For all my time on two wheels, I’ve by no means actually understood cruisers. The load, the ability, the dealing with, the seating place — none of them made sense to me alone, not to mention collectively. Now, although, I believe I get it.
What modified my thoughts wasn’t a trendy Indian or a heritage-laden Harley. It wasn’t some high-powered Triumph or meticulously crafted Kawasaki. It wasn’t even the sheer fantastic thing about the BMW R 18. As an alternative, it was one thing much more humble: The Royal Enfield Tremendous Meteor 650.
Full Disclosure: Royal Enfield shipped me out to Dallas-Fort Price to check the brand new Tremendous Meteor 650. The corporate paid for airfare, meals, and lodging, all of which helped to place coloration in my cheeks.
What Is The Royal Enfield Tremendous Meteor 650?
The Tremendous Meteor is, fittingly, the larger sibling to Enfield’s Meteor 350 — a traditionally-styled cruiser, laden with the 650 cc parallel twin engine from the INT650 and Continental GT. The Tremendous Meteor is the heaviest of the three, sitting at simply over 530 lbs when totally fueled, however makes the identical 46 horsepower and 31 lb-ft of torque as its siblings.
Moreover the conspicuous lack of a V form below the tank, nevertheless, the remainder of the Tremendous Meteor may be very conventional cruiser fare. The bars sweep backwards comfortably, the foot controls sit nearly straight below the triple tree. From the attitude of its low-slung seat, there’s not a lot to distinguish the Indian bike from, nicely, an Indian bike.
How Does It Journey?
The odd factor about this press journey was that I boarded my flight with out really realizing what I used to be heading out to journey. All I knew was it was new, it was a Royal Enfield, and it was in Texas. After I discovered it was a giant, shiny cruiser, I couldn’t assist however be just a little dissatisfied — I believed the journey could be all freeway cruising; a boring, windy affair. Fortunately, I used to be useless mistaken. The Tremendous Meteor is an absolute blast to journey.
Regardless of the dimensions and weight, the Tremendous Meteor feels keen and nimble when transferring. Its torquey engine, already a blast within the INT650 and Continental GT, actually shines right here — all that low-end energy enhances the Tremendous Meteor’s character. The Tremendous Meteor could not have essentially the most top-end energy, however its off-idle fueling shames Honda with its smoothness. In a cruiser, which issues extra?
When you’re up and transferring, and transfer from metropolis streets to twisting again roads, the Tremendous Meteor doesn’t falter. It’s much more nimble than you’d count on from all of the chrome, and the suspension is completely composed till you begin hitting the actually huge bumps. The transmission on the Tremendous Meteor can be a excessive level, with nice really feel and a pleasant, light-weight clutch — straightforward for these metropolis visitors stops and begins, but rewarding when clicking via gears on a twisty highway.
Paradoxically, the Tremendous Meteor solely begins to really feel misplaced when the precise freeway cruising begins. The seating place, with these ahead controls, places most of your weight straight onto your tailbone. It’s fantastic at first, however wears on you with hours within the saddle. The wind does too and not using a windshield on the bottom mannequin, however that’s a neater resolve. The seating place is a more durable promote.
Who Is It For?
Anybody and everybody. The Tremendous Meteor is Royal Enfield’s flagship, so it’s not essentially the most accessibly-priced bike within the lineup, nevertheless it’s additionally Royal Enfield’s flagship — the corporate is upfront about its plans to personal the lower-cost market whereas rivals hold pushing upwards. Regardless of its top-of-the-line standing, the Tremendous Meteor begins at a mere $7,000 — simply over half the price of the most cost effective Harley-Davidson.
The Tremendous Meteor is accessible in additional than simply value, although. Its low seat top is approachable for folk of all heights, its clear gas mapping means there’s no jerky throttle for inexperienced persons to take care of. But, regardless of these beginner-friendly concerns, the bike by no means feels just like the starter bikes that different firms uncaringly contract out. The machining, the development, even the switchgear punches far above its weight class. It’s a premium bike in every little thing however value — and displacement.
Ultimate Ideas
Within the time since I rode the Tremendous Meteor, the bike has by no means left my thoughts. It feels higher put-together than my very own BMW, but easier to swing a leg over and exit for a journey. The low finish torque and nimble dealing with make it a real pleasure to journey — at the very least for the primary few hours, earlier than the saddle begins digging into your tailbone.
Maybe better of all, although, is the truth that anybody can have that very same pleasure on the Tremendous Meteor. It’s a sufficiently big bike to really feel severe — like a step up from single-cylinder newbie fare — nevertheless it’s straightforward sufficient to journey that I wouldn’t hesitate in sitting a newbie on one. It’s reasonably priced but premium, approachable but thrilling, it’s the type of bike that function an introduction to motorcycling simply as simply because it might act as a beloved, decades-owned workhorse. The Tremendous Meteor 650 democratizes the high-end cruiser, making it an possibility for folk of all stripes to check out — and it’s nearly, nearly adequate to get this ADV rider to swap over.