After launching it in the UK in grand style, Royal Enfield has now launched the Continental GT in India. The motorcycle has been a long time coming with multiple showcases earlier this decade. Royal Enfield has positioned the Continental GT as its flagship product boasting of being the lightest, fastest and most powerful offering from the automaker. Production of this cafe racer takes place at Royal Enfield’s Chennai facility. The Royal Enfield Continental GT has a long history with the first model arriving in 1965. Off late, many manufacturers have shown interest in cafe racers with the Tokyo Motor Show seeing a slew of cafe racer displays.
Read The Royal Enfield Continental GT Review
The Royal Enfield Continental GT is propelled by a 535cc, air-cooled, single-cylinder engine which develops 29.1 BHP of peak power at 5100 RPM and 44 Nm of peak torque at 4000 RPM. The fuel injected motor can be powered on by either a kick start or an electric start. The engine is mated to a 5-speed gearbox. No compromise seems to have been made on the hardware as the Continental GT boasts of Pirelli tyres, twin Paioli rear gas shocks and Brembo brakes. The standard bike gets a single flat seat while a pillion seat can be opted for as an option.
The Royal Enfield Continental GT is priced at Rs. 2.05 lakhs (on-road, Delhi) and Rs. 2.14 lakhs (on-road, Mumbai).
The Royal Enfield Continental GT uses a tubular steel frame designed by Harrison Engineering and the weight of this bike is 184 kgs. The fuel tank can accommodate 13.5-litres of gasoline. As part of the launch, Royal Enfield is also putting on sale GT Apparel and Burn-up Wear which is Continental GT merchandise. Lots of work has gone into development of merchandise such as t-shirts, polo shirts, leather jacket, textile jacket, shoes, gloves, belts, helmets, etc.
Royal Enfield is offering the Continental GT in two colour options – red and yellow. The Indian manufacturer has made the entire bike from ground up with the UCE engine being the only part carried over from other models. Royal Enfield has specially worked upon the handling of the Continental GT. The company has tested the motorcycle around the world to set a new benchmark in classic sport motorcycles. Royal Enfield will be offering performance parts for the Continental GT but hasn’t disclosed any details on it yet.
Royal Enfield will be offering the same motorcycle in every market. Royal Enfield wants to be a global player in the near future. The company has 98 percent market share in India in the above 250cc motorcycle segment. They have lots of products planned for the future and have already chalked out a product map till 2020. The brand is striving to build a riding culture and has brought cafe racer culture to India. Until now, Royal Enfield has organised 1500 ride events. More motorcycles from the 1960s could be revised and launched by Royal Enfield in the second half of this decade.
