Royal Enfield is working on a new liquid-cooled 450cc engine platform that will underpin as many as five new bikes down the road. While the Himalayan 450 has been spied multiple times before, both overseas and in India, this time around, it's the naked roadster based on this same engine that has been spotted testing.
While the bike features a spartan amount
of bodywork, a few design elements can be made out. The styling is very akin to
a neo-retro roadster, with a near-upright upper body position for the rider and
a gentle bend for the legs to reach the footpegs. The swooping round tank meets
what seems to be a large single-piece seat. Lighting is LED all around. The
turn signals too resemble those of the Himalayan 450, with the rear units
featuring a built-in tail-lamp.
Considering this is an all-new
liquid-cooled engine, it isn’t too much of a stretch to assume it will be
nestled inside an all-new chassis as well. The exhaust system can be seen
clearly too, with a stubby end-can, much like the Hunter 350. Where it differs
from the Hunter 350 (and other RE models) is that it uses a monoshock at the
rear compared to the twin shock absorbers. A telescopic fork is on duty at the
front. The swingarm too appears to be a brand-new unit and has a slight kink to
it where it meets the main chassis.
The cast-alloy rims appear to be of the
same sizes at both ends and feature a unique design. What can also be made out
is that they are shod with CEAT rubber. The front and rear disc brakes appear
to be large in diameter and since ABS rings are present at either end, this
bike will likely come equipped with dual-channel ABS. This test mule is also shod with a couple of
luggage options such as a rear base plate (presumably for a top box) and saddle
stays on both sides, indicating that Royal Enfield will also roll out an array
of accessories when this bike is launched.
All said and done, the launch of this
motorcycle seems to be quite some time away, considering what has been spied
appears to be an early prototype, judging from the rough finish, the absence of
an instrument console and exposed wiring.
