Royal Enfield Bear 650 first ride review: The best of the 650-twin platform?

In the very new era of Royal Enfield, it wants to leave no category unexplored, or maybe even create a new sub category to test the appetite of its faithful following. Since the 650 twin is a peach of an engine, the company is putting it to its test in all forms and avatars possible. In addition to the Interceptor 650, Continental GT 650, Shotgun 650 and Super Meteor 650 the team at Royal Enfield has added another member to the family, the Bear 650, a Scrambler with a very strong connection to a very glorious past dating back to the 1960s Interceptor. 

Where did the Royal Enfield Bear 650 come from?

Not many of us on this side of the universe have heard of Eddie Mulder, but this is a story worth telling and it was even more hair-raising hearing it in Eddie's very own words at the launch of the Bear 650 in Los Angeles a few days ago. It was such an honour to meet the man himself who created history and held the legacy for over 60 years of his life. Eddie was a 16 year old daredevil when he was approached by a Royal Enfield tuner from the UK to ride his specially-tuned Interceptor 650 twin for the Big Bear Race in the Californian desert, right where we were for the launch. In the 1960s there was no major governing body or rules per say in motorsport in this part of the world, it was a huge clover leaf shaped track where you did one loop came in to service and fuel up and repeated that twice again. It was a very famous race and everyone who could ride a motorcycle wanted to be part of it, resulting in a starting grid of over 750+ participants, yes you read it right. 

Come the morning of the race, Being a 16 year old, he got the jitters and actually, like he said at the launch event "got the sh**ts" , and had to run to the bathroom, this resulted in him taking a late start, dead last!! Living up to the image of the daredevil he was, at the end of the first run he passed over 300 of the competitors, in the next run he passed over another 400 or so and by the end of the very treacherous last loop he actually rode that bike to win the gruelling Big Bear Desert Race. 

Royal Enfield Bear 650 chassis, ride and handling

This version of RE has a lot of bits and bobs from existing models but not just plug and play, they have carefully curated this new scrambler to make it as close to its original version, with modern features and upgrades that make it a pleasure to ride. 

Built around the existing Super Meteor, the now stiffened frame and head stock has changed the characteristics of the ride substantially. It comes with the Showa big piston front forks, re-valved and with increased ride height and a 130mm travel up front and 115mm for the rear. This has given the bike a much needed 184mm of ground clearance and off road capability. I did find the suspension hard on the asphalt though. Don't get me wrong here, it works well but needs the speed and appropriate input to make it work at lower speeds that we most often see in India. With that riding in mind, it might be a handful to manage. Keeping with the scrambler look the flat bench seat is a nice touch and makes it convenient to move your weight forward and back when you're gunning it in sandy and loose, muddy conditions. The modern touches include LED lights all round and a quick access ABS switch and menu toggle stick in the handlebar switch gear, speaking of which this Bear 650 has a noticeably wide handle bar offering very easy and even steering. This is in spite of the wide chunky newly developed dual-purpose MRF Rubber specifically for this bike, with a 19-inch wheel up front and a 17-incher at the rear. Very chunky, block type offroad looking pattern, but worked very well on the road as well. The brakes look the same as on previous models, however some work on the brake cylinder ratio makes the braking performance far more predictable. With all the changes to the chassis and the removal of an exhaust pipe, the bike now tips the scales at 216kg with all fluids topped. 

Royal Enfield Bear 650 engine and performance

Now for the part I liked the most, this is the same 648cc twin that does duties in the rest of the 650 range from RE and the engine continues to be mated to a 6-speed gearbox. This engine produces 47bhp of power, along with 56.5Nm of torque. But in this bike, it has been given a beautifully crafted and tuned two into one exhaust that has increased the torque from 52.3Nm on the Shotgun to 56.5Nm. This change is noticeable and what that has done in turn is made the bike so rideable that no gear seems wrong and there is good power right through from the word go. Ride it easy or ride it hard, the power delivery lines up to make it an enjoyable experience, in addition, three more teeth on the rear sprocket makes the experience that much sweeter!

Royal Enfield Bear 650 design styling and colours

The Bear 650 is designed with a retro flavour, harking back to the scramblers of the 1960s, and it gets chunky tyres, open square tread blocks, contoured scrambler seats and a kicked-up rear loop to accentuate the scrambler design language. You also get a competition number board and raised ground clearance – 184mm to be precise. All these elements come together to give the Bear 650 scrambler a retro look that would be perfectly at home in the 1960’s desert racing scene in California.

Making best use of its designers, the Royal Enfield Bear 650 comes in really vibrant yet not gaudy colours, offering good choices between brighter and darker shades. Thank god they have stayed away from all the ‘cool’ flat greys and oranges. To that end the Bear 650 can be had with a choice of five colour ways – Boardwalk White, Petrol Green, Wild Honey, Golden Shadow, and a special colour edition called Two Four Nine, paying tribute to Eddie Mulders’s iconic race winning number. One very nice touch on the top variant is the competition number plate of the side panels below the seat that carry Eddie's original Big Bear Desert Race competition No. 249. The variant is called ‘Two Four Nine’ as well. A simple touch which offers great meaning to style and design. 

Royal Enfield Bear 650 features

In terms of equipment, the Bear 650 is equipped with Royal Enfield’s Tripper Dash, a TFT display that debuted with the Himalayan 450 and also does duties in the Guerrilla 450. It gets a simple interface that is easier to operate on the move, using the black aluminium switch cubes and the joystick. You get Google Maps integration, a USB-C charging port and Wingman Connectivity. The Wingman Connectivity features include remote live location tracking, real-time last parked location, vehicle alerts, a vehicle dashboard, and trip reports. The Bear 650 also gets full LED lighting, 

Royal Enfield Bear 650 verdict

The Royal Enfield Bear 650 will be launched with prices starting at ₹3.39 lakh, ex-showroom, going up to ₹3.59 lakh based on the colour way you choose. With everything that it has to offer, I'm certain it will gain good traction and should do well to capture a whole new type of audience for the brand.  People might not take to it initially, but get a ride on the Bear 650 and it should certainly put a smile on your face.