Classic Bike Guide

What’s the new ROYAL ENFIELD like to live with?

THIS IS A BRAND-NEW MOTORCYCLE. IT’S A 650CC twin, looks pretty good and is easy to ride – and it costs £5500. On the road. With three year’s warranty and three year’s breakdown cover. So, is there a catch?

WHAT OLI THOUGHT

The other day I saw an ad for a CB350 twin from 1975, describing it as a middleweight. It’s a mark of how our expectations have changed that Royal Enfield’s new 650cc parallel twin is now counted as one of those middleweights.

I went for the Interceptor rather than the GT, as I personally think it’s the better looking of the twins (other opinions are available). I’m also getting a bit stiff in the joints and increasingly wide around the waistband, so a café racer crouch isn’t for me. First impressions being the clean lines and all the gubbins tucked away, no mass

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