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The new Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 dual sport adventure motorcycle is the most modern model the … [+] company has offered to date.
Royal Enfield
Imagine if you could go to a Ford dealership and buy a 2024 Ford Falcon with a carbureted V8, drum brakes, hand-cranked windows and an AM radio. Would you buy one? Many motorheads, self included, would certainly be interested, but perhaps dissuaded after a short drive highlighted by copious body roll, lackluster power output, teeth-gritting brakes, the smell of unburned gas and long warm-up times before the car was ready to drive.
Plus: No FM radio. No smartphone connectivity. No airbags, anti-lock brakes, shoulder belts, cruise control or air conditioning (likely a spendy option). Any modern car – even the cheapest model in the most basic possible trim – would far surpass it in performance, comfort, reliability and convenience. It might not have that classic look, but that’s the price of progress. Still, Ford would likely sell a fair number of those retro Falcons, such is the draw of vintage… anything.
Not that long ago, India-based motorcycle maker Royal Enfield was essentially in that exact situation. For decades after World War II, the company had been making and selling 350 and 500cc “Bullet” motorcycles that were essentially post-war designs frozen in time, with drum brakes, low-compression single-cylinder air-cooled engines, and analog… everything. But, since India is the second largest motorcycle market behind China, they were selling them by the thousands. Actually, the hundreds of thousands. There wasn’t much impetus to change, improve or redesign the beloved Bullets, which have a following not unlike Harleys or Jeeps in the U.S. To wit:
But in the 1990s, India conglomerate Eicher took over Royal Enfield, and a mandate went out to modernize both the bikes and the motorcycle company overall, resulting in a new state-of-the-art factory in Chennai, and new Bullets with ABS disc brakes, fuel injection, modern suspension and more. The bikes retained their classic stance for the most part, and in 2016, the company debuted the 411 Himalayan, a stout adventure-style motorcycle and one of a new crop of machines with exportation in mind. Inside India, the new bikes were the pinnacle of domestic two-wheeled excitement. Outside India? Not so much.
The 411 Himalayan, while generally modern in design, was powered by an old-school 411cc air-cooled single cylinder engine that was notably underpowered for many markets, but still found some footing in the U.S. and beyond, thanks in part to its low price, toughness and general quirky uniqueness.
The 452cc ‘Sherpa’ engine is liquid-cooled – a first for the company – and makes 40 horsepower.
Royal Enfield
Now, Royal Enfield has rectified the situation with the Himalayan 450, available now, and a sibling, the incoming 450 Guerilla. Both are based around a clean-sheet, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected 452cc motor (above) that vastly outperforms the 411, and the new plant is carried in a Harris Performance-designed frame and suspended with modern Showa components.
The Himalayan 450 also includes a long list of features modern adventure riders desire (né require), including Eco and Performance ride modes, ABS and traction control that can be turned off to the rear wheel (essential for off-road riding), and a round, all-digital single LCD instrument called the Tripper Dash (below) that can link to a smartphone to show detailed Google maps for navigation.
The round Tripper Dash digital display can show maps for navigation when connected to a phone.
Royal Enfield
Every light bulb is an LED, the gas tank is a spacious 4.5 gallons, the seat height is adjustable as is the rear suspension (but not the front), and the new 40-horsepower motor – the first liquid-cooled engine the company has ever created – can propel the bike to triple-digit velocities through a six-speed gearbox that includes a slipper clutch.
All that and more for $5,799 to start, just a few hundred dollars more than the venerable 411 Himalayan, which remains in the lineup for now. The 450 Guerilla – due to join the Himalayan 450 in the North American market soon – includes many of those features, but is an urban-focused street machine while the Himalayan 450 is a border-seeking, dirt-or-no-road adventure machine designed to tour the world, the more remote the destination the better.
The Himalayan 450 is designed to take riders to far-off locations no matter what the roads are like.
Royal Enfield
The Himalayan 450 will initially be available in three trim levels, each one adding just $100 to the price tag, and four colors. Upcoming options will include turn-key adventure-ready models with panniers, crash bars and more from the extensive accessory catalog the company is building for the new bike.
Watch for my full ride and touring review of the new Himalayan 450 later this fall.
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