#RoyalEnfield

We test the CFMOTO 700 CL-X, Honda CB500F, Kawasaki Z400, and Royal Enfield Continental GT to see what seven grand can buy

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has certified a new Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 model for 2024, confirming the production version of the SG650 bobber concept is coming to America.

Being a motorcycle publication, Motorcycle.com largely caters to enthusiast readers. However, for every enthusiast there was once a potential rider who was curious about motorcycles.

The man with overall responsibility for creating Royal Enfield’s first twin-cylinder modern-era cruiser is New Jersey native Adrian Sellers, 42, who after a four-year stint with Honda R&D in Italy and, before that, nine years at Yamaha’s Design Laboratory in Los Angeles, was appointed the Indian company’s Head of Custom and Motorsport in 2016, based at its UK Technology Centre at Bruntingthorpe. Let’s leave it to him to tell us how the ground-breaking Super Meteor 650 came about.

Five years on from the 2018 launch of its first ever twin-cylinder models to be made in India, since when over 400,000 examples of the Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650 have been sold around the world, Royal Enfield has now added the first of a much-anticipated series of spinoff models to its range.

After years of KTM owning this class with its 390 Duke and (390 Adventure), there’s a new kid in town – new in the US, anyway – in the form of the CFMoto 700 CL-X. It’s only fitting, really, since CFMoto’s Chinese manufacturer and KTM have a decade-long history together. That same Chinese OEM had a pre-existing relationship with Kawasaki also, and if CFMoto’s 700 CL-X isn’t powered by an engine eerily similar to a Versys 650 parallel Twin, I will eat my cat. In fact, the 700 CL-X is powered by a Versys twin that’s been stroked by 4mm, to 83 x 64mm dimensions – a thing Kawasaki’s never had the decency to do. That takes it to 693 cubic centimeters, and a claimed output of 74 hp at 8,500 rpm (and 48 lb-ft at 6,500 revs). Which makes this one a tad larger than our usual Lightweight winners, but for $6,399, how can you not supersize it?

Royal Enfield announced a new cruiser model featuring the 648cc Parallel-Twin engine that also powers the Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650. The new Super Meteor 650, and the Super Meteor 650 Grand Tourer variant,

I’m a big fan of scramblers that can actually Scram, ya dig? When a production scrambler has the chops and capability to do what those customized rigs did back in the good ol’ days, well, that’s the real deal. Isn’t it? Royal Enfield has based this latest machine on its highly popular Himalayan ADV bike so, in theory, the new 411 should be nearly as capable as that machine while being imbued with its own style. A tweak here, some new paint there, a smaller front wheel, viola! Welcome to the Scram 411. 

Things move at their own pace in the South. When it’s not stifling, the warm, humid breeze gently blowing through the Spanish moss-strewn southern live oaks relaxes in a way that you’d be hard-pressed to find elsewhere. It puts you in a southern state of mind – one where slowing down and living in the moment just feels like the thing to do. Royal Enfield’s new Classic 350 is the perfect pairing for such a place. A historic setting for a historic machine. 

Fans of Royal Enfield’s Continental GT and Interceptor 650 owe it to themselves to take a long look at the SG650 Concept. This neoretro interpretation of the platform sure turned our heads. [UPDATE: Eicher Motors, which owns RE, had previously filed trademark applications in multiple markets for the name “Royal Enfield Shotgun”. We can surmise that may end up being the production name for the SG650 concept.]

After skipping last year because of the global pandemic, the world’s largest motorcycle show is back for 2021. EICMA returns to Milan, Italy, on Nov. 23-28, and we’ll be providing full coverage on Motorcycle.com. Every year the Italian Trade Agency invites editors and distributors from around the world to attend the show so, for 2021, Ryan Adams will be reporting live from the Fiera Milano exhibition grounds.

There’s no shortage of expensive, big-displacement, powerful Adventure-Touring motorcycles. Then there’s the mid-displacement segment that is oftentimes only marginally less expensive. Further down this segment, though, exists a sub-category of lightweight, affordable, small-displacement models that are oftentimes overshadowed by their aforementioned counterparts. It’s here where the 2022 Royal Enfield Himalayan resides along with BMW’s G310GS and CSC’s RX4 Adventure among others.

In Part 1 of our interview with Nick Graveley, we discussed who he is, how he got started in clay modeling, and how he goes about his work. In talking with Graveley, his enthusiasm for the job was infectious, and the conversation naturally flowed, going a lot longer than we initially anticipated.

Here is a group of names you’ve probably heard of: Massimo Tamburini, Miguel Galluzzi, Gerald Kiska, Hans Muth, Adrian Morton, Pierre Terblanche. Hell, even if you don’t know these names, you’ve definitely seen their work. These are the men responsible for some of the greatest contemporary motorcycle designs in all of history. But have you ever thought about how a design goes from a napkin sketch and turns into a real-life motorcycle? There must be a process by which a 2D rendering transforms into a 3D object.

Eicher Motors has filed trademark applications for two potential models: “Royal Enfield Flying Flea” and “Royal Enfield Roadster”. The trademark applications were filed yesterday with the European Union Intellectual Property Office for use on “motorcycles; parts and fittings therefore,” as well as for various clothing items.