The Mana Black is a factory accessorised variant, and has a distinct matte black look that Royal Enfield calls ‘Stealth Black’. The blacked-out look extends to the engine, forks, and tubeless spoke rims as well. It is equipped with rally hand guards, the rally seat that is an option on the other variants, and a high front mudguard. The Mana Black is intended as an offroad-ready variant of the Himalayan 450 range, but there are no mechanical differences between it and the other variants.

Words: Charles Pennefather | Photography: Shrenith Bhandary

The post Royal Enfield Himalayan Mana Black Launched At ₹3.37 Lakh first appeared on Turbocharged.

Being a motorcyclist in the Indian monsoons is a painful experience. Most riders tend not to enjoy commuting as much as the open road, and traffic tends to take on a more hostile quality in the downpour. So when the invite came in for a trip with Royal Enfield Rides through the Western Ghats, with lush green valleys, craggy black peaks and roads covered in clouds, I was ecstatic to break free of the monotony of the commute. On the highways, rain takes on a more soothing personality, so I was looking forward to watching the water droplets drift over the visor of my helmet before being blown away in the slipstream…

I reached Kolhapur quite late in the evening, and after a quick briefing by our ride coordinator, Asif Khan, it was time to tuck in with the ever-present rain lashing against the hotel windows. Asif had picked a route for us that was going to be ‘more challenging than average,’ and considering he heads a group called Wild Riders, we were filled with nervous excitement. We started bright and early the next morning, and that was the first time I laid eyes on ‘1099’ – the Royal Enfield Himalayan that was to be my steed throughout this sojourn.

Shortly after a rendezvous with the remainder of the contingent, we left the highway for the B-roads that led us deep into the heart of the Western Ghats. We were told that there was a surprise on the way—after riding through roads that took us through dense vegetation all the way to hilltops shrouded in mists, and back down to the forests again, we veered off onto a dirt road that led to a small dam. 

While I have crossed small streams on a motorcycle before, crossing a river as wide as this was a whole new experience for me, and the Himalayan made it quite easy with its grunt. After the crossing, we turned around and parked our bikes in the middle of the river for a photo op, and thus created a perfect image for the well-known motivational poster that reads “There’s no shortcut to any place worth going.”

We reached the resort in the late afternoon, which was to be our bivouac for the next two nights. After a lightning-quick lunch, we headed out in search of the elusive reverse waterfall at Kavalesaad point. The rain gods had no mercy as they decided to give us a thorough soaking once we reached the point, which was completely covered in something white, which could be either fog, mist or clouds; it was hard to tell! Then, for a brief moment, the gods gave us a respite, and the clouds parted, offering us a glimpse of the valley below. The reverse waterfall phenomenon was clearly visible too, where we witnessed water being blown uphill thanks to gale-force winds.

The next morning, we started with a place called Baba Waterfalls, where we rode under a waterfall! Once we were done with this marvellous experience, we headed to the Pargad Fort trail. It started out incredibly slippery, to the point where the mere thought of using the front brake would cause the wheel to lock up, I kid you not. A few dropped bikes later, we reached the mud. This was not your average mud, though—it had an evil personality, and the clinginess of an ex-girlfriend with attachment issues. It tugged on our boots and tyres, making progress slower than rush-hour traffic in Bangalore. 

Many arduous clicks of descent later, we reached a pit stop. We had the climb to look forward to, which, we were assured, would be orders of magnitude more difficult than the downhill bit we just covered. And it was. Each of the muddy roadblocks took a chunk out of our travel time, but the worst was yet to come. As we neared the paved road, we discovered that massive quantities of earth were deposited by heavy machinery for roadwork, just before the heavens opened up and had been going non-stop. This has turned the trail into the kind of nightmare that only the organisers of the Discovery Eco Challenge could dream up. After many hours of trudging through the mud while simultaneously hauling our not-so-lightweight motorcycles up the trail, we made a soul-crushing discovery—the rain had washed away a small ridge that connected the trail to the paved road, creating a chasm which was too deep to cross.

At this point, we parked our bottoms on patches of relatively dry land–hungry, thirsty and tired. Asif left on foot, in search of food, motivation and an alternate route. He returned with a gigantic box of Vada Pav, and told us that we would need to head back down the ravine and take a different, fully-paved road, which would push us back by many kilometres. We reached the tarmac just as the sun was dipping below the horizon.

The next few hours went by in a blur, as we climbed the Tilari Ghats, trying our best to make use of the remaining daylight, and then continued on through the darkness. Another shower drenched us, and the chill mountain air froze us to our bones, but we rode on at the same relentless pace, up and down the winding roads, like a locomotive—as if all the bikes were connected by an invisible string—keeping pace with each other. Then the lights of our resort loomed through the fog, and just like that, the ride was over. The rest of it was predictable highways, and I’ll not bore you with the mundane details of that. 

One of the lines from the Himalayan’s marketing has always appealed to me, which reads, ‘Remember, the mountains have other plans.’ While I always admired this sliver of wisdom, I might not have grasped its true meaning had I not faced the challenges we did in this ride. We had our itinerary and schedules, but the mountains changed that in an instant. You may prepare as much as you want, but roads can and will always surprise you, catch you off-guard, and put you so far out of your depth that you might begin to question everything—making that one-liner your mantra, not just on rides, but on life in general—will make things a bit easier. 

The post Feature: Royal Enfield Himalayan Western Trails Ride – A Change Of Plan first appeared on Turbocharged.

The price of the wire-spoked tubeless wheels for the Royal Enfield Himalayan has been increased by ₹28,221 — from ₹12,424 to ₹40,645. However, this is only for those already in possession of a non-tubeless Royal Enfield Himalayan and are looking to swap the conventional rims for the wire-spoked tubeless ones. Customers who are going to order a new one can still spec the wire-spoked tubeless ones for ₹11,000. 

There are no other changes to the IMOTY winner of 2024 as the Royal Enfield Himalayan continues to dominate the city, highways, trails and sales despite being the first-ever liquid-cooled motorcycle from the Chennai bikemaker.

The Royal Enfield Himalayan competes in the highly competitive mid-capacity adventure motorcycle segment with stiff competition from European, Japanese and even Chinese manufacturers. It is powered by the ‘Sherpa 450’ engine and this 452cc liquid-cooled, DOHC four-valve engine pumps out 40PS and 40Nm. Showa suspension front and rear help the Royal Enfield Himalayan traverse a multitude of terrain in comfort.

The Royal Enfield Himalayan marks a significant departure from the retro ethos of the brand and we for one are happy to see our homegrown brand dominate on the world stage.

The post Royal Enfield Himalayan Tubeless Wheels Price Increased first appeared on Turbocharged.

Before the Royal Enfield Himalayan, hardcore adventure tourers in India were a select reserve for those with deep pockets and bikers who could handle them big machines. So in a way, it was the Himalayan that introduced Indians to the concept of an adventure touring motorcycle that’s affordable and immensely capable too. Over the past half decade we’ve seen it go from strength to strength and conquer some of the toughest terrains in the world with ease, and also help Royal Enfield be seen as a lot more than just a manufacturer of retro motorcycles. And now, it’s time for the second generation Himalayan that we’ve all been waiting for. 

Royal Enfield’s approach to this new Himalayan’s design is a very interesting one, because there are a few retro cues like the round headlamp, which by the way now houses a modern, full LED setup. But a lot of this bike now looks very modern and purpose built, which adds to its appeal as a new-age adventure tourer immensely. 

A big highlight on the new Himalayan is the larger, 17-litre fuel tank that also adds to the bike’s stance immensely. I also like the beak-like mudguard. The tank continues to use metal extensions like before for protection in the event of a fall, and these also get some interesting detailing. The new, liquid-cooled engine sits packed tightly and is now a stressed member of the chassis, adding to visual appeal, while the exhaust is a stubby one and has the same effect too. The Himalayan’s rear end is my favourite angle to look at the bike though, thanks to the increased gap between the tyre and fender that makes it look sportier. More importantly, the new Himalayan integrates the stop lamp into the turn indicator pods for a cleaner look. Overall, this new Himalayan looks far more modern and a lot more appealing, which should also help it appeal to a wider audience.

Another big change is the new instrument cluster which is a single, high resolution, 4-inch circular display that connects to the Royal Enfield app via Wi-Fi. It lets you view Google maps navigation in a large, non-distracting format eliminating the need for a phone mount. And Google maps navigation is relayed via the Royal Enfield app and not through the Google maps app on your phone. The console is easy to use and is controlled via a 5-way joystick on the handlebar, along with a dedicated home button. The joystick could do with a more tactile feel, but overall, this is a brilliantly engineered console with excellent integrations for navigation, music and more.

Of course, the biggest talking point about this bike, long before it even broke cover, has been its new 450cc engine that takes care of one of the biggest concerns with the previous Himalayan, its lack of performance. And that’s because this new engine offers 40PS and 40Nm, a huge jump from the previous bike’s 410cc engine’s outputs of 24.5PS and 32Nm. So performance, even at 10,000 feet above sea level is very impressive. 

With 90 percent of the peak torque available from just 3,000rpm and peak torque coming in at just 5,500rpm the new Himalayan is high on midrange grunt. That said, grunt below 3,000rpm could have been slightly better. However, I’d also like to add that we only rode the Himalayan several thousand feet above sea level so it remains to be seen how the new engine performs in the plains. Admittedly though, the Sherpa 450 as Royal Enfield calls the new engine, is very impressive on the performance front. Given the significant jump in power and torque outputs as compared to the air-cooled 411, acceleration is a lot stronger and unlike the older bike, this one will allow you to cruise at 120 kilometres per hour or more, without feeling stressed.

But there’s a lot more to this engine than just its performance, because this is a thoroughly modern engine that makes the older bike’s 410 feel archaic, because it is Royal Enfield’s first air-cooled single, uses ride by wire and yes, finally, the Himalayan also gets a 6-speed gearbox! 

The Sherpa 450 is also Royal Enfield’s first short-stroke engine. Effectively it is quick to build revs and has ditched the older engine’s laidback feel for a sprightly one, every time you twist the throttle. It may have also given up the traditional Royal Enfield thump but I did not miss it, as the engine ensures you’re always entertained with its performance, crisp throttle response and overall liveliness. Most importantly, the Sherpa 450 is 10 kilos lighter than the older engine, which should give you an idea about the efforts gone into its development! You also get two riding modes now, Eco and Performance, though you can stick to Performance almost all the time given the linear power delivery. 

As a bike named after this region, we’ve never had any doubts about the Himalayan’s abilities off-road, on trails and bumpy yet fast gravel sections. But this new Himalayan takes that game a notch higher, thanks to its new twin-spar frame, the fatter, upside down Showa forks, the rear monoshock that gets an additional 20mm of travel and a linkage, and of course, the Ceat tyres that have been developed especially for this motorcycle. 

The 43mm upside down forks are the star of the new Himalayan’s show. We rode the bike hard on a surface that can be termed as pure torture, given the amount of rocks and gravel it had. The Himalayan remained unfazed though, taking in all the beating without breaking a sweat. Ground clearance is now up to 230mm besides the 200mm of suspension travel at both ends and this helped, along with the wider rear tyre. Overall weight is down by a not so significant 3 kilos, but the new Himalayan feels a lot nimbler and easier to manoeuvre off tarmac thanks to the new chassis and better suspension that have improved the bike’s handling big time. So yes, the new Himalayan certainly feels more accomplished when it comes to riding on trails or going fast on gravel. You can also switch rear ABS off now, which helps matters further.

The new chassis and suspension have also made a world of difference to the Himalayan’s handling on tarmac. It feels more confident and more capable, especially around corners and in fact it almost feels like the front wheel is not a 21-inch one but is a smaller 19-inch wheel. This feel is of particular significance because you can now go faster around corners, adding to the bike’s credentials as a touring machine. The chassis affords a more planted feel while the Ceat tyres offer good grip, except at the very fag end when pushing hard. I also like how well-balanced the suspension is as the sporty handling does not compromise the ride quality. The bike is adept at soaking up undulations without losing composure and also ensures the rider is comfortable. The seat feels comfortable too, though there’s a long list of accessories on offer that include a more comfortable touring seat. Royal Enfield has also added vibration dampers to the footpeg mounts to soak up vibration, without really feeling squishy, a nice touch. Seat height is also adjustable now, which will benefit shorter riders, besides which the bike is very accommodating for taller riders, something those above six feet tall are sure to appreciate. 

Effectively, not only does this new Himalayan address the older one’s concerns very well, but it also feels like a huge step up from its predecessor in every department. It looks smashing, has a lot more grunt that makes it far more capable whether on open roads or at high altitudes, handles really well and ticks a lot more boxes now. This new Himalayan has been a long time coming and after two days of riding it hard in the Himalayas, on tarmac and off it too, I certainly think the bike has been worth the wait.

The post 2023 Royal Enfield Himalayan: First Ride Review first appeared on Turbocharged.

Here’s a quick recap of what all is new on the Himalayan 452. It is the first Royal Enfield to get a liquid-cooled engine, christened as the Sherpa 450 . The 452cc liquid-cooled single cylinder 4-valve powerplant coupled with a 6-speed transmission produces 40PS and 40Nm. 

In terms of features, you get all-LED lighting, a 4-inch colour TFT display with smartphone connectivity, ride-by-wire with ride modes, slip and assist clutch, and switchable dual-channel ABS. You get a 825mm seat, adjustable to 845mm, as standard, and there’s even an 805mm optional seat adjustable to 825mm. The fuel tank capacity has gone up from 15-litre to 17-litres. 

It is underpinned by a twin spar tubular steel frame. It gets a longer wheelbase of 1,510mm (1,465mm on the earlier model), ground clearance has gone up from 220mm to 230mm, but the bike is 3kg lighter than the first-gen model at 196kg. The suspension setup is new as well, with 43mm upside-down forks at the front and a mono-shock at the rear, and 200mm wheel travel at both ends. Speaking of the wheels, you get a 21-inch front and 17-inch rear wheel with spoked rims with tube tyres. 

Once launched, the Himalayan will go up against the Yezdi Adventure, KTM 390 Adventure, and BMW G 310 GS in India. Stay tuned to this space to read our first ride review of the new Himalayan. 

The post The new Royal Enfield Himalayan showcased at EICMA 2023 first appeared on Turbocharged.