[Rennjit]

/snip/ - it's all from the stargazer's dictionary. Sounds ridiculous all together though!
... .

Yup, very truly so when considering the mediocre quality nature of products they make. The designs are good but the execution is plain pathetic. May be the name of Farm tools would be more relatable
No offense, just an opinion from someone who has been riding their dinosaurs for almost 2 decades.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Rennjit

Yup, very truly so when considering the mediocre quality nature of products they make. The designs are good but the execution is plain pathetic. May be the name of Farm tools would be more relatable
No offense, just an opinion from someone who has been riding their dinosaurs for almost 2 decades.

Another 2-decader agrees wholeheartedly with you.

Someone in Chennai has gone to Kodai and gotten back a big haul of some of their most famous agricultural produce.

In galactic terms, this would be the slowest meteor known to science.

The old joke among Bulleteers is that if RE could increase bhp and top speed like the number of engines they churn out, we would be having 200+ fireballs right now.

Instead 120 is still their wheezy top speed ... slope and tailwind cooperating.

The only fireball being the one that threatens to come out through the tank when you try and coax it beyond 120.

And ever make the noob mistake of holding it there.

Its like summitting Mount Everest. Every second you spend on top you are dying. So get on top, plant your flag, and come quickly back down without dawdling ...

Cheers, Doc

[Arjun Bharadwaj]

With improvement in technology, new emission norms, new competition that was never there earlier from brands such as Honda - RE will be forced to pick up their game.

Not in just making a vibration free engine but an overall reliable bike with improved QUALITY all round - finer aspects such as ergonomics, wiring, weld quality, ease of maintenance are equally important and will play a differentiating factor when new customers need to choose.

The thump which was a differentiator is anyway gone now due to new norms and the new generation who need a classic looking bike would rather go for the hassle free brand.

Always happy to be proven wrong by an Indian brand which can exceed expectations and match benchmarks. May the "Royal" breed survive and thrive.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Arjun Bharadwaj

With improvement in technology, new emission norms, new competition that was never there earlier from brands such as Honda - RE will be forced to pick up their game.

Not in just making a vibration free engine but an overall reliable bike with improved QUALITY all round - finer aspects such as ergonomics, wiring, weld quality, ease of maintenance are equally important and will play a differentiating factor when new customers need to choose.

The thump which was a differentiator is anyway gone now due to new norms and the new generation who need a classic looking bike would rather go for the hassle free brand.

Always happy to be proven wrong by an Indian brand which can exceed expectations and match benchmarks. May the "Royal" breed survive and thrive.

The AVL was the first and last new engine developed that still retained the thump. That too by replacing the CV carb with a nice big slide VM and putting on a shorter bottle silencer or a a Goldie in place of the long bazooka (which however was a peach on a long tour ... punchy and silent and soft).

Most old school Bulleteers owned both the std 500 and the AVL 500 and most will say they love the std more for sentimental purist reasons but the AVL was the best allround 500 that RE ever made. With that lovely gearbox.

No other motor sincevthen came close. The UCE is a ghastly characterless boring motor. Sorry but there just isn't anything nice I have to say about it. That's the last RE I owned.

I'll call the lean burn AVLs Bullets for the same reason. Not the Thunderbird's of course. But the Bullet officially died (was killed) post the UCE and everything since.

Cheers, Doc

[Arjun Bharadwaj]

Originally Posted by ebonho

The AVL was the first and last new engine developed that still retained the thump. That too by replacing the CV carb with a nice big slide VM and putting on a shorter bottle silencer or a a Goldie in place of the long bazooka (which however was a peach on a long tour ... punchy and silent and soft).

No other motor sincevthen came close. The UCE is a ghastly characterless boring motor. Sorry but there just isn't anything nice I have to say about it. That's the last RE I owned.

I'll call the lean burn AVLs Bullets for the same reason. Not the Thunderbird's of course. But the Bullet officially died (was killed) post the UCE and everything since.

Cheers, Doc

100% Doc. All the more reason for them to focus on Quality than ever before now that they dont have the precious differentiator.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Arjun Bharadwaj

100% Doc. All the more reason for them to focus on Quality than ever before now that they dont have the precious differentiator.

RE is a very old company. It has its own characteristic DNA. I know personally as riders many of the guys working there. There is a very close connect between RE and Poona and what happens inside, deep inside, is known (and tried) here first. And a lot of the design cues of the newer models have grown as the germs of ideas and raw prototypes on the streets of Poona more than a decade , a decade and a half ago. It's literally like what was done by mechanics and fabricators on one off bikes is now being done by the company.

This story goes back to 2002-2003.

Cheers, Doc

[car love]

The names they have chosen will make you believe that it is a Yamaha R1 rivalling superbike and the reality is

[philipmathen]

Touching on a couple of points mentioned above. I am a new member of the RE family, and own an interceptor. I went for a test ride immediately after the launch and was simply blown away. I put down a deposit that day, but I took 2 years to finally take the plunge precisely because of what happened with the Himalayan.

My take aways:
1. The meteor will outsell the CB despite any minor niggles. (The reach alluded to by others earlier in the thread)
2. Major niggles will mean it is dead in the water. No arguments. But the RE of today seems light years ahead(service quality is still in the 90s though)QC could be better on the twins, but not a deal breaker.
3. RE, all things being equal, is more committed to the Indian market than any other foreign competitor. Honda, in true Japanese fashion, is more of a perfectionist organisation than an agile, market savvy player. They are simply too large to course correct in short time. They are clearly content and can afford to wait it out and slowly increase the big wing reach if the numbers tally. My sense is, under Sid Lal, RE will fight tooth and nail to defend the segment they have created and owned for decades.
4. The larger test is, how many of the bike buyers will plonk money on these bikes from either competitor in these times. Sure, festival demand and novelty will drive an initial spike. But what would happen a year down the line will be interesting. Going by recent numbers, buyers pockets have not taken too bad a dent, but one cannot assume we are out of the woods, overall income wise.

Not out to defend brand RE or otherwise( my first bike was a first batch Karizma), but here, I would put my money on RE coming out on top.

P.S- I really wonder what impact the garish colour schemes would have on the sales. I just couldn’t get my head around those leaked pictures. Hope they look better up close.

[VindyWheels]

They sold too many good looking pathetic products for too long. I just sold a classic 350, even the resale value has plummeted as more people know how bad their bikes are. Even if the new generation ones are good, would take a long while to get acceptance. Competition has been slow so far. Interesting space to watch.

[Manan9876]

Honda did a poor job of making the hness a big wing exclusive product. RE with its larger outreach could grab the market better.

[Sebring]

Honda's chink in the 'CB 350 armour' are the colours. Many from my largish biking community wanted the single tone top end bike which has bluetooth (But prefer to wait till they launch that). Right now it's the base model that has those colours (which a bike in this category ought to have). RE has their colours/minimal decal right. For Honda the lower spec just doesn't make any sense with the paltry Rs 5000 difference. They should have had just one variant with six colours. What was Honda thinking?

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

But why compare with the H'ness?

Isn't the Meteor supposed to be a replacement of the Thunderbird range, and not the Classic range - which the H'ness is positioned against?

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

But why compare with the H'ness?

Isn't the Meteor supposed to be a replacement of the Thunderbird range, and not the Classic range - which the H'ness is positioned against?

Styling wise, the CB 350 might be a direct competition for the Classic/Bullet range but realistically, I don't see the sales number matching. The CB will be attracting the crowd who is willing to spend a bit more than the Classic crowd, who would want a bit of exclusivity - the same customer base which will look at the Meteor.

Originally Posted by Sebring

Honda's chink in the 'CB 350 armour' are the colours. Many from my largish biking community wanted the single tone top end bike which has bluetooth (But prefer to wait till they launch that). Right now it's the base model that has those colours (which a bike in this category ought to have). RE has their colours/minimal decal right. For Honda the lower spec just doesn't make any sense with the paltry Rs 5000 difference. They should have had just one variant with six colours. What was Honda thinking?

A simple wrap job can take care of the paint scheme which might turn out to be garish to some!

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

But why compare with the H'ness?

Isn't the Meteor supposed to be a replacement of the Thunderbird range, and not the Classic range - which the H'ness is positioned against?

Exactly.

The Meteor looks like the Thunderbird. Sloping tank.

People are probably comparing engine specs spurred by all the talk about thump.

The CB is what in the old school classification is called a "standard."

Design wise RE has done a way better job of the leaked shots of the new 650 cruiser than what I've seen of Meteor spy shots, which frankly looks like a Thunderbird, which is something I don't like (not even the original Lightning).

Cheers, Doc

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Exactly.

The Meteor looks like the Thunderbird. Sloping tank.


Cheers, Doc

Hi doc,
How are you doing? Long time anyways good to see you participate.

I would still like to compare both the bikes not from a styling perspective but more of other points.

Engine reliability, vibrations, performance, fit and finish of both the bikes. After all the J platform engine will eventually find its way to the classic along with its chassis.

Confident both bikes will go head to head in terms of pricing which will encourage the average Indian buyer to compare both. Cross shopping in other words.

Meteor has a lot at stake for royal Enfield in the 350cc category and if it augurs well then expect a boom in their share prices.

Indian market is gaining on the maturity level but how many look at the styling angle except for a section of educated people who are minuscule.

They did manage to pull off a beauty with the interceptor (which has its share of compromises like suspension, tires and lackluster console).

So this space will be keenly watched by the guys in Chennai factory.

November 6th is around the corner.