New Enfield

[guest7]

I was speaking to a club member earlier and he said that he was interested in the new Enfield EFI



Have any of you ridden one yet or heard anything (good or bad) about it?

Apparently they are claiming 80mph and 80mpg.

GC

[niblue]

I've seen a few pictures & reviews in the mags and am oddly attracted by the idea of getting one.

[Simon#83]

I was the club member in question. You beat me to it Graham!

Now it might be a sign of me getting older, feeling nostalgic, and so on, but I found myself browsing the Royal Enfield site the other day and see that they've just launched a new EFI model.

Although my DR has served me well, it is getting a little tired now (mainly through neglect and just in time maintenance!) and I got thinking about what I could replace it with. The new XTs look great, but as with the DR, they're a bit tall for my short legs, and I think it would take a bit of getting used with its futuristic transformer looks.  (Says he who also has a KTM Duke II!; On todays POTD as it happens).

There doesn't appear to me to be many current model bikes that I feel would make a good all rounder without being too expensive/complicated/heavy. I seem to find myself always looking at bikes 10+ years old. Why do commuters have to be 125cc, or have a de-tuned 600/1000cc sportsbike engine in it?

I think what I'm looking for as a replacement needs has some or all of the following criteria:

• Dependable
• Can cruise at motorway speeds
• Comfortable on long distance trips
• Good MPG
• Cheap insurance
• Cheap/easy to service
• Push start (ideally with a kickstart as backup)
• Not too tall
• Good luggage carrying capability
• Will take knobbly tyres
• Light enough to pick up if it goes over
• Nice to look at

On paper the new EFI model seems to tick a lot of boxes, top speed of around 80mph, 70 odd MPG, and so on. I'd be interested in peoples opinions on Royal Enfields.

The sort of questions I have are:

Are they reliable? Is 27HP enough to keep up with modern traffic? Is the single saddle comfier than the standard seat? What's the build quality like?


Simon

[Andy M]

Based on an 18hp 5-speed:

18hp is enough to keep up with traffic, it's the cooling/mixture control that stops the old engine doing motorways in comfort.

Single saddle is no different to a dual seat, possibly cooler in summer though. I like the one on the Triumph.

Only issues I had was a wiring fault in the headlight shell (fixed in two minutes) and a series of broken clutch cables due to a badly fitting lever which I believe they fixed. Steffan managed to get odd noises out of the engine, but I'll let him comment further.

I hear the EFI solved all these. I'd give one garage space soon after I've picked the right five or six numbers.

Andy

[robG]

Simon , with regard to reliability , this model is a bit of an unknown quantity at the moment . I suspect that peoples opiions will come from the earlier ,pre efi ,models .For interests sake , can I suggest that you have a look at a website called '60kph'. This an Indian site relating to a riders club in India . Lots of good travelogue type of stuff and a lot of techy stuff . There may be some insight there . These guys cover some decent mileage and the website is lovely to look at anyway.

Rob .

[Steffan]

This is a new beast and therefore different from the old ones, even the new old ones but I would suggest that if you have killed a DR from neglect then a RE is not for you. I am convinced that they are, or can be reliable although like the MZ 2t they are not as fast as people like to think. Well not reliably so. That said the reliability depends on a higher level of attention that you would give a Jap single like a DR, XT, XTZ etc. They are a lot (LOT) of fun and are good at carrying loads - somewhat surprisingly. Parts for the old ones are cheap cheap cheap. All that said I baby-ed mine and it still did the bigend in Ireland. As for these new ones, it will be a case of suck it and see.

What I would say about RobG's comment is that it is good advice but remember they will be riding "old" ones or the new old ones and not the UCE above. Also if you watch some of their video clips or the films Solo to the Top of the World or One Crazy Ride, the overwhelming feature is that their motors never work as hard as we work ours over here. You never hear them revved hard or even busy.

Just my 2P worth

Steffan

PS You are welcome to come and try out the black beast or once it is repaired the green machine ( which I plan to take to Morocco) if you would like - just drop me line.

[Richard]

Well I have heard various stories re the actual power output, if it is 27hp then I'm just about convinced.  If its closer to 18 then I'm not.

I also remain to be convinced on the actual cruising speed ability.  75 mph cruising is plenty, 55 isn't.

My MZs managed quite well on about 21 hp but they were also carrying a lot less weight.  Using top whack as a cruising speed didn't mean breaking an engine but it also didn't do much for the fuel economy.  I reckon you could cruise a modern CBR600 or something at Enfield speeds and achieve much the same economy as the Enfield - but keep the crank within the cases.

I was also a bit surprised when taking out Steves engine at just how bloody fiddly it was for such a simple design.  Never seen so many nooks, crannies and brackets.  I am so not looking forward to putting it back in.

Richard

[Steffan]

Not as much as I am not old friend 

Steffan

[Andy M]

MZ's have really spoilt you two! Compare the 4 bolts that keep the motor in an MZ with pictures of getting the bike from round the engine on a BM oilhead and you'll stop worrying about even the Bullet!

Andy

[Richard]

But why would I ever want to take the engine out of an airhead ?

Gearbox, yes, but engine, never.  I can even remove the crank without moving the cases, not to mention everything else.

I've got the gearbox down to a fairly fine art, which is just as well as I have to shfit it back to lubricate the clutch splines annually.

MZs are truly clever and designed rather than evolved.  A wonderful example of communist engineering at its best.

(Does that move this debate to the Rant section then ?)

Richard

[Simon#83]

Steffan,

I haven't quite killed the DR yet, but I'm finding it takes much more of my time than I'd like to keep on top of things.

Would you say an Enfield is more of an "enthusiasts" bike? I had a Lada once that I'd class as an enthusiasts car, as I was forever having to sort out niggly little things to keep it working properly. I guess some people might term this as having character. Once you got used to it's little quirks it wasn't so bad. Just a little annoying to not be able to consistently jump into it and it would just work every time.

Had a quick look around the 60kph site. Lovely site, but haven't found anything on the EFI model yet. I gather the EFI model is currently only being sold into the European market as it as the new engine was built to pass the latest European emmissions laws. I don't think it is being sold in India yet.




 

[Richard]

Don't knock Ladas.  Brilliant motors.  Most of the taxi firms in Cardiff used them, painted black and white for some bizarre reason.

Reliable, brilliant winter starters, huge boots, awesomely heavy steering.  I'd have a Niva now if they were still about.

Richard

[Andy M]

Steffan,

I haven't quite killed the DR yet, but I'm finding it takes much more of my time than I'd like to keep on top of things.

Would you say an Enfield is more of an "enthusiasts" bike? 

When I had the Bullet I did very little once the carb was set up as I liked it except change the oil. The current bullet crowd are fiddlers (sorry Steffan, no offence intended) for the simple reason the stock non-EFI bullet can be turned from an 18HP plodder into a 30hp racer. You'd see people on the yahoo group asking how soon after they got the bike could they rebuild it with samrat rockers and goodness knows whate else, which to me suggested they'd have done better buying something with a Rotax engine or a Bonneville. If the EFI already puts out 25+ HP, why fiddle?

What I think you need to know is the service schedule. If you are happy with 3000 oil changes that involve draining a timing chest and refilling it with an oil can and so on, you'll be fine. If you want 6000 mile, two nuts and a filter changes, you want the Bonneville or similar.

Andy

[Steffan]

None taken. I have since adopted a minimum fiddle policy.

I couldn't have said it better myself.


Steffan

[002]

None taken. I have since adopted a minimum fiddle policy.

I couldn't have said it better myself.


Steffan

Yes !   Stop Bloody Fiddling !

There was nothing wrong with it when you had it....!!!
I told you there was a Knack to it !

I bet you have gone and polished something on it aswell !
Went alright for me...popped along quietly at a reasonable pace...but you had to fiddle.
Change the carb,muck about with the points,change the exhaust....couldnt leave well alone 


Jethro