KMPH Last edited by sumithb : 5th April 2015 at 22:12. | ||
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6th April 2015, 18:21 | #6 | ||||
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
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Congrats on the new ride and welcome to the family! | ||||
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The following BHPian Thanks Tushar for this useful post: | sumithb |
6th April 2015, 21:53 | #7 | |
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
Quality: I'll put this across two dimensions:
Reliability: Time would be the judge for this. I expect to tighten screws now and then, hoping it would not require anything else other than normal maintenance. | |
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7th April 2015, 11:02 | #8 | ||||||||
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT The tribe increases, good to see another ownership thread of the under rated Continental GT here on TBHP. I hope you will keep it updated and share your ownership experiences with the rest of us. I was smiling while reading your post as it mirrored a lot of my own thoughts, doubts and overall mindset. Quote:
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The cost breakup of the service is as follows (all costs including tax) Labour - Rs 112.36 Oil Filter - Rs 93 Dual Seat Assembly - Rs 4150 Footpegs ( Rs 219 each x2) – Rs 438 Flanged Hex Nut (Rs 6 each x2) – Rs 12 Total amount – Rs 4805 I had taken the engine oil so that is missing from my list. You should check with them on the oil additive and coolant. For chain cleaning and lubing, I suggest you get yourself a can of each from Motul. It will come to Rs 1100 for both and you can periodically clean and lube the chain yourself. Its the easiest DIY task. Always glad to help. The thread calls for more pictures! | ||||||||
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The following BHPian Thanks neil.jericho for this useful post: | sumithb |
7th April 2015, 13:08 | #9 | |||
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
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7th April 2015, 20:03 | #10 | |
BHPian Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Cochin
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Congrats on your purchase, wish you many many miles on this beauty. 2nd yellow GT here on t-bhp I think. Didn't they ask you if you wanted it in black? I thought it was on offer currently. How's the performance exhaust? Looks just a bit different from the stock exhaust doesn't it, I thought RE woulda designed a megafone or something. O.T Quote:
Regards BOV | |
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The following BHPian Thanks B O V for this useful post: | sumithb |
7th April 2015, 21:38 | #11 | ||||||
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
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Normal, the reflection remains stable at 90 KMPH (haven't gone beyond this speed). The stock mirrors are fashion accessories above 40 KMPH. Quote:
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I do plan to lube the chain myself (do it for my cycle). The workshop guys did not wipe the excess lube off and was spewed all over the place, including my clothes, rear rims and tail light on my way back from the service Yes, plan to. Have already ordered it. Quote:
Third actually, Niel's, Gopalmg's and mine, I have been keeping count. Quote:
It does look very similar to the stock exhaust, just shorter and a tad more up-sweapt. I like it, has a nice throaty growl at low speeds and becomes less obvious as you speed up (perfect for those long rides). Have attached a link to the exhaust note in one of the post above. Last edited by sumithb : 7th April 2015 at 21:39. | ||||||
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8th April 2015, 17:36 | #12 | |||
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
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I asked them about it during the last service. They said that during the initial services, the labour is at a discounted rate. One I run through these coupons, the labour will be charged at its normal rate which I believe was Rs 500 odd. I am surprised that there is this inconsistency in charging for labour, may be its worth exploring. Quote:
I think they are discouraging owners from bringing their own engine oil as they have those big barrels of oil on which their margins are pretty high. Ouch, must've been messy. Last edited by neil.jericho : 8th April 2015 at 17:39. | |||
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3rd May 2015, 23:55 | #13 |
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT 1000 KM Update Crossed the 1000 KM mark couple of weeks back. It's been fun. Have started to get hang of the bike, doesn't feel as heavy as it did initially. In other news my Enfield dealer is gonna write me a cheque of Rs 1000 /-. Wait what? Isn't this supposed to work the other way round? Whoever heard of a dealer paying a customer! Well here's what happened. The total amount I paid to the dealer was Rs 2,22777 /- The paper work I received were as follows: Invoice Value: Rs 2,02916 /- Tax: Rs 12,668 /- Registration Of Motorcycle: Rs 60 /- RC Delivery Charges: Rs 50 /- Insurance: Rs 4244 /- Total: Rs 2,19938 /- So as you see, I do not have a receipt for Rs 2839. I know these guys take some money to grease the RTO/Agent (Maharashtra is supposed to be agent free!). However, the dealer was not transparent about this. Wrote to Enfield. Couple of days later the dealer calls to inform me that I have been charged Rs 1000 extra due to calculation error (and they take Rs 2000/- as RTO/Agent charges). Wonder how the "calculation error" is possible when the price list clearly says Rs 2,22777 Anyways, the cheque is ready, need to go to the dealership to pick it up. |
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7th May 2015, 23:39 | #14 | |
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
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8th May 2015, 19:24 | #15 | ||
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| Re: Me, myself and the Enfield Continental GT Quote:
However, I would also like to add that in the multiple communications I have had with Enfield nobody from the Company has contacted me directly, it has always been the Dealer. So either the Dealer is very proactive or Enfield have the Dealer on tight leash. Either way, my respect for the brand has gone up a notch. Quote:
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