Australian Motorcyclist – June 2017

ROYAL ENFIELD

HIMALAYAN

PRICE: $5990 (plus on-road charges)

WARRANTY: Two years, unlimited

distance, plus two years road service

SERVICING INTERVALS: n/a

ENGINE: Air-cooled single cylinder,

4-stroke, SOHC, fuel injection

BORE x STROKE: 78 x 86mm

DISPLACEMENT: 411cc

COMPRESSION: 9.5:1

POWER: 18kW @ 6500rpm

TORQUE: 32Nm @ 4250rpm

TRANSMISSION: 5-speed, wet

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SUSPENSION: Front, 41mm telescopic

fork, travel 200mm. Rear, link-type

monoshock, travel 180mm.

DIMENSIONS: Seat height 800mm,

weight 191kg, fuel capacity 15 litres,

wheelbase 1465mm

TYRES: Front, 90/90/21.

Rear, 120/90/17

FRAME: Half-duplex split cradle

BRAKES: Front, 300mm disc

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Rear, 240mm disc, single-piston

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FUEL CONSUMPTION: 3.5 litres

per 100km, premium unleaded

THEORETICAL RANGE: 500km

COLOURS: Snow, Granite

VERDICT: MOUNTAIN MAGIC

SPECS

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canisters or more bags. The instruments
will tell you everything you want to know
and the bike even has a (fairly basic)
compass. I wouldn’t hesitate to use it for
just about any purpose.
Well, actually... there is one thing.
The seat is covered in a comfortable
material, but the underlying comfort is
a bit so-so. Like many other bikes, the
Himalayan calls for a seat cushion. I
will be trying ours out with both a
Wild Ass Air Cushion
and an AirHawk to
see which is more
appropriate, when I
take it on a long ride.
Ours? Yes, by the
time you read this
a Himalayan will be
sitting in our garage,
or more likely out to
play in the mountains. We
are getting a long-term loan
bike from the importers and
I’m looking forward to going

exploring on it, and to trying out all

sorts of accessories – both from RE

and from the aftermarket.

Forecasting the success of a particular

model is a mug’s game – I should know,

I predicted that the Honda CX500

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surprised if the Himalayan is not a huge

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price, with the versatility

and the common-

sense design,

this bike’s a

winner. Buy

one and hunt

down a Holden

ute for

yourself.D