Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450

The Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 is a roadster that shares a platform with the Himalayan 450. While many love the Himalayan 450, it is a hardcore ADV motorcycle that is not the most practical option for day-to-day commutes. The Guerrilla is essentially a more compact and accessible motorcycle that will appeal to a wider range of riders. It has unique styling, potent performance and goes up mainly against the likes of the Triumph Speed 400, Hero Mavrick 440, Harley-Davidson X440, and the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401.

I did have the motorcycle with me for over three weeks last year, where I was using it as my daily commuter. In that time, I also managed to get in a few rides to the twisties and a couple of highway runs as well. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Design  

The Guerrilla 450 looks similar to the Hunter 350 from the front with the round LED headlight that we see shared with many other RE bikes, fork gaiters, and a new, sleeker tank with an offset fuel cap. The rear section on the other hand looks very similar to that of the Himalayan 450 with the same exhaust and taillight-integrated turn indicators. Like with all RE motorcycles, there are a bunch of accessories for personalization including a flyscreen, a headlight grille, crash guards, different seat options and more. The Guerrilla is a unique looking motorcycle and I personally feel it looks like a bike that has entered a custom bike competition. At first, I was not a big fan of the design, but upon getting a look at it every once in a while on the streets, I have to say that the design has grown on me. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Colours

There are a bunch of youthful and loud colour schemes to choose from. They include Brava Blue, Yellow Ribbon, Playa Black, Gold Dip, Peix Bronze, and Smoke Silver. My favourite colour scheme from the lot has to be Braza Blue, as it is subtle but still has some standout elements like a colour-matched subframe and front wheel. One thing that I think would further improve the design is a more muscular fuel tank. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Build Quality 

The build quality and fit and finish of the bike is quite good and it catches attention wherever it goes. It is a unique design that manages to look classy, rugged, and sporty, all at once. While the switchgear also works fairly well, I personally do not like the knob (rotary) dials on the new Royal Enfield models. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Convenience Features

The Flash and Dash variants get the same round, TFT instrument console with Bluetooth connectivity and Google Maps navigation that we see in the Himalayan 450. Additionally, it also gets a Type-C, USB charging port. The visibility of the console is decent under most riding conditions, and it changes the theme from light to dark depending on lighting conditions. Visibility under harsh sunlight is not the best as it tends to reflect off the screen. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Safety Features

The Guerrilla comes with dual?channel ABS, and a ride?by?wire, but misses out on traction control. Throughout my time spent with the bike, I never really felt the need for traction control, even in the rainy season. That being said, it would be a nice addition for newer riders. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Ride Quality

The rear suspension is really stiff and while that might be nice for riding in the twisties, it does get uncomfortable when the bike goes through potholes and undulations. Do not get me wrong, it does handle small bumps decently well, but you have to slow down quite a bit or it feels jarring. The block-pattern tyres are again more form than function and I would not recommend taking this bike off-road without necessary modifications. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Engine

The Guerrilla is powered by the same 452cc, liquid-cooled ‘Sherpa’ engine which made its debut in the Himalayan 450. It makes the same 40.02PS and 40Nm although, with a kerb weight of 184 kg, it is 11 kg lighter than the Himalayan 450. This weight reduction has a lot to do with the fact that the Guerrilla has a much smaller 11-litre tank compared to the large 17-litre tank on the Himalayan. To suit the roadster character of the Guerrilla, Royal Enfield has given the bike a 45-tooth sprocket, compared to the Himalayan which gets a 47-tooth sprocket. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: City Performance

The Guerrilla has really exciting acceleration, and with the compact proportions, it is a slick motorcycle to get through traffic. The acceleration might be a bit intimidating for newer riders as it feels a bit aggressive, but it just takes a bit of getting used to. An issue with the Himalayan that has carried forward to the Guerrilla is that it makes very little torque under 2500rpm and this lead to me having to make more shifts. Paired with a slightly heavy clutch action and this will get a little frustrating, but it is only an issue when stuck in stop-go traffic. As soon as I accelerated and got the revs above 4000rpm, it felt in its element and cruised along smoothly. In our acceleration tests, it was almost a second quicker than the Speed 400 in the sprint to 100kmph.

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Highway Performance

On the highway, the Guerrilla is easily able to hold speeds of 100-120kmph. There were a few vibrations once I pushed past the 6000rpm mark and they got more prominent over 8000rpm.  Compared to the Himalayan, the motor in the Guerrilla does not feel as vibey. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Mileage

The Guerrilla 450 gave us an average mileage of 29.08kmpl in mixed riding conditions when we tested it. Comparing it to one of its main rivals, the Speed 400 returned an average mileage of 26.25kmpl, making it less fuel efficient than the Guerrilla. On a full tank of fuel, the Guerrilla should be able to do around 300kms.

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Handling

The Guerrilla 450 has a long wheelbase and fatter tyres compared to its competitors. At the front, it makes use of a 120-section tyre and at the rear, it gets a 160-section tyre. The Guerrilla does feel very stable at high speeds in straight line runs, but a little effort needs to be put in while cornering or flicking the bike from one side to another. The bike doesn’t have any issues tipping into corners, but when comparing it to the Speed 400, it is clear that it isn't as sharp and sporty in terms of handling. That being said, once the Guerrilla is in a corner, it holds a line in a very stable manner. I would like to see how the bike performs with the 110-section and 150-section road tyres compared to the rugged CEAT tyres that have been used. The performance of these CEAT tyres were good in the dry but they did not inspire confidence on wet roads.

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Brakes

The Guerrilla 450 is running a 310mm front and 270mm rear disc setup. The front brake has a decent initial bite. On the other hand, the rear brake is not as powerful, but it gets the job done. Overall, the brakes inspire enough confidence and bring the bike to a halt in a stable manner. For a 400cc bike, the braking performance offered is what you would want and expect.

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Verdict

The Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 is a unique motorcycle that does not want to be practical in any way, but make a loud statement. It is a roadster that offers really potent performance, unique, stylish looks, and it surely gives a rider a big-bike feel on a budget. There are many elements that are more form than function which is actually an interesting approach taken by Royal Enfield considering the needs and wants of the Indian customer. In the future, we hope to see a Scrambler on this platform, which should then make it even more desirable.

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Variants

There are three variants of the Guerrilla 450. They include Analogue, Dash, and Flash. The Flash and Dash variants get the same round, TFT instrument console with Bluetooth connectivity and Google Maps navigation. The Analogue variant gets the instrument console from the Super Meteor 650 which consists of an analogue speedometer with a digital inset to display other information. The tripper navigation pod is also available separately for this variant. Additionally, the only other element distinguishing the variants apart are the colour schemes.

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Competition

The Speed 400 is its main competitor that has a more refined engine, sharper handling and is priced cheaper. The Guerrilla 450 has quicker acceleration and is the larger motorcycle from the two. In the end, it all comes down to personal preference. 

Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450: Price

The three variants of the Guerrilla 450 are priced as follows: