Royal Enfield is also preparing a cruiser in the 650cc twin-cylinder platform which is expected to make its debut by the end of this year
Royal Enfield is basking on its newly launched cruiser Meteor 350 which has turned out to be a raging success all over India. Meteor 350 was officially launched in India in November last year and has since seen an overwhelming response as far as bookings are concerned.
The new cruiser is offered in three trims- Fireball, Stellar and Supernova while each of them come with their individual colour options. Each shade on offer in Meteor does appeal to the bike’s retro-style theme however, we believe a black colour option would have provided much more oomph and class to the motorcycle.
Custom Paint Job
We are proved right when we see a Meteor 350 wrapped in a custom glossy black paint scheme. Images are credited to the Instagram profile of Arjun BK @_bee___kay_ and the bike looks exquisite in this shade.
The paint job has been carried out on the base Fireball trim of Meteor which already comes with a blacked-out theme. This includes components such as engine casing, exhaust pipe, footpegs, handlebar, side body panels, alloy wheels and grab rails are dipped in black colour.
This dark theme complements the custom black paint while two silver stripes stickering on the fuel tank adds a nice sporty contrast to the overall look. If you notice carefully, the stripes on the fuel tank are inspired from Continental GT 650.
The retro theme with styling elements such as a round headlamp, turn indicators and taillamp, a circumferential LED DRL on the headlamp, a wide handlebar, and circular instrument dials amplify the appeal of this custom black colour. The glossiness further adds glaze and premiumness to the cruiser.
This custom colour scheme has been inspired by a Black Magic paint option previously offered in Continental GT 650. The twin-cylinder cafe racer along with its twin, Interceptor 650, recently underwent a cosmetic overhaul which saw the addition of new colour options. On seeing this, maybe Royal Enfield could extend this colour scheme to other models in its official lineup.
Mechanical Specs
Meteor 350 is powered by an all-new 349cc, single-cylinder, air-cooled, long-stroke motor which cranks out 20.2 bhp and 27 Nm of peak torque. This unit is mated to a new 5-speed gearbox. The motorcycle is underpinned by a new J1D architecture which comprises a double-cradle frame suspended on telescopic forks at front and twin-sided shock absorbers at rear. Braking hardware consists of single discs on both wheels while safety net is provided by dual-channel ABS.
The cruiser motorcycle has been serving as a replacement for Thunderbird 350 and is currently priced between Rs 1.80 lakh and Rs. 1.95 lakh (ex-showroom). While there are no direct rivals of Meteor 350 in this segment, it competes against the likes of Honda H’ness CB 350, Jawa Forty-Two, and Benelli Imperiale 400.