Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 will go on sale in early November 2023 and it will be based on a brand new platform
Royal Enfield is updating all its products in its lineup and the most recent launch was the Bullet 350 which got the new J series engine platform along with a few other minor updates. Next to follow will be the Royal Enfield Himalayan but we know that this will be a total overhaul compared to the current model and this article explains some of the details captured on the test mules.
Speaking about the Himalayan, let’s understand the current model to understand the upgrade on the new one. While the hardware, chassis and accessories proved to be more than what they were worth, the 411cc single-cylinder long-stroke engine was one of its strong as well as weak points. The strength was its torque (32Nm) but the weak link was its low power (24.5bhp) which made it suffer on the highways.
To address this issue, the folks at Royal Enfield are coming up with a brand-new liquid-cooled engine that is expected to churn out around 40bhp of power while the torque figures are still unknown and will be mated to a 6-speed gearbox. To support the new engine, Royal Enfield has designed a new chassis which is more rigid and has the engine as a stressed member.
The design of the fuel tank is round compared to the boxy unit on the current model, it has a split seat design and a split front fender. The headlight is a full LED unit borrowed from the Super Meteor 650. The suspension is also expected to be beefed up with the addition of USD forks at the front.
The adventure motorcycle segment in India is heating up and a product like the Himalayan 450 is exactly what Royal Enfield needs to gain control of the market. Considering the good reviews and appreciation the previous model received all over the world this will be a lot of expectations for the Himalayan as a product and we believe that the Royal Enfield will not disappoint.
The rivals of the Himalayan 450 are the KTM Adventure 390/250, Suzuki V Strom 250, BMW G310 GS and the Yezdi Adventure. Each of them has its own strengths and weaknesses, the KTM Adventure twins seem to be the current crowd favourite and the Yezdi Adventure is the most well-rounded adventure bike with respect to hardware and features.