[ebonho]

Originally Posted by surjaonwheelz

In this form, it just looks like RE's answer to the CB350! No?

Are you part of the current generation of Roadshakers?

You seem to be pretty clued into all things RE.

Cheers, Doc

[aravind.anand]

I saw a new RE motorcycle with an engine that resembled the one on the Himalayan. It had very similar street stance, and a nice throaty exhaust note. It did not have these Interceptor tail lamps though.

IMHO, the tail lamps and rear fender from the Interceptor could possibly be just surrogate parts while the tools for the real parts are still being developed.

[surjaonwheelz]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Are you part of the current generation of Roadshakers?

You seem to be pretty clued into all things RE.

No Doc, just that I owned only RE bikes without much expectations from them. RE gave me an opportunity to buy a VFM twin, it's not perfect but enough for me. That's the personal aspect as I've experienced RE hence into RE things!

I would like to be a critic though. RE seems to have the upper hand with lager capacity bikes and the only homegrown manufacturer without any footprint in the commuter segment. Their success story are now MBA lessons.

They've a lot of potential for the future. RE is playing it safe though! Waiting for RE to exceed expectations.

/surjaonwheelz

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by surjaonwheelz

No Doc, just that I owned only RE bikes without much expectations from them. RE gave me an opportunity to buy a VFM twin, it's not perfect but enough for me. That's the personal aspect as I've experienced RE hence into RE things!

I would like to be a critic though. RE seems to have the upper hand with lager capacity bikes and the only homegrown manufacturer without any footprint in the commuter segment. Their success story are now MBA lessons.

They've a lot of potential for the future. RE is playing it safe though! Waiting for RE to exceed expectations.

/surjaonwheelz

They should stick to larger capacity bikes in my opinion.

With their technology, cubic capacity is a necessity.

20 bhp from a 350 cc, then how much from a 150?

I don't think India is ready for that.

Not for a few decades at least.

Till fossil fuels last.

Maybe electric is the future for them. Start from a clean slate.

Cheers, Doc

[rajeshkmoorthy]

Came across an Interceptor 650 (BS6) being tested in Chennai. Saw this at around 2 PM on ECR. Spoke to the rider (he said that he was part of the Meteor testing and was asking me about my Meteor 350's performance and suspensions etc) and he mentioned that there is a Meteor being tested now with the Interceptor engine and twin exhausts. He showed me the bike while it was crossing the place where we were standing.

I couldn't catch much about the bike except that I noted the Twin exhausts, low slung seats and raised handlebars. The bike looked more like a Harley than an RE. He couldn't reveal any more details even after my request.

The enclosed images were of the BS6 Interceptor 650 that he rode.

[playingpossum]

Originally Posted by ebonho

They should stick to larger capacity bikes in my opinion.

With their technology, cubic capacity is a necessity.

20 bhp from a 350 cc, then how much from a 150?

I don't think India is ready for that.

Looking at previous sales figures, and the 350s (with its measly 19-20hp) being its biggest seller, my conclusion is that people are not looking for performance or even touring capabilities from RE but rather a style statement or a status symbol.

With that assumption, I think a 250 with 15-ish horsepower at a lower price will likely still sell as a fashion accessory because it's an RE. But can RE go down that route without diluting its brand is a different question.

[IntoTheStorm]

I think RE is doing the right thing.
- From a strategy point of view its better to have different body styles for different customers and also it provides better platform utilisation
- Think about the days when owning a twin cylinder motorcycle used to be an aspirational stuff - Introduction of 650 twins had brought that affordability equation into the game - Even honda is trying to bring an affordable twin into Indian Market.
- Not all customers want outright performance, some of us are looking for motorcycles that provides some sort of relaxed ride feel while covering 100s of Kms comfortably ( my case : I had Duke 200, R15s, Dominar 400 and even used a INT 650 for few months - now bored of all this and booked a Meteor 350, Might get a Meteor 650 after few years)
- While CB350 is a very good product I still feel that RE did a better job with Meteor, as it feels like a complete p oduct compared to CB350 . Honda need to bring more bigwing dealerships and also need to work on some rough edges such as Bluetooth navigation that only offers voice guidance (!!)

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by playingpossum

Looking at previous sales figures, and the 350s (with its measly 19-20hp) being its biggest seller, my conclusion is that people are not looking for performance or even touring capabilities from RE but rather a style statement or a status symbol.

With that assumption, I think a 250 with 15-ish horsepower at a lower price will likely still sell as a fashion accessory because it's an RE. But can RE go down that route without diluting its brand is a different question.

Love the words deployed.

Fashion accessory.

That's what the RE community morphed into.

From the Rider Mania in 2004 with 300 hardcore Bulleteers who knew one another across the country.

To the faceless hundreds of thousands today over the past 10 years.

Progress ....

Cheers, Doc

[playingpossum]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Love the words deployed.

Fashion accessory.

That's what the RE community morphed into.

The thing is, despite how the RE brand has become more of a style statement, I still like their current range. Even the under-stressed 350s - which I think suits a cruiser. But I think if they want to make an Interceptor style motorcycle with a smaller engine - then they need more power out of it.

[karanddd]

Originally Posted by ebonho

And what is "par for the course" about a 20 bhp 350 cc man? Or a 47 bhp 650 cc twin pray tell? We must be serving parallel courses because these numbers are from another century ...

There is a guy who I've ridden a lot with. Hardcore biker. He's here and silent ....

He has seen both the Meteor and the CB 350 in the flesh. The fit and finish of the CB 350 is per him far superior even to this much improved RE launch. Its not only about the numbers. That's never the full story.

A 20 bhp 350 cc RE? Atrocious numbers.

A 20 bhp 350 cc Honda? Oh numbers aren't everything.



As for the opinion of the silent, hardcore biker, it's just one guy's opinion, and in any case, I don't think riding bikes qualifies anyone to become a particularly fine judge of fit and finish. You talk as if these are rare bikes. Plenty of publications and customers have gotten to see and ride both bikes. If the quality difference between the two was indeed night and day, I think we'd have heard about that from others. Not just that, people wouldn't be buying the Meteor the way they are.

I trust people who are parting with their hard-earned money to know, by and large, what they are doing. The Honda and the RE are both pretty solid bikes, and what appeals to one may not appeal to the other. But it's quite obvious that neither of them is obviously superior to the other.

As for whether 20 bhp is enough, that's a whole different debate. Retro bikes, across segments, seem to offer about 50-70% of the power for the same price (compared to the equivalent naked/sport bike). The Mojo and the 200 and 250 Dukes are roughly in the price range of these two bikes, and put out 28-30ish horsepower, so the proportion makes sense. You sacrifice power for looks and style, as is the case when you buy, say, a Bonneville over a Street Triple, or a W800 over a Ninja.

Sure 25 bhp would be great, but 20 bhp is cheaper to engineer, mass manufacture, ensure reliability etc. If you want more, spend more. If you care about (retro) looks or style at all, and have only Rs. 2 lakh to spend, you have a few options, but the best two are the new RE and the new Honda. No wonder they are selling well. If Kawasaki or KTM or Bajaj or Hero can make a retro-styled, "cool" bike that offers significantly more performance for the same money, we'd all love that, but chances of that, I'm sure we can agree, are very low.

[maheshm619]

Originally Posted by playingpossum

Looking at previous sales figures, and the 350s (with its measly 19-20hp) being its biggest seller, my conclusion is that people are not looking for performance or even touring capabilities from RE but rather a style statement or a status symbol.

My relative recently brought home the meteor. His requirement was occasional short rides and office commute. His age and physique wished for a relaxed bike with no requirement of mad acceleration.

Honda was out of equation due to their showroom strategy and lesser intent to sell. For his requirement the meteor is a good choice. And personally having rode the same, I’m impressed about the improvement RE has carried over from Interceptor range. The bike is pretty relaxed and has one of the best seating in this price range.

Not everyone who rides a bike is into cross country touring or drag races or bike weeks. Some just minds their business and chugs along.

Originally Posted by karanddd

I trust people who are parting with their hard-earned money to know, by and large, what they are doing. The Honda and the RE are both pretty solid bikes, and what appeals to one may not appeal to the other. But it's quite obvious that neither of them is obviously superior to the other.
.

You echo my thoughts. Some people are thick skulled to respect other’s choices and judge products without even caring to try them out. They consider themselves to be purists and others to be sheep. But then, everyone has their opinion.

[playingpossum]

Originally Posted by maheshm619

My relative recently brought home the meteor. His requirement was occasional short rides and office commute. His age and physique wished for a relaxed bike with no requirement of mad acceleration.

Honda was out of equation due to their showroom strategy and lesser intent to sell. For his requirement the meteor is a good choice. And personally having rode the same, I’m impressed about the improvement RE has carried over from Interceptor range. The bike is pretty relaxed and has one of the best seating in this price range.

Not everyone who rides a bike is into cross country touring or drag races or bike weeks. Some just minds their business and chugs along.

I have no issues with RE's newer range of models (Meteor is a lovely update to the 350s, the 650 twins are brilliant, the Himalayan is rather handsome as well). Neither do I have any issue with any of their riders. I am looking to become one in a few years. As a leisure vehicle for gentle weekend rides - REs still make a lot of sense.

But the fact remains that RE is becoming a fashion statement and a style statement - and I think RE sees this (see the MIY and the apparel stores). RE knows that their vintage-style motorcycles have a hipster-ish charm, hence their branding is focused on that at the moment. Nothing inherently wrong with that *in moderation*. After all, we all do want to feel like we're really cool when riding!

I'm looking at RE, and hoping it doesn't go down to the Harley Davidson route, becoming a fashion brand with a motorcycle side business. Harley tried so hard to appeal to a younger market, and alienated a lot of their core audience. Whether RE keep trying to get into newer markets without alienating the core Bulleteer audience, that is the question.

But I want to see RE trying to go down the Triumph route. Hinckley Triumph managed to a classic line going for its core audience, and managed to create a separate line-up of motorcycles to appeal to a newer audience.

Know of a few people who dislike everything from the UCE era on but were intrigued by the 650s. I think RE needs more in that side of the range.

Going downwards with 250s, RE would be facing stiff competition and would only rely on brand value and style statements to pull people. So a low power RE 250 is more likely to sell as a fashion accessory rather than on its merits.

To what extent RE can make it work is a different question.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by playingpossum

The thing is, despite how the RE brand has become more of a style statement, I still like their current range. Even the under-stressed 350s - which I think suits a cruiser. But I think if they want to make an Interceptor style motorcycle with a smaller engine - then they need more power out of it.

Going by generations of motorcycle history and wisdom, when you do a simple rebore of a single, the power output is usually less than what a normal similar capacity engine would develop had it been designed ground up.

The std 350 and the std 500.

Similarly, when you make a single pot from a twin, the power does not get halved. It's usually less than half. Quite a lot less.

So if a 650 develops a whopping 47 bhp, then the single that comes out of that platform is going to be in comfortable RE territory.

But you will be able to customize it.

And buy customized gear and merchandise.

And buy into the carefully nurtured bromance. And you tube sob videos of why xyz model gets do much hate.

So all's well.

Cheers, Doc

[jeepster]

Dirt-inspired 650 twin scrambler/tracker spied in UK

A new street-tracking naked version of Royal Enfield’s 650 twin range looks almost ready to go into production.

These covert pictures were taken by an MCN reader, who spotted the machine – sporting unfamiliar lines, a lack of badging and running on a trade registration plate – on the on the M5 near Exeter.

Appearing to be powered by the same air-cooled 648cc parallel twin as the existing Interceptor and Continental GT – albeit with a new single-exit exhaust – the bike follows reports of two new 650 models being added to the range.

The cruiser is expected to sit as a ‘big brother’ to the 350 Meteor and will likely be called the Super Meteor. The roadster, meanwhile, could well be called the Constellation– a name previously used by the firm – and this could be the model we’re looking at here.

Where the Super Meteor looks set to receive a low seat and raked-out cruiser frame, this new bike appears more upright, with a roadster-style chassis and even the existing Interceptor’s tank. Another feature also taken from this model is the twin analogue dash setup.

More significant than that though are the new non-adjustable inverted forks, twin seat, black wire wheels and flat tracker style ‘race plate’ side panels. The twin shocks are also different, losing their piggyback adjusters.

The stubby exhaust and new pipe routing could also indicate the measures RE are taking to meet emissions regs.
Indian-owned Royal Enfield now develop most of their models through their Technology Centre at Bruntingthorpe near Leicester, so seeing prototypes on UK roads is not uncommon. Last month another reader spotted an all-new, liquid-cooled adventure bike successor to the Himalayan 401 filling up at a garage in Lutterworth.

Although a ‘scrambler’ style 650 makes sense, a more US-influenced flat track look has traction with Enfield, too. The firm, from their heyday of the 50s and 60s, have a big US following, and are currently contesting the AMA Flattrack race series in partnership with Harris Performance.

Source :motorcyclenews.com

Earlier a cruiser version was spotted which may be closer to launch. https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motor...er-meteor.html


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Note from Mod:

Discussion in new thread here (Royal Enfield 650cc Scrambler spied testing in the UK ahead of unveil)