Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 VS Harley Davidson Street 750 Comparison

Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Vs Harley Davidson Street 750

Find out whether the Flagship Royal Enfield has what it takes to take on the entry-level premium offering from Harley Davidson

The 650 twins Indian launch is perhaps overshadowed by the Jawa launch which happened just a day after Royal Enfield announced the 650 twins prices for India. The 650 twins consist of two motorcycles including the Interceptor 650 and the Continental GT 650. The Continental GT 650 is a pure café racer and will attract the attention of mostly young riders who love to commute for shorter distance and love café racers at the same time.

The Interceptor 650, on the other hand, will attract slightly more mature riders and also those who want to upgrade from their 300 or 500 cc motorcycles to a twin cylinder motorcycle. Now that both the motorcycles are launched here in India today we have decided to compare the Interceptor 650 which has become quite popular after its launch with the Harley Davidson Street 750 which happens to be entry level Harley and has been developed keeping the Asian traffic and road conditions in mind.

We will be comparing both the motorcycles on basis of their styling, powertrain and performance and pricing. So without any further due let us get into the details.

Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Vs Harley Davidson Street 750 Styling

Royal Enfield is popular across the globe for their retro styling and recreating old motorcycles. This is what they have also done with the new Interceptor 650 as well. The Interceptor 650 has taken its styling inspiration from the 60’s Interceptor. The Interceptor 650 is the flagship offering from the brand and gets plenty of modern features like a slipper clutch and dual-channel ABS setup to attract the customers with modern thinking’s.

RE-Interceptor-650-4

 

As far as the styling is concerned Royal Enfield has kept it simple and minimalistic. The Interceptor gets simple round halogen headlamps and twin-pod instrument cluster while it also has been fitted with a long and wide handlebar. The fuel tank looks slightly long and slim compared to some other RE motorcycles while the seats to look long and well cushioned. The Interceptor 650 definitely reminds us of the retro motorcycles and in one or the other ways looks much simpler than its rival.

The Harley Davidson Street 750 has been here in the Indian market for quite some time now and it also received an update recently. If we talk about its styling then the motorcycle looks simple yet purposeful compared to some other HD motorcycles. The low seat height, wide handlebars are ideal for almost every rider.

2018 Harley-Davidson Street And Sportster Lineup Get New Colours For India

The highlights of its design mainly include its Blacked out colour scheme, Black fork gators while the Blacked out engine and the exhausts continue the Dark Custom theme. As a matter of fact this is perhaps the only HD motorcycle which gets a completely Black exhaust since the 1970’s.

The instrumentation on the motorcycle too is pretty basic. There is nothing much about the motorcycle which will attract anyone attention if we cover the HD stickers but this motorcycle definitely has a big bike cruiser stance which sets it apart from the rest.

Overall if we compare both the Interceptor 650 with the Harley Davidson Street 750 they both look gorgeous and surely will attract lots of attention. The Interceptor 650 will only attract the attention of those who love retro motorcycles the Street 750, on the other hand, will appeal to almost everybody who loves a modern and big cruisers.

Powertrain and performance

The RE Interceptor 650 definitely has a smaller displacement than the HD Street 750 but unlike some other RE motorcycles, the engine is an all-new unit and also generates plenty of power for a 650 cc motorcycle. The RE Interceptor 650 is powered by a 648 cc twin cylinder air and oil cooled fuel-injected motor which produces about 47 Bhp of peak power at 7100 rpm and 52 Nm of torque 4000 rpm. The engine is paired to a 6-speed gearbox.

The Harley Davidson Street 750, on the other hand, gets a 749 cc V twin, a liquid cooled motor which produces around 47 Ps of peak power and 59 NM of torque. The engine just like its rival gets a six-speed gearbox as well.

Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Price

If we compare both the engines in terms of specs and figures then both of these twin cylinder units generates an almost same amount of power while the Street 750 with 100 cc more displacement produces slightly more torque than the RE. However, the main question is how much of that power the rider will actually be able to use on the Indian road is a big question.

Specs Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Harley Davidson Street 750
Engine Air/oil cooled parallel twin Liquid-cooled, Revolution X V-twin
Displacement 648 cc 749 cc
Power output 47 Bhp 48 Bhp
Torque output 52 Nm 59 Nm
Gearbox 6-Speed 6-Speed

Pricing

The Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 is priced at INR. 2.50 Lakhs (ex-showroom) which makes it the most affordable twin cylinder motorcycle of India. The Harley Davidson Street 750, on the other hand, is priced at Rs. 5.86 Lakhs (ex-showroom) which makes it the cheapest Harley available all across the globe. However, with that money, you can own both the 650 twins at the same time.

Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Vs Harley Davidson Street 750 comparison Verdict

Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 pics-1

Now let’s sum up everything if we compare both the motorcycles in terms of their appearance the Interceptor 650 is a simple motorcycle which will remind you of the bygone era while the Harley Davidson Street 750, on the other hand, is a compact machine which has been built keeping the Indian roads and riders in mind. This is perhaps the simplest looking Harley which has been built to be ridden.

If we compare both the motorcycle in terms of their overall performance then the Street 750 surely stays ahead because it has got a bigger displacement and generates slightly more torque than its rival however according to Royal Enfield the Interceptor offers usable power which is available down the range and that what matters in a stop and go traffic situation to push that 200+ kg motorcycles ahead.

Harley-Davidson Street Rod 750 India 3

Lastly, if we talk about pricing then surely you will tell me what the point of this whole comparison then the RE Interceptor costs half of what the Harley Davidson Street 750 is worth. But this comparison shows that you now will not have to spend a lot of money to own a twin cylinder mid capacity motorcycle. The Interceptor 650 provides almost all the features that you always looked for in a bigger mid capacity motorcycle.