Royal Enfield Thunderbird

Royal Enfield Thunderbird OverView

Royal Enfield, the world's oldest bike manufacturer has been a very well known name in India since the days of British Raj. But, it was year 1956 when The Enfield Manufacturing Co., a British motorcycle manufacturer's subsidiary unit Royal Enfield started assembling Bullet motorcylces under license from UK components. By 1962, the company was completely manufacturing the RE bikes in India. In the year 1995, the Enfield India bought the rights to sell its bike under the name Royal Enfield.

Coming 2000, Royal Enfield was going through a bad patch and it was none more than a sinking ship with producing only 2,000 motorcylces per annum with an installed capacity of producing as much as 6,0000 bikes per year. It was the time when the company was left with three options, first sell out the sinking ship before it gets too late, second shut the business for cutting down the losses, or third - mustering all the guts for improving the fortunes of the company. It was a 26 year old student Shorthand Lal who took up the challenge in his hands brought the dying horse back to life again. He did so by launching the very first breed of Royal Enfield Thunderbird way back in 2001, which completely changed the fortunes of Royal Enfield and rose the company from ashes to the skies of fame.

 

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Designing

Royal Enfield bikes have always been known for their great combination of macho looks with style. Both the new Royal Enfield Thunderbird 350 and Thunderbird 500 show enthralling design features. Both the twin spark motor bikes look very similar to each other and the designing of these bikes take your senses far beyond your expectations. At first look it will be very difficult to tell about the difference between the Twin spark and any other Thunderbird except the contemporary looking engine, which has an incorporated crankcase and gearbox. One can easily say that the current Thunderbird is the only bike from the Royal Enfield arsenal, which breaks the traditional design and proportions that are an essential part of other models. 

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Engine And Performance

The Thunderbird aficionados now have a reason for cheering as Royal Enfield has given them a superb option of choosing either the 350 cc variant or the 500 cc variant. This is where the two bikes reveal a lot of difference despite they both look like twins on the exteriors. Both the 350 cc and the 500 cc variant now have twin-spark plugs, an automatic decompresser and a unit construction, which according to the company resolves the oil leakage problem faced in the older Thunderbird variant. 

 

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Braking And Handling

Both of the mean machines are blessed with an impressive braking system. Both the front and the rear wheels in Thunderbird 500 are provided with the disc brakes. The gas charged dampers work perfectly well, even the bike is overloaded with lots of luggage. For an extra safety, both the bikes have been upgraded with a set of new brakes- Thunderbird 500 comes with a 240mm single caliper disc brake at rear and a 280mm double pot caliper disc at front. While, Thunderbird 350 is blessed with a hydraulic 280 mm disc brake and a drum brake on the rear. The Thunderbird employs kicked out forks and an extended single downtube frame.  Thanks to Royal Enfield for putting up a marvelous braking system, the bike comes to a sudden halt whenever it is required.

 

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Safety Features

Riding the Thunderbird Twinspark, both the 350 and 500 models on variable tracks is not only safe but also very smooth due to the sounds braking mechanism and the presence of telescopic suspension system. However, the suspension system is quite stiff and not ideal for bumpy roads, but once the bike gets old the suspension works extremely brilliant and offers jolt free ride to both the rider and the pillion. Thunderbird 300 and Thunderbird 500, both offer a telescopic, hydraulic damping suspension mechanism on the the front and a revolutionary swing arm with adjustable gas filled shock absorber beneath the seat on the rear end. Thus the result is a plush and comfortable ride and doesn't throw the rider or the pillion or the luggage around over bumpy tracks.

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Pros

Good handling and stability control, modern yet classic royal design, Twinspark technology along with a better new engine.

 

Royal Enfield Thunderbird Cons

Turns out to be expensive, heavy weight makes it hard to ride in heavy traffic areas.

 

Royal Enfield Thunderbird News Update