Royal Enfield’s Future Could Include New Twin, Bigger Himalayan, And EV

The manufacturer could launch as many as 14 new bikes.

May 04, 2020 at 10:38am ET

2 min read

Despite the motorcycle industry’s slowdown, manufacturers are doing everything but kicking back. New ideas are thriving, creative juices are flowing, and while production is on hold, there is no shortage of new motorcycles coming our way.

So far, since the beginning of the lockdown, we’ve seen new BMW, KTM, and Indian models launched, proving that the work behind the scenes doesn’t stop even when production does. In India, the Royal Enfield hive continues to buzz as well. The manufacturer was expected to launch two new bikes in April 2020, an event local media suspects will be delayed to May as rumors of the Meteor’s impending debut are peaking. These two models are only a beginning, though, as we could soon see as many as 14 new bikes added to the lineup.

According to Motorcycle News, Royal Enfield Head of Product Development Simon Warburton said that the company’s Head of Product Strategy and Industrial Design Mark Wells introduced no fewer than 14 new model ideas over the past year or so. The publication suggests that the list of potential new motorcycles could include such projects as new Twin-based models and even an upsized Himalayan.

We recently argued that a twin-based ADV would be a very strong move for the company. It would not only expand both the 650 and the Himalayan lineups—which, combined, represent 75 percent of Royal Enfield’s sales in Europe, according to MCN—but such a model would also bank on the mid-size adventure motorcycle segment’s tremendous popularity.

The future could also be electric for Enfield. Royal Enfield Managing Director Siddhartha Lal touched on the subject of electrification, saying that it’s something the company might eventually consider, but not right away.

“We're very excited about the electric future and our vision towards it, but it will still be a while - a long time from us before we come out with a full plan to the public,” he told MCN. Tease.

The fun never stops and it looks like Royal Enfield has a few tricks up its sleeves. Something like 14 of them.

Source: Motorcycle News