[HandfulOfHell]

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

The first pic of the Baker Express, I found on Instagram, and that person has taken delivery of the bike in December last year, and claims to be the first Baker Express colour on road - quite possible actually. But he has also posted a picture of an Interceptor with a blank and completely white fuel tank - which means the red coloured portion is just a sticker - much like the Royal Enfield logo on the tank.

Can you tag or post that pic here? A red sticker job will definitely start showing its true colours sooner than later!

Originally Posted by BANDHAV

I so agree with you on this, the photographs don't do justice to the presence of this bike. It looks so much better in person. There was this Ice Queen GT displayed at showroom. Interceptor looks pretty pedestrian in front of GT.

If the handlebar option from Interceptor become feasible then my choice would be Ice Queen white GT only.

I do agree with you that I felt that the GT had better presence than the Interceptor. However, most showrooms had GT in the Ice Queen colour scheme ( Black rims, Black mirrors, more aggression) but the Interceptor next to it was in Black or Orange. I wonder how the Interceptor in Baker Express would look next to the GT in Ice Queen

Originally Posted by pramods

Last week I saw a GT535 modified to have "normal" handlerbar and everything "as is". Old GT position was more committed than 650, nonetheless the bike seems very comfortable with "normal" handlerbar.

Yes the change calls for lot of changes, but they would be bolt on replacement from interceptor as there is possibly no change in the chassis and steering angle.


-Pramod

When I first read about someone wanting to replace the GT's handlebar with the INT's, I thought it wasn't a good idea. But this has slowly started to grow on me! I have test ridden both bikes a few times and While I've booked the INT, I always came away smiling after the GT ride - it just felt good. I only reason I opted against it was the committed riding posture not being suitable for longish weekend rides (my primary purpose) but this modification may actually work well.

I also found this video on YT where a CGT 535 has been modified to use a more upright handlebar and I think it kind of looks ok!

https://youtu.be/uRBcoi_SdUU

What do you think?


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[Sebring]

Hey Buddy, Thanks for sharing this mod with us. It had the opposite effect on me. The handlebar just doesn't gel with the GT I feel. This is partly because of the tank length and sloping down nature. Glad I saw this! Can't thank you enough.

Originally Posted by HandfulOfHell

When I first read about someone wanting to replace the GT's handlebar with the INT's, I thought it wasn't a good idea. But this has slowly started to grow on me

[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by HandfulOfHell

Can you tag or post that pic here? A red sticker job will definitely start showing its true colours sooner than later!

I somehow feel a sticker job will still last long - all the Classics we see around have the tank logo in the form of a vinyl only, and I haven't come across peeled vinyls on any RE, unless done deliberately. But nothing like a factory finished paint - it would have gone a long way in getting the 'feel' right.

This was the image I was referring to -

[raghu_gg]

Originally Posted by Sabby-069

Anyone has info on this?

Yes this is true, I got my Orange crush a week back, I did enquire about S&S and the company executive ( Not the service manager ) Said S&S current exhaust planned is taken back due to lacking noise compliance to indian standards.

[zenx]

On the FB group, reading some owners' reports around the time of the first service is a little disconcerting. Issues raised so far

- unreliable/inaccurate fuel gauge - this is apparently a carry over from earlier REs. My CBRs isn't linear either, but fairly consistent. Not a deal breaker, of course, but it's 2019
- some kind of sound from the T-stem or floating discs. Again, no biggie but one's curious what this is about.
- One person had a gear oil leak - and had the o-ring for the gear position sensor replaced. One offs can happen, of course.
- A different person has reported heating after the 1st service, and a "clunky" shifting between 1-N-2. Others have reported some trouble with neutral hunting, though in all my test rides I did not perceive that as out of the ordinary compared to other bikes I've ridden.
- Wind blast at 3 digit speeds. I did feel this but it did not bother me much on a short ride. Someone mentioned that the RE shorter windshield actually made it worse. Hoping that aftermarket ones will solve that.

Many have done 600 km rides, and were all praise for the bike over distances, and at highway speeds. Very encouraging.

I'm looking at this bike (booked, delivery likely end Feb) as a highway tourer. These are certainly niggles, and not very widespread - but would love to know from current owners before taking the delivery. Of course, the positive stories get told less often, one understands.

[thumpmeister]

Wouldn't replacing the GT's handlebar with the INT's handlebar change the basic character of the cafe racer, ergonimics apart. Might as well buy the INT 650 in that case in my opinion.

[param22k]

Had an extended test ride of the GT for 3 days. This machine has grown on me. I'm big - 6'2" | 85kgs - so initially I wasn't very comfortable with the riding position. Leaning forward, a lot of the body weight came on my arms and shoulders. This made handling tough as my hands were under continuous stress. Only after a day or so I found a comfortable posture. The key was, hugging the tank tight with my knees so that they would support my body. This took the pressure off my upper body. After that the GT was absolute fun. High speed handling - above 100kmph - was exceptional. If anyone is seriously considering buying the GT but worried about the riding posture, I would urge them to full day test ride it a couple of times at least and then make up their mind. My initial impression of the GT was the same as most reviewers, amazing fun for short dashes but not practical for long rides. My perspective has completely changed after 3 days of riding. Now I would consider interceptor only for relative comfort in bumper to bumper city traffic and pillion practicality. Irrespective, GT is a dream machine indeed.

By the way, I'm not sure of the stock pirellis. They're great on smooth highway stretches, but suspect on patch-worked roads. Especially when you shift lanes off the slightly raised edge of a patch. The tyres lose traction ever so slightly causing a little, though manageable, wobble.

[aravind.anand]

Finally took the test ride, after almost 2 months since I booked the Interceptor. I am not going to repeat all the general comments that most of us have observed and also agreed upon. So here is how the overall experience went...

I visited Rudraa Motors at Arumbakkam, Chennai after calling and confirming with them for a 'long' test ride 2 days ago, and the showroom experience was brilliant - definitely the best showroom experience I have come across, even compared to all the car showrooms I have visited so far in my life. The registration process was quick and efficient and in about 5 minutes, I was all set to get riding.



Interceptor 650:

First up was the Interceptor in Silver Spectre shade which looked very discreet. So discreet in fact that I missed noticing this motorcycle that was right beside the showroom entrance I just walked into!
Thumbed the starter and the emotions that all the reviews and test ride impressions was echoing through my mind too.

- Using the horn creates a buzz on the handle bar - some sort of reverberation.
- Hardly 5 kms and 10 minutes into the ride, I adapted to the foot peg position and I started placing my foot ahead of the pegs, so problem sorted
- Clutch lever was slightly on the heavier side and over the test ride duration I started noticing the additional effort required
- While taking U-turns the outer arm had to really stretch-out and actuating the clutch lever while at that extreme position was a little bothersome
- Wind blast at 3-digit speeds made me realize how much my CBR has been protecting me during my highway rides - wonder if the long fly screen accessory would solve this issue

Continental GT 650:

Came back and swapped the keys for the Continental GT 650 and headed back to the parking once again. The bike felt a little bit more difficult to pull it from the side stand as compared to the Interceptor - maybe because the higher and wider handle bars offer a much better leverage compared to the sportier clip-on handle bars.

- The GT felt lively from the word go, and I was definitely feeling much easier to connect with this Cafe racer derivative, as the position was closer to my CBR. However the foot pegs were a tad more rear set, so the ergonomics was also a tad bit more aggressive
- The bike for some weird reason sounded much better than the Interceptor with a deeper rumble. The sensation while riding between cars in traffic was phenomenal - I finally got that 'twin cylinder' sound and feel!
- This particular bike had some issue with the gear lever and changing gears was definitely not a pleasant experience - I notified this with the dealership after the test ride.
- The GT 650 is certainly much more fun to ride around and was also attracting much more attention from riders and general public. The Interceptor in comparison was not noticed by anybody at all.

This screw right on top of the headlamp housing was such a bothersome sight for me. I was constantly bothered by this, and the fact that it was a rusty bolt was adding fuel to the fire


Though the mirrors offered a really good view of what was behind and stayed vibe free for most of the ride, I couldn't help but notice the left mirror was starting to deteriorate from the inside - bad quality?


If you notice carefully, there is very slight peeling on the right mirror too, but I actually sneaked this image to show myself with our T-BHP jacket on me!


Made this gif image now to show how difficult it is to get the side stand down while still sitting on the Interceptor's saddle! Leg twisting is necessary to get this done. Simpler way would be get off the bike and then get the stand down I suppose.

[navpreet318]

I feel the footpegs need to be further forward on the interceptor. In fact it would be the first thing to change whenever I go in for one. Easier said than done though.

Handle needs to be higher and backward. Would need risers as well as a wider handlebar for me.

Next would be a nice sounding exhaust. Not the likes of what have been heard so far.

And the tires. They definitely need a change.

All personal feels. Let's see when I get my hands onto one and get down to this work.
Also why are the forks mounted an inch above the triple clamp? I would want to slide them down to the triple clamp level. Would raise the front a bit and I feel the front stance might improve.

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

This was the image I was referring to -

Attachment 1836084

The dealer where I get my Himalayan serviced has delivered a baker express last week. The Red stripe is indeed a painting and not a sticker. It also has a golden strip In paint.

The colour combination looks ok but many felt that RE Monogram is a size bigger. Have not seen it myself but this is what I heard.

So will reserve my comments only when I see, but the strips are actually painted and is not a sticker except for monogram.

[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by ku69rd

The dealer where I get my Himalayan serviced has delivered a baker express last week. The Red stripe is indeed a painting and not a sticker. It also has a golden strip In paint.

The colour combination looks ok but many felt that RE Monogram is a size bigger. Have not seen it myself but this is what I heard.

So will reserve my comments only when I see, but the strips are actually painted and is not a sticker except for monogram.

That is good news then. Since the monogram is a decal anyway, if the owner finds it too large, then maybe it can be removed and a smaller custom decal from a nearby shop can take its place. I am actually falling in love with the Ravishing Red colour option, but since my garage already has two red bikes, I do not want to add yet another red motorcycle.

Edit: Then what about the white bike with red and gold stickers that has been sold to a guy already? Could it be a case of test bike being sold to an unsuspecting customer?

[Saint_Krish]

Awesome review.. which got me to this thread. The test ride today which also made me open tbhp today again.
One thing which I couldn't find this mentioned seriously in many of the threads though are the tube tires. I felt this is a scary proposition since the bike is really capable of going way above 120 kmph pretty easily. A tire burst at this speed just sounds scary. When i talked to the SA, he did mention about some liquid (the puncture sealant fluid i presume) being pushed into the tubes even without customers asking for it.
My question here is if it is really scary to have tube tires? Can we easily swap the tires to tube ones? The owners can answer this i guess. It can be deal breaker for me since my wife, who is also an equally good rider, is totally taken aback by tube tires!

Oh and my review.. well this interceptor 650 is a really smooth operator! I am impressed!

[raghu_gg]

Originally Posted by ku69rd

The dealer where I get my Himalayan serviced has delivered a baker express last week. The Red stripe is indeed a painting and not a sticker. It also has a golden strip In paint.

The colour combination looks ok but many felt that RE Monogram is a size bigger. Have not seen it myself but this is what I heard.

So will reserve my comments only when I see, but the strips are actually painted and is not a sticker except for monogram.

This is at Lalbagh HSR correct? I saw that too.

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by Saint_Krish

My question here is if it is really scary to have tube tires? Can we easily swap the tires to tube ones?

Oh and my review.. well this interceptor 650 is a really smooth operator! I am impressed!

Hello,
You have lot of options in the market today where you can change the rims to accomodate the tubeless tire setup. You have solutions going up to a Lakh to make it fool proof.
However I would suggest you to buy the bike use it as is and then make up your mind based on your experiences. Tube and tubeless on a motorcycle both have their advantages and disadvantages. But a majority will depend on where you ride, if your riding pattern is more on paved roads then the tubeless setup will be better. If it is spread evenly across, I would retain the existing setup for a good trial of 2-3 years before i decide to go for a tubeless setup.
Less of paved roads means the tube tire is better anyday. I know many people on their versys have been there done that with their tubeless.

@aravind.anand, Am really not sure on that setup. Trying to get a few closeup photos so that you can see what i got to see via photos.

[tharian]

Got to use an Interceptor for the weekend and took it out for a short ride as well on the outskirts on a mix of roads.
Did a total of 250 kms in city traffic, jams, expressways, winding state highways and a hill climb.

My take;
-Cruising at 70-80 kmph is very relaxing because of the almost nil NVH.
-Sweet spot for cruising was 100-110 kmph.
-Engine heating was not bothersome, but could be felt at times.
-Loved the stock exhaust note, it supposedly gets better over time. The bike I used had run 1500 kms and had the perfect note for a twin.
-It munches miles easily. I had no idea of the distance covered until I got back.
- The torque is the highlight. Although the hill climb was a slow one because of heavy traffic, I could feel how effortless it was on this bike.

-The seat is a complete no go. I rode for couple of hours at a stretch and I had pain on my backside the kind I have never experienced before on any bike. At times, I shifted to the centre of the seat to get some relief.
-The front footpegs position caused some cramps at the beginning, would have been perfect if it was a bit forward placed.The sitting position tends to make you slouch as well.
-The rear is not suitable for a tall pillion for long, for short people, it is fine, but the seat is short in length. They should have made straight pipes for the Interceptor, or lessened the angle of the up-swept exhaust.
- The shocks felt soft , especially with a pillion, but on very bad roads it felt like a typical Bullet.
-There is a light thud sound from the handle cone at times.
-The gearshifts are something which I felt the same on a brand new GT as well as this. Neutral to first was clunky, almost 50% of a HD clunk. Rest of the upshifts were smooth. The annoying part was the downshifts. At times, it just did not shift. If I rev match while downshifting, it never shifted. If I downshift quickly, at times it did not fall into the gear I thought it was. I had to release the clutch lever a bit and then there was light clunk from the gearbox and it fell into gear. This was especially during crawling speeds. At one time I had to come to a complete stop on the highway and I tried downshifting while slowing down and it did not shift. I ended up stopped in the middle of the road and had to release the clutch a bit each time I shifted and finally came to first. Thankfully there was no traffic behind me.
Towards the end, I started shifting down in quick succession without leaving the clutch and that seemed to work right.

The gearing is long from what I felt, which makes you down shift in slow speeds, to avoid jerking. And 6th gear at high rpms don't feel like the top gear either. It is good at the same times and annoying otherwise because of searching for another gear.

Like on the GT, I didn't feel like pushing this. On an empty stretch, I did open up from slow speed and it was quite quick in that.

Overall, if not for the price, the bike would not have felt worth it.
I would still wait it out for a purchase.