Royal Enfield may be the longest-running motorcycle brand in terms of continuous production, but that prestigious heritage is mostly irrelevant today. After spending most of the previous century stuck in a low-tech groove, the company has reinvented itself entirely in this one.
It now has an image that rivals Harley-Davidson’s, continues to build accessible easy-to-own models, and has lifted its game so much in terms of build quality and design that the product range now leads the way in the market niches it occupies, where it used to follow.
What’s more, Royal Enfields are now cool, and the Bear 650 scrambler is the coolest model in the showroom.
Don’t believe me? Ask my glamorous neighbour. After more than two decades of studiously ignoring every test bike that I rode past her letterbox, the arrival of the Bear in our shared driveway attracted her eye enough to pause gardening and take a closer look.
She had never heard of Royal Enfield before but was suddenly aware that this carefully sculptured machine was one that she could contemplate owning, due to its learner-approved designation and easily managed 830mm seat height.
Royal Enfields are now cool, and the Bear 650 scrambler is the coolest model in the showroom
It was the “Fast Eddie” colourway – white tank, turquoise frame, black engine cases/exhaust/wheel rims, chequered flag stripes – that really tickled her fancy. Back in 1960, Eddie Mulder was a 16-year-old desert race rookie who won the 150-mile cross-country Big Bear Run on a Royal Enfield by three minutes. He now joins actor Steve McQueen and Hollywood stunt rider Bud Ekins as another yet another South Californian desert racer to have a bike named after him.
The $11,990 Bear 650 taps into this history by being the most authentic 1960s “desert sled” replica that you can buy brand new today. With its air/oil cooled twin-cylinder engine, beefed up frame and suspension, and slightly-leant-forward riding position, I’m sure Eddie would think he was traveling back in time if he swung a leg over the bike today. It even has his race number on the side plates.
The 650cc engine is shared with the Interceptor roadster and Continental GT café racer, but is tuned with a two-into-one exhaust.
To match its desert sled style, the Bear 650 does have some off-road chops. The Madras Rubber Factory (MRF) tyres are all-surface (except deep mud/sand) knobblies that are so proficient I wouldn’t hesitate to use them on my own bike.
The 650cc engine is shared with the Interceptor roadster and Continental GT café racer, but is tuned with a two-into-one exhaust so that it develops more torque down low and more power up top.
A lower centre of gravity allows it to sit crossed-up in a powerslide more naturally than a higher adventure bike.
Compared to an Interceptor, under-bike ground clearance increases to 184mm and there’s another 30mm of suspension travel at either end. The MRFs are mounted to 19in front and 17in rear spoked wheels and are of a width that promotes agility on or off road.
The double-cradle steel frame is ready for the rough stuff, with a longer wheelbase and slacker raked fork to promote stability, and a stronger front axle and more robust 43mm diameter USD forks absorb the big hits.
These mods create a bike that’s a joy to ride on well-maintained gravel roads, a lower centre of gravity allowing it to sit crossed-up in a powerslide more naturally than a higher adventure bike. The handy button next to the throttle on the right-side switch block defeats the antilock system on the rear disc brake should you wish to slide the Bear into the corner as well as out.
The motor delivers smooth, consistent riding force throughout the rev range and the firm but comfy seat enhances feedback from the contact surface/back tyre interface. If you’re not going to ride anywhere more hardcore than smooth fire breaks and gravel, the Royal Enfield will have you grinning like Fast Eddie on the Big Bear Run podium.
Naturally, qualities such as the refined and efficient 47bhp engine, the slick shifts of the six-speed gearbox, an easy-to-assume riding position, and the deadly accurate steering make the Bear 650 a great bike to ride on the road as well.
Drawbacks include the over-firm springing of the rear shocks, the fiddly and potentially flimsy toggle to change settings on the round TFT screen and its offset positioning to the left of the centre of the bike. No doubt this visual flaw is so that those who must remain tethered to their phones can mount their digital umbilical cord alongside, but surely the Bear 650 is entertaining enough without it.
Which is why when the friendly staff at Experience Motorcycles asked if I’d like to be shown how to hook up my mobile to aid navigating the Bear, my reply was: “No thanks, I already know the way to the nearest gravel road”.