Royal Enfield Himalayan Is Here

The Royal Enfield Himalayan is finally here. The bike has been building up quite a following in the months preceding its unveiling and it surely doesn’t disappoint. Royal Enfield has specifically designed the Himalayan not to take on the mountains but rather to undertake a pilgrimage to the spiritual home of Royal Enfields – Himalayas.

The bike is a first ground up design from the Chennai manufacturer ever since Eicher Motors acquired the brand in the 1990s. Developed alongside Harris Performance, the Himalayan sports a duplex split cradle frame. The bike has an upright stance with saddle height of 800mm to give a commanding view of the terrain ahead.

With 24.5bhp and 32Nm of torque produced from its 411cc single cylinder, air-cooled SOHC long stroke LS410 motor, the bike offers a much wider power-band than the other Enfields. The key improvement in the engine is the ditching of the push-rods and swapping it out for an overhead camshaft, the first of its kind for an Enfield in India and not since their 250cc machineries from their early years in Britain. This accounts for lesser moving parts and a fewer engine vibrations aiding cruising in the mid-range. A counter-balancer has been fitted to the new engine making it the most refined engine in their portfolio. Royal Enfield has provided an oil sump for oil-cooling despite the engine remaining air-cooled. Carburetion has been preferred over fuel injection as it makes it easier on the engine when tackling higher altitudes.

The Himalayas cover over a million square kilometres and to traverse a mere few thousand on a motorcycle demands a good suspension setup to negotiate terrain changes. The Himalayan has been kitted out with a 41mm telescopic front fork with a 200mm travel and a rear monoshock with 180mm of wheel travel. A tyre setup of 90/90 – 21” at the front and 120/90 – 17” at the rear, complement the suspension during on as well as off-road conditions. The tyres come from Ceat Tyres of Gripp XL range. A 300mm disc brake at the front and a 240mm disc at the rear have been entrusted with the job of halting the Himalayan if need be, ABS notably absent.

Available in two colours — Granite and Snow; the Himalayan comes fitted with a fly-screen, under-engine bash-plate, up-swept exhaust and off-road mudguards. Graphics are minimal-yet-effective which span the length of the bike’s tank and mudguards. The side panel with the cut-out Himalayan lettering gets a neat matte finish. The new semi-digital instrumentation cluster is quite refreshing with an addition of a digital compass for the adventure-tourer folk. Royal Enfield also offers after-market panniers which accentuates the Himalayan’s appeal.

With a 15-litre fuel tank, the Himalayan is adequate for long-distance riding and has an option to add further auxiliary units on either side of the main unit. The bike has a kerb weight of 182 kilos making it one of their lightest bikes on offer.

Prices to be announced in the month of March, the Himalayan is sure to be a cracker.