Royal Enfield Interceptor & Continental GT 650: Shock pricing on the cards

Royal Enfield seems intent at shocking the world with the pricing of their latest motorcycle – the Interceptor 650. According to the latest edition of the EvoIndia magazine, the motorcycle will be priced at Rs. 2.75 lakhs, making it the cheapest twin cylinder bike in the country. At that price point, the Interceptor 650 will be nearly Rs. 25,000 cheaper than the Ninja 300 – currently the cheapest twin cylinder motorcycle in India.

The Continental GT 650 could be priced a little shy of Rs. 3 lakhs. If the Interceptor 650 indeed commands a price tag of Rs. 2.75 lakhs, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Continental GT 650 sitting at Rs. 2.99 lakhs considering the fact that both motorcycles share most components save for styling and ergonomics. Where the Interceptor 650 has a more relaxed riding position, the Continental GT 650 has a more aggressive riding stance.

Apart from these changes, both motorcycles share the newly developed 650cc, twin cylinder air-oil cooled engine that generates 47 Bhp-52 Nm. This engine is paired to a 6 speed manual gearbox that gets a slipper clutch as standard. The engine gets fuel injection, four valve heads and a single overhead camshaft, making it the most modern motor produced by Royal Enfield.

Cycle parts on the motorcycles include telescopic front forks, gas charged twin rear shock absorbers, wire spoked wheels, tubed tyres and disc brakes on both wheels. Dual channel ABS is standard. At the price point that the Royal Enfield twins will be launched, they have no direct competition currently in the Indian market. Other twin cylinder retro styled motorcycles from brands such as Triumph and Harley Davidson are priced a few lakhs higher.

Retro styling and the Royal Enfield brand are big strengths that the twins bring to the table. The sharp pricing is meant to attract existing Royal Enfield motorcycle owners – who number in the lakhs – to upgrade to the twin cylinder motorcycles in a big way. If Royal Enfield manages to attract at least 10 % of this population, it will make a huge dent in the premium motorcycle segment.