Royal Enfield 450cc water cooled Himalayan
 

Some early shots and rumors

https://youtu.be/2vtZDvWlZ-o

Been keeping an eye on this. The 411 does have a lack of gusto and this would answer that question. The flood of used 411's hitting the market should leave a ton of good deals out there in the near future. I'm currently looking at the Scram 411. Hoping to have one in my stable before long.
Personally, after my V-Strom and DRZ, I'm about done with water-cooled bikes. I don't ride aggressively anymore and it's a mess when you work on them. Just my personal preference. That said, most folks nowadays won't buy a bike that's not water-cooled. I can see why RE went that direction. My thoughts on this are in the definite minority.

I've been looking at the himalayan at lot. if I could pick up one really cheap, I'd do it. I'm not overly concerned with water cooled, but the larger displacement and more power would be a plus. my alternatives are either a KLR or a VStrom 650. I haven't decided to pull the trigger on any of them so far. perhaps I might wait until the end of the season and see if dealers start dumping leftover Himalayans on the market cheap. Right now the cheapest Hima I've round is 3500. if they come along at 3 grand, that would be a deal. The decision part though is that even at 3 grand, there are some KLRs and Vee's in that same price range (used, of course). Decisions, decisions. :)

Yeah I'm with you, I've been looking at the Himalayan alot lately. But I find KLR's for 3 on the regular. I love the look of the RE though.

I'm going to jump into the ADV bike riding world soon. I want to do the MABDR, Smokey Mountain 500 and SCAR. Getting TO the starting points is my only concern. I could trailer it to get there, but that adds a layer of issues with leaving the truck while doing the riding, and having to get back to recover it. Particularly with MABDR. SCAR would be easiest to get to because it passes just south of Charlotte. You're probably pretty close to that one too, aren't you?

Honestly, this is the first I've heard of any of those rides. So I don't know where they begin and end. School me please. And Honestly I don't really know whats so different in ADV rides vs. Dual Sport rides. Or maybe its because I treat my Dual Sport more like an Adv bike than a Dual sport or what ever. :lmao:

The biggest issue with all of the Royal Enfields is their power to weight ratio, compared to their competitors. While they aren't inherently bad bikes, they just don't seem to deliver comparable performance, even allowing for being built at a price point.

Yeah 439 lbs at 24.3 hp. But What other Competitors do they have. I guess if you are meaning other ADV bikes then sure. But what other ADV bike has that classic look? I'm getting old so having gobs of horse power doesn't matter to me anymore LOL. If it has the power to carry by big butt down a dirt road or a logging road I'm good with that.

All five of my motos are air cooled and that is what I like.

Most of the weight on the RE is down low so they don't actually feel heavy compared to something like a XR650 when picking them up off the ground.

The power isn't the talking point...its low end torque luggabilty that sells these bikes aka "tractor factor".

The low seat height also makes the Himmy very beginner friendly.

As for water vs air cooled...I prefer air cooled, I'll sacrifice peak power potential for System simplicity sake...Keep it Simple

my definition is that ADV is generally used for travelling. DS is day riding. But that's just me.

The MABDR (Mid Atlantic Backroad Discovery Route) runs from Damascus VA up through VA, WV and PA to the NY state border. All backroads, gravel and dirt. No trail riding though. There are 7 sections to it, if I remember correctly.

SCAR is the South Carolina Adventure Route. it's a big circle around SC from the mountains in the upstate to the coast near Charleston. Again...all backroads, dirt and gravel.

Smokey Mountain 500 is another loop ride that generally takes 3 days. Western NC, East Tennessee, I believe it drops down into GA and SC as well before making the circle back.

Another is the Georgia Traverse. it runs from the SC border in the upstate, across northern GA and ends at the Alabama state line.

All can be done with cabin camping, or of course, taking your tent along. Easy to find them on the interwebs...

Compare apples to apples. ADV bike to ADV bike. They all have a "classic look". If all you are looking for is the occasional putt down a logging road or dirt-a Honda 150/160 ADV scooter can do that, or most low cost China 200-250cc street/dirt bikes can do that well, and they don't weight 439 lbs(dry).If you're looking to do some serious trail riding, you need some speed to get there and power once you do.

D2 Powersports is a R.E. dealer they are about 2 hours from me. I just gave them a call and asked what the OTD price was on a Himalayan. List price on their site is 5,449. Salesman told me OTD price is 7,000. :lmao: I guess I had to remind myself why I LOVE chinese motorcycles so damn much. If I get serious to own one I'll track one down on the used market.

When i was shopping for my Vulcan S i probably contacted 6 different stealerships for I found one that actually wanted to talk and sell me a bike. All but the dealer i bought from where asking MSRP plus all the fake add-ons to the price on left over last year models or didn't even want to quote me the OTD price. They wanted me to come in to talk. I flat out told one of them if you can't give me the OTD price them you don't want my business. The guy i bought from had cut the MSRP and waved all the fees that the other dealers were adding. No negotiating was needed.

But yeah, You got to love the China bike.

If he would have said he would sell me one for a Tad below MSRP, I most likely would have driven up there tomorrow and gotten one.