Current Royal Enfield Himalayan competes against other entry-level ADVs such as KTM 250 Adventure, 390 Adventure and BMW G 310 GS
Royal Enfield gave Indian motorcyclists the first taste of a true blue adventure motorcycle when it launched Himalayan back in 2016. It presented the characteristics of a true off-roader which is meant to travel anywhere and everywhere but not at a great speed though.
Powering the ADV is a 411cc SOHC engine which has a rather modest output of 24.3 bhp and 32 Nm of peak torque. While the engine provides enough grunt for surpassing any obstacles it just does not provide enough boost with respect to its cubic capacity. Hence, there is a general school of thought that Himalayan should be equipped with the much peppier 650cc parallel-twin motor.
A more powerful Himalayan
This thought might actually get into practice as rumours indicate that Royal Enfield is serious about equipping Himalayan with a peppier 650cc parallel-twin motor. A recent report claims that shifting from the existing 411cc SOHC motor to the parallel-twin unit makes good sense. The most notable reason is that at 199 kilos, the current Himalayan is on the heavier side and the existing powertrain doesn’t justify the bike’s credentials.
The parallel-twin motor churns out 47 bhp and 52 Nm of peak torque which evidently makes a better choice any day. However, Royal Enfield has to invest quite a bit of capital in its research and development in order to make the motorcycle compliant with the chassis. The report further mentions that the bikemaker has gone ahead with the development of the new 650cc Himalayan and is in fact closer to a possible reveal.
Not being developed in India
The most interesting part of the new adventure motorcycle’s development is that it hasn’t been spotted testing on Indian roads yet. Usually, upcoming products, especially from Royal Enfield, are hot topics and widely covered by auto media houses. The report has come with the most plausible explanation that the bike is not being developed in India but at Royal Enfield’s technology centre in the United Kingdom.
This design and tech centre is located at a private testing facility in Bruntingthorpe. Since late last year, this site has been closed for general public which explains why the upcoming 650cc Himalayan has not been caught by the spy lenses.
Also, the company might opt for an all-new name instead of calling it Himalayan. Royal Enfield already has few names at its disposal such as Hunter, Sherpa, etc. which could be used for naming the upcoming motorcycle.
However, details at the moment are very thin and an official confirmation could throw more light in this regard. The challenge for Royal Enfield will be to replicate Himalayan’s off-roading capabilities with some added power to make it more touring friendly.
