Royal Enfield Himalayan BS4

The BS6-compliant Royal Enfield Himalayan has been spotted testing in India for the first time. It gets a couple of new features, a greener engine and a new set of wheels. Head here for more details. The bike was also showcased with three new colours at EICMA. These bright colours will debut on the India-spec Himalayan soon. You can check out the new colours here.

The Royal Enfield Himalayan is a proper entry level adventure tourer that you can buy under Rs 2 lakh in India. It presents a different approach by Royal Enfield. The Himalayan looks like any other adventure bike but the rawness and ruggedness in design is what makes the Himalayan different from the rest. Its functional design includes a round headlamp along with a tall windscreen. The raised up front fender along with the conventional one shouts out loud the dual purpose nature of this bike.

The highly informative instrument cluster houses a compass as well. The 21-inch wheel up front along with a 17-inch unit at the rear come paired with dual purpose tyres.

The Royal Enfield Himalayan gets its power from an air and oil-cooled 411cc engine with a five-speed transmission. The fuel injected motor makes 24.5 PS and 32 Nm. It gets long travel forks and monoshock. Braking is via a 300mm front and a 240mm rear disc brake with dual channel ABS. The bike has a minimum ground clearance of 220mm and has a wheelbase of 1465mm. It gets  a 15-litre fuel tank and weighs 191 kgs. The overall body dimensions of this adventure tourer are 2190mm x 840mm x 1360mm (LxWxH).

The Himalayan is currently priced at Rs 1.81 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Around this price, you can opt for the Bajaj Dominar which is more adept for touring but isnt as capable as the Himalayan off road. Another affordable ADV which you can look at is the Hero XPulse 200. It has a smaller 200cc motor but is as capable as the Himalayan offroad. Larger more expensive ADV options include the BMW G 310 GS and Kawasaki Versys-X300. KTM is all set to launch the 390 Adventure in India. However, it will be the upcoming smaller 250 Adventure that the Himalayan will have to watch out for. 

The Royal Enfield Himalayan looks more of a functional adventure tourer and its design is more industrial than aesthetic. The front is highlighted by a rounded headlamp along with a tall windscreen to protect the rider from windblast at high speeds and mud splashes during off-roading. The motorcycle gets luggage panniers and has also a provision to fit petrol cans in case of long distance journeys. The large 21 inch wired wheel upfront has been fitted to take on the uneven surfaces with ease and offer a comfortable ride quality. 

The bike has been fitted with split step up seats that come well padded and offer optimum comfort to the rider and pillion. In terms of features, the Himalayan has been integrated with a highly informative cockpit that comes with a compass. Furthermore, the motorcycle receives an LED tail lamp as well. 

The motorcycle gets a dual-channel ABS setup. 

The Himalayan houses a 410cc, single-cylinder, air and oil-cooled motor mated to a five-speed transmission. The fuel-injected engine makes 24.8PS @ 6500rpm and 32Nm of torque @ 4250rpm. When launched, the Himalayan came with a carburettor but now it gets fuel-injection to clear the BS-IV emissions norms.

This is the first modern Royal Enfield motor to do away with push rods instead using a chain-driven overhead camshaft. The engine is called LS410 where LS stands for long-stroke. This long stroke nature allows the motor to develop its peak torque and horsepower at low rpm which is quite useful in off-road riding conditions.

According to Royal Enfield, power has deliberately been kept low on the motorcycle so as to make its performance more accessible to newer riders graduating from smaller bikes. The new engine uses a counterbalancer to smoothen out vibrations. Interestingly, the top-end of the engine is air-cooled while the bottom end of the engine i.e. the crankcase uses oil cooling.

The Himalayan feels unlike any other Royal Enfield bikes, it is more refined though not as refined as say, an equivalent Japanese bike. The bike features tall gearing which makes it relaxed during highway runs. 

The Royal Enfield Himalayan is bolted on a half duplex split cradle frame and comes equipped with 41mm conventional telescopic forks upfront along with a monoshock for the rear. Stopping power is delivered with the help of 300mm front disc brake and a 240mm disc at the rear. ABS (Anti-Lock Braking System) is not being offered even as an option.