DriveSpark has revealed that the new cafe racer that Royal Enfield will unveil at EICMA today would be called the Continental GT 650. This badge does makes sense given that Royal Enfield dealers had stopped taking bookings for the Continental GT 535 a couple of months ago, in anticipation of the new, twin cylinder bike. In fact. the slow-selling GT 535 may be replaced by the twin cylinder GT 650. Moreover, the new bike has styling very similar to that of the GT 535, as confirmed by multiple spyshots.
Royal Enfield’s new, 650 cc twin cylinder engine makes 47 PS and 52 Nm, and gets a 6 speed manual gearbox. This air-cooled, short stroke (yes, on a Royal Enfield) engine is designed to rev up to 7,200 rpm. This revvy nature of the mill should give the Continental GT 650 two big boosts, 1. A top speed of over 160 Kph (finally the GT can call itself a true cafe racer) and 2. A comfortable cruising speed of about 130 Kph. (US freeway-ready). Spyshots indicate that the larger capacity GT 650 will use suspension similar to that on the smaller engined GT.
This means telescopic front forks and gas charged twin rear shock absorbers. ABS will be a key addition, and the bike is likely to pack in larger brakes for better stopping power. The Continental GT 650 could be the new flagship motorcycle for Royal Enfield, just like how the GT 535 was for the last 3 years or so.
It’ll be built in India, sold here and in various other parts of the world. A launch in 2018 has been confirmed by Eicher CEO Siddhartha Lal. Pricing is the big elephant in the room, and we’ll know more in the coming days (or perhaps later today).
If Royal Enfield can push out the Continental GT 650 at under 4 lakh rupees, the bike could hit the sweet spot between desirableness and affordability. What say, Royal Enfield?
Via DriveSpark