Royal Enfield Thunderbird & Classic ABS Coming Soon! Royal Enfield bikes will soon feature single channel ABS across Thunderbird, Classic and Bullet series. Only Himalayan, Continental GT 650 and Interceptor 650 will offer dual channel ABS in India.
Classic 350, Thunderbird 350 and other popular options are expected to witness INR 5000 worth price hike after getting single channel unit while Himalayan can expect price hike of INR 10,000-12,000. It would be even better if they use the bigger 648cc engine in their Himalayan and project all three of them as segment leaders in three different riding styles. All this could happen anytime before April 2019.
The number game basically exists for 350cc options in the lineup as other are slow selling products with specific set of buyers across the country. As they presently sell less than 1000 units for Himalayan, launching the same with bigger engine may not affect them much in terms of total sales.
On the other hand, adventure bikes like Versys 650 and Triumph Tiger 800 will get a new rival with impressive power numbers. Classic 500, Thunderbird 500 and Bullet 500 have limited buyers and they won’t worry much with INR 5000 of hike with added single channel ABS.
When it comes to sales, majority of number comes from Classic 350 and Bullet 350. If They are ready to push ABS into their entire lineup, discontinuing the Bullet 350 with drum brake will also be a requirement.
This way, Bullet 350 lovers could get a possible hike of INR 10,000 or more in order to add both front disc and single channel ABS into the package. ABS is a great way to avoid motorcycle slips in emergency braking.
Leaving the rear wheel vulnerable is also a negative point for RE lovers as some fans are more interested in using rear wheel braking on their Bullet and Classic 350.
