Royal Enfield 650 Twins International Launch Dates Revealed

After waiting for what felt like an eternity, the 650 twins are finally ready to be launched in California between 24 and 28 September

Recent revelations on social media states that the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650 will be launched internationally in September, which also suggests that they aren’t too far away from India launch either. The launch of the much anticipated bikes had been delayed as Royal Enfield aimed to get the quality and reliability of bikes on par with its competition by thoroughly testing them.

With the increasing international demand to own the first ever twin-cylinder from Royal Enfield, the company may have planned to launch these bikes in the international market first. Royal Enfield may have evolved from its traditional engine setup for these bikes but they still hold true to the neo-retro design language that the company follows.

The Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650 may be identical in terms of mechanical components and engine displacement; however, they have been designed to cater to different targets. For instance, the ergonomics of the street-oriented Interceptor 650 is designed to be more relaxed, while the GT 650 is an outright cafe racer. Even its classic teardrop fuel tank, swept-back pipes, clip-on or ‘Ace’ handlebars and rear-set footpegs scream cafe racer.

As mentioned earlier, both the bikes use the same brand new 648cc, parallel-twin, fuel-injected, air-oil cooled motor that makes 47.7PS at 7100rpm and 52Nm of torque at 5250rpm. It comes paired to a 6-speed transmission, a first for Royal Enfield.

The chassis has been developed by Harris Performance, an Eicher Motors subsidiary, and fined tuned to improve agility and riding dynamics. Braking duties are handled by a 320mm disc brake up front and a 240mm disc brake at the rear. Dual-channel ABS will be offered as standard.

Expected to be priced around Rs 3-3.5 lakh, the Royal Enfield twins will compete against the Harley-Davidson Street 750 priced at Rs 5.25 lakh and the popular Kawasaki Z650, which is priced at Rs 4.99 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).