Royal Enfield Bullet - Standard 350 - production to be stopped?

naveenroy · 22nd June 2009, 12:43

Friends at my Bullet club say that the Standard 350 is going the way of the Electra 4S et al - production of this iconic model is going to be stopped!

Has anyone else heard the same? I was hoping that they would somehow manage to keep this model alive from the earlier era! Though it had many problems, well, it is sad to know that production of this motorcycle is going to be stopped.

And I was just planning to get an old '76 model 350 Standard!

Spitfire · 22nd June 2009, 13:10

They had an option, kill it or make it better. They chose the easier way.

Its a bike thats lived its time. Time to move on.

naveenroy · 22nd June 2009, 13:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spitfire

They had an option, kill it or make it better. They chose the easier way.

- true. The real RE way! :(

Its a bike thats lived its time. Time to move on.

Totally agree on that point! Though a little sad!

COUGAR · 22nd June 2009, 15:19

Sad day for indian biking indeed.

I blame it on Bajaj and their flooding the market with plastic trash.

Instead of the macho iron steeds, the streets will soon be filled with queens riding "Gulsars". And instead of the magical thump, all we will get to hear are the farts coming out of the plastic silencers....

sorry for getting emotional... but news like this just breaks our heart. Somebody go out and burn down the Bajaj plant where these toys are made man...! :(

simply_sunny001 · 22nd June 2009, 15:23

What about the parts and service of these old CI engines ?

i have a 4 yr old electra 4s and totally love it and bought for ocassional rides and my bullet has run 10 k till now.

when i bought that i thought i would keep it for next 20-30 yrs.

Now i dont know few years down the line, will i get parts or not ?

COUGAR · 22nd June 2009, 15:25

Well there is a mini-industry out there to meet that market. You get parts for the RD350 even now despite it being out of production for decades now!

and a lot more Bullets have been sold as compared to RD's. so i dont think you should have a problem maintaining ur ol' bull. Anyways bulls are built like tanks man.

Technocrat · 22nd June 2009, 15:29

Quote:

I blame it on Bajaj and their flooding the market with plastic trash.
Instead of the macho iron steeds, the streets will soon be filled with queens riding "Gulsars". And instead of the magical thump, all we will get to hear are the farts coming out of the plastic silencers....

That's a typical Bullet owner crap.

Anyways coming back to topic After all these years I dont understand why they have to pull the plug now. Is it due to the falling sales w.r.t The Electras? can somebody find that out?

Its a classic & they should have retained it I mean they should have atleast one or two proper Bullets in their line up.

Spitfire · 22nd June 2009, 15:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by COUGAR

Instead of the macho iron steeds, the streets will soon be filled with queens riding "Gulsars". And instead of the magical thump, all we will get to hear are the farts coming out of the plastic silencers....

You serious???

Magical thump.. I fell off my chair..

Quote:

Originally Posted by Technocrat

That's a typical Bullet owner crap.

+1. The kind who kill the one's who want to make the bike better.

I think its being phased out because of the emission stuff.

They could have probably sold it for eternity otherwise.

rjstyles69 · 22nd June 2009, 15:44

Aye aye looks like I just got lucky and if this is true then a few years down the line I would have a vintage at my disposal

. BTW just picked up an Electra 4s.

Technocrat · 22nd June 2009, 15:51

Well from what I know the Classics & Electras are quite different & a true Blue Bulleteer doesn't consider anything apart from the Classics to be a true Bullet

COUGAR · 22nd June 2009, 16:03

actually there 12 things that make a bullet a bullet: like "Khopdi", box filter and so on...so the electra is still very much a bullet!

if you knowck of the CI engine from the orig list of 12, then the AVL powered Machismo is also a bullet!

But then anything that comes out of the Royal Enfield factory spells class, while the "stuff" that comes out of bajaj is just, well a Bajaj: too "middle class". :P

Technocrat · 22nd June 2009, 16:08

I dont know man I was once in an all Bullet meet & some of the Bulleteers were teasing the Electra & TB owners that they ride RE bikes & not Bullets.

Anyways lets stick to the topic on the closure of the classic 350.

@coughar- It will help a lot of us if you keep your Bullet fan fare & Bajaj bashing elsewhere.

COUGAR · 22nd June 2009, 16:23

The "bajaj bashing" has a link to this topic Technocrat: the death of the Std 350 classic has a lot to do with flooding of the market with cheap and efficient "bikes" by manufacturers like Bajaj. Ofcousre Bajaj is not the only one, but they are certainly the one manufacturer which started the trend of flooding the market.

Bajaj etc have volumes which enable them to keep costs low and thus crowd out of the market a manufacturer like Royal Enfield which focuses on quality over quantity.

The death of the 350 line is a sign that Enfield is loosing out to these big guys making these small bikes. Sad but true.

I dont know man I was once in an all Bullet meet & some of the Bulleteers were teasing the Electra & TB owners that they ride RE bikes & not Bullets.

not the right kind of bulleteers i am sure! 'cos a real bulleteer does not differentiate between fellow bulleteers! :P

What were you doing in a bullet meet though? Planning on buying one? chalo der se aaye par durust aaye!

naveenroy · 22nd June 2009, 16:35

I am a big Bullet fan myself but somehow cannot understand the company that is RE. So instead of a lot of chest-thumping and Bajaj bashing, can sometime tell me if this bit of news that I have heard is true?

And dude Cougar, don't bit my head off - I have bought the '76 Standard as of this minute and want to restore the bike to its original state and maintain the bike well. But just bashing any argument that is made against the Bullet will not make the problems associated with a Bullet go away!

And before I am killed - PEACE!

Technocrat · 22nd June 2009, 16:43

I believe it was Hero Honda which flooded the market before bajaj. Even then blaming someone else for one's demise is really weird. Its like naach na jaane aangan tedha (some one please translate

)

Quote:

What were you doing in a bullet meet though? Planning on buying one? chalo der se aaye par durust aaye!

Well I am a biker & like all the bikes for what they are irrespective of the their construction material.
As for buying one yes I was very keen on buying one at one point of time but after knowing what it can & can not do I decided not to buy one.

Besides what ticked me off was the "mine is best" attitude of most bulleteers which really gives a bad name to the legendary bike.

22nd June 2009, 12:43	#1
naveenroy Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 1,511 Thanked: 1,253 Times	Royal Enfield Bullet - Standard 350 - production to be stopped? Friends at my Bullet club say that the Standard 350 is going the way of the Electra 4S et al - production of this iconic model is going to be stopped! Has anyone else heard the same? I was hoping that they would somehow manage to keep this model alive from the earlier era! Though it had many problems, well, it is sad to know that production of this motorcycle is going to be stopped. And I was just planning to get an old '76 model 350 Standard!
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 13:10	#2
Spitfire BANNED Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Panaji - Goa/Bangalore - Karnataka Posts: 3,312 Thanked: 774 Times	They had an option, kill it or make it better. They chose the easier way. Its a bike thats lived its time. Time to move on.
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 15:19	#4
COUGAR BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Delhi Posts: 548 Thanked: 94 Times View My Garage	Sad day for indian biking indeed. I blame it on Bajaj and their flooding the market with plastic trash. Instead of the macho iron steeds, the streets will soon be filled with queens riding "Gulsars". And instead of the magical thump, all we will get to hear are the farts coming out of the plastic silencers.... sorry for getting emotional... but news like this just breaks our heart. Somebody go out and burn down the Bajaj plant where these toys are made man...! :(
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 15:23	#5
simply_sunny001 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: London & Rohtak Posts: 1,340 Thanked: 18 Times View My Garage	What about the parts and service of these old CI engines ? i have a 4 yr old electra 4s and totally love it and bought for ocassional rides and my bullet has run 10 k till now. when i bought that i thought i would keep it for next 20-30 yrs. Now i dont know few years down the line, will i get parts or not ?
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 15:25	#6
COUGAR BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Delhi Posts: 548 Thanked: 94 Times View My Garage	Well there is a mini-industry out there to meet that market. You get parts for the RD350 even now despite it being out of production for decades now! and a lot more Bullets have been sold as compared to RD's. so i dont think you should have a problem maintaining ur ol' bull. Anyways bulls are built like tanks man.
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 15:44	#9
rjstyles69 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bengalooru.. Posts: 4,343 Thanked: 842 Times View My Garage	Aye aye looks like I just got lucky and if this is true then a few years down the line I would have a vintage at my disposal . BTW just picked up an Electra 4s.
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 15:51	#10
Technocrat Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: GTA Posts: 14,813 Thanked: 2,700 Times	Well from what I know the Classics & Electras are quite different & a true Blue Bulleteer doesn't consider anything apart from the Classics to be a true Bullet
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 16:03	#11
COUGAR BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Delhi Posts: 548 Thanked: 94 Times View My Garage	actually there 12 things that make a bullet a bullet: like "Khopdi", box filter and so on...so the electra is still very much a bullet! if you knowck of the CI engine from the orig list of 12, then the AVL powered Machismo is also a bullet! But then anything that comes out of the Royal Enfield factory spells class, while the "stuff" that comes out of bajaj is just, well a Bajaj: too "middle class". :P
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 16:08	#12
Technocrat Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: GTA Posts: 14,813 Thanked: 2,700 Times	I dont know man I was once in an all Bullet meet & some of the Bulleteers were teasing the Electra & TB owners that they ride RE bikes & not Bullets. Anyways lets stick to the topic on the closure of the classic 350. @coughar- It will help a lot of us if you keep your Bullet fan fare & Bajaj bashing elsewhere.
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 16:23	#13
COUGAR BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Delhi Posts: 548 Thanked: 94 Times View My Garage	The "bajaj bashing" has a link to this topic Technocrat: the death of the Std 350 classic has a lot to do with flooding of the market with cheap and efficient "bikes" by manufacturers like Bajaj. Ofcousre Bajaj is not the only one, but they are certainly the one manufacturer which started the trend of flooding the market. Bajaj etc have volumes which enable them to keep costs low and thus crowd out of the market a manufacturer like Royal Enfield which focuses on quality over quantity. The death of the 350 line is a sign that Enfield is loosing out to these big guys making these small bikes. Sad but true. I dont know man I was once in an all Bullet meet & some of the Bulleteers were teasing the Electra & TB owners that they ride RE bikes & not Bullets. not the right kind of bulleteers i am sure! 'cos a real bulleteer does not differentiate between fellow bulleteers! :P What were you doing in a bullet meet though? Planning on buying one? chalo der se aaye par durust aaye! Last edited by COUGAR : 22nd June 2009 at 16:25.
	() Thanks

22nd June 2009, 16:35	#14
naveenroy Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 1,511 Thanked: 1,253 Times	Well.... I am a big Bullet fan myself but somehow cannot understand the company that is RE. So instead of a lot of chest-thumping and Bajaj bashing, can sometime tell me if this bit of news that I have heard is true? And dude Cougar, don't bit my head off - I have bought the '76 Standard as of this minute and want to restore the bike to its original state and maintain the bike well. But just bashing any argument that is made against the Bullet will not make the problems associated with a Bullet go away! And before I am killed - PEACE!
	() Thanks