Royal Enfield Himalayan 450: The Final Test – ADVrider

Photo: Royal Enfield/YouTube
Royal Enfield has published a massive promo on YouTube for its new Himalayan 450, and boy, have things changed.
A lot of you will remember when the first-generation Himalayan launched. It was a very cool machine, the first small-bore travel bike for western markets in decades—well, except for maybe the Kawasaki Versys-X 300 and Honda CRF250 Rally. But still, it was really in a class of its own, a basic air-cooled 411cc thumper designed to travel long, hard miles. Unfortunately, the press launch videos set an awkward tone, with footage of a test rider jumping the machine and breaking the footpeg off when landing.
But now, years later, Royal Enfield has learned how to build a better bike, and learned how to do an excellent job of marketing the machine. Watch the video below to see beautiful footage of enthusiastic company insiders riding the machine from the factory in the south of India to the mountains in the north.

We get a few specs confirmed in that video, too, including the 40 hp figure. ADVpulse published a full spec sheet here. Basically, it seems like most specs are more-or-less in line with the previous model, except suspension appears to be greatly improved, the new bike carries a half-gallon more gas, and makes a lot more power. Wet weight is around the same, at 432 lb.

Despite all the improvements, then, it’s still no Skinny Minny Miller. For the sake of reference, the Suzuki DR650 has a claimed weight of 366 lb—and that bike hit the market in 1996, hardly a space-age design. The Honda XR650L, which is basically unchanged since 1992, has a 346 lb wet weight. But the DR and XR are the elder statesmen of the dual sport world these days, and many riders want niceties such as EFI (particularly handy if you’re headed to the mountains, like the Himalayan’s name implies) and ABS (definitely not available on those old Japanese 650s).
Expect a full, official reveal on the Himalayan on November 7.

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