Royal Enfield Charges Into The Future With Electric Himalayan Concept

The Electric Himalayan Test Bed is living proof that RE is serious about going electric.

Enrico Punsalang

By: Enrico Punsalang

Nov 7, 2023 at 7:41am ET

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At EICMA 2023, Royal Enfield unveiled the highly anticipated Himalayan 452, the most performance-oriented iteration of the popular adventure bike to date. While we’ve gone all over the specs of the new model in a previous article, we weren’t expecting Royal Enfield to drop quite a surprise on us during the launch of the Himalayan 452.

Said surprise came in the form of an electric motorcycle. Now, I know what you’re thinking, and yes, RE has made it known that it was working on an electric motorcycle. However, we were almost sure that it would take the form of a classic-style cruiser or roadster – not an off-road-focused adventure machine. Indeed, what we saw was nothing short of impressive. Dubbed the “Electric Himalayan Test Bed,” the new bike is by no means a production-ready machine, but rather, exactly what it says it is: a testing platform for RE’s future electric endeavors.

From a styling perspective, the Royal Enfield Electric Himalayan Test Bed is very much different from what we’ve come to know from Royal Enfield. The bike is clearly very performance-oriented, featuring a beefy inverted front fork and the Ohlins gas-charged rear shock complete with an external reservoir. It’s also missing a lot of the body panels found on the standard Himalayan, further lending it a prototype-like aesthetic.

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In terms of performance, Royal Enfield has remained tight-lipped about any of the specifics. However, what we do know is that the fuel tank isn’t actually a fuel tank, but rather houses the charging port for easy access. The bike rolls on thoroughly dual-sport underpinnings, with a 21-inch front and a 17-inch rear wheel combo complete with knobby dual-purpose rubber.

As for what the future holds for Royal Enfield’s electric endeavors, it’s interesting to see that the company is eyeing off-road performance as part of the electric plan. As for the electric Himalayan concept, an official launch doesn’t seem to be on the horizon, at least not until a couple of years. That being said, it’s also expected that other platforms are on the way, particularly, the highly anticipated Classic electric model.