India's favourite cruiser manufacturer, Royal Enfield, has been spotted testing a 750cc parallel twin engine bolted onto a modified Continental GT's chassis, in Spain. Moreover, if reports are to be believed, the engine could make it to production by the end of 2017. A few months ago, the same engine was also spotted on a Classic 500 that had been modified to carry the new engine.
As it is evident from the spy shots, the engine bolted to the chassis is substantially bigger than the single cylinder used by the current Continental GT. This calls for a few updates so that the chassis can accommodate a bigger engine and the added weight.
Other details which we were able to spot are in the above image is an oil-cooled radiator unit and a small oil filter at the base of the engine. Since it's a parallel twin motor, it features dual exhaust pipes, similar to the Triumph Bonneville Classic range. The motor is also said to be a carburetted one, forcing us to believe that it will make it to the Indian market first and then will it be exported to other countries, because using a fuel-injected engine is not mandatory in our country, courtesy lenient emission norms and that a motorcycle running carburettors will simply be non-conforming to Euro IV emission norms and therefore, won't be allowed to run on European roads.
There has been no word from Royal Enfield regarding the bike's launch or power figures. Though, if we were to guess the power figure, we would bet on a figure that lies in the ballpark of 40PS. Good enough to get any bike enthusiasts drooling, especially when the price is expected to be competitive. Why, you ask? Simply because it is Royal Enfield.
Siddhartha Lal, CEO Royal Enfield, stated, "Royal Enfield is the most profitable motorcycle company in the world in terms of percentages and we are thinking broader and thinking globally as we want to be the world leader in the middleweight sector."
India still remains the largest market for Royal Enfield, with over 4.5 lakh units sold domestically. With the likes of Triumph, Harley-Davidson et al, Royal Enfield is keen on stepping up its game and not simply resting on laurels. The bike has been developed at the Royal Enfield Technology Centre in Leicestershire, United Kingdom.
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