Royal Enfield 650 Interceptor

[SmallCityDave_imp]

Has anyone had any personal experience with one of these? I see a used one (somewhat) close by and the price seems good but I've never thought of buying a Royal Enfield. I like the looks it reminds me of a modern interpretation of a 70's era Honda CB650/750.

https://www.webbikeworld.com/2021-royal-enfield-int650/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3WGKowbz_0

[mvk24_imp]

No experience but nice looking bike.

I am waiting for them to release the Himalayan in a 650cc and ill be all over it.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

[SmallCityDave_imp]

No experience but nice looking bike.

I am waiting for them to release the Himalayan in a 650cc and ill be all over it.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

The Himalayan looks to be a little sportier?

I was thinking of putting dual sport tires on the Interseptor for a bit of a scrambler look, I thought of the same thing with the CB11.

[mvk24_imp]

I believe shinko makes knobbies in our factory size for the CB.

Last time I was browsing tires by model for the CB there were a few options which I found cool cause I wanna take the CB up the Dalton highway one day just to do it.

The Himalayan is more of their Adventure bike, they literally designed it to be able to tackle Northern India and riding in the adverse conditions riding throughout the Himalayan mountains. The videos they did of how the engineers were there designing and testing were cool back when it was released.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

[pdedse]

Has anyone had any personal experience with one of these? I see a used one (somewhat) close by and the price seems good but I've never thought of buying a Royal Enfield. I like the looks it reminds me of a modern interpretation of a 70's era Honda CB650/750.

https://www.webbikeworld.com/2021-royal-enfield-int650/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3WGKowbz_0

Yes. Wonderful engine vibe. Easy to work on. Fit and finish perhaps not as high quality as that of Honda CB1100. Weighs 100 lbs less than CB1100. Acceleration is great. 6 gears. Some people have had issues with fuel pump, some other electrics. But parts are relatively cheap.

If you haven't ridden one and if you're able, go to dealership and ask for test ride. Local dealer practically insisted that I try one out. That made up my mind for me. I ended up buying second hand, but only because right after test ride, a nice used one popped up for sale...$5200 for a '22 with 700 miles on it.

I rode it 7000 miles over 9 months. Then I sold it last month. It was never going to be a long-term bike for me, but I always wanted to try one out. Love the bike, no good reason for me to sell it other than I wanted to return to owning a Kawasaki W800.

Forum member "Gone" also has one.

Anything specific that you would like to know?

Maybe this will help, my trip from Portland to San Diego in July:

https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/of-co...t.1659295/

And for more info than you'll really want, visit:

https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/inde...board=30.0

I suppose with RE, people want to know bottom line..."is it reliable?" For me...very. Beyond that...a VERY fun bike to ride.

[SmallCityDave_imp]

Has anyone had any personal experience with one of these? I see a used one (somewhat) close by and the price seems good but I've never thought of buying a Royal Enfield. I like the looks it reminds me of a modern interpretation of a 70's era Honda CB650/750.

https://www.webbikeworld.com/2021-royal-enfield-int650/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3WGKowbz_0

Yes. Wonderful engine vibe. Easy to work on. Fit and finish perhaps not as high quality as that of Honda CB1100. Weighs 100 lbs less than CB1100. Acceleration is great. 6 gears. Some people have had issues with fuel pump, some other electrics. But parts are relatively cheap.

If you haven't ridden one and if you're able, go to dealership and ask for test ride. Local dealer practically insisted that I try one out. That made up my mind for me. I ended up buying second hand, but only because right after test ride, a nice used one popped up for sale...$5200 for a '22 with 700 miles on it.

I rode it 7000 miles over 9 months. Then I sold it last month. It was never going to be a long-term bike for me, but I always wanted to try one out. Love the bike, no good reason for me to sell it other than I wanted to return to owning a Kawasaki W800.

Forum member "Gone" also has one.

Anything specific that you would like to know?

Maybe this will help, my trip from Portland to San Diego in July:

https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/of-co...t.1659295/

And for more info than you'll really want, visit:

https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/inde...board=30.0

I suppose with RE, people want to know bottom line..."is it reliable?" For me...very. Beyond that...a VERY fun bike to ride.

Yes. Wonderful engine vibe. Easy to work on. Fit and finish perhaps not as high quality as that of Honda CB1100. Weighs 100 lbs less than CB1100. Acceleration is great. 6 gears. Some people have had issues with fuel pump, some other electrics. But parts are relatively cheap.

If you haven't ridden one and if you're able, go to dealership and ask for test ride. Local dealer practically insisted that I try one out. That made up my mind for me. I ended up buying second hand, but only because right after test ride, a nice used one popped up for sale...$5200 for a '22 with 700 miles on it.

I rode it 7000 miles over 9 months. Then I sold it last month. It was never going to be a long-term bike for me, but I always wanted to try one out. Love the bike, no good reason for me to sell it other than I wanted to return to owning a Kawasaki W800.

Forum member "Gone" also has one.

Anything specific that you would like to know?

Maybe this will help, my trip from Portland to San Diego in July:

https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/of-co...t.1659295/

And for more info than you'll really want, visit:

https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/inde...board=30.0

I suppose with RE, people want to know bottom line..."is it reliable?" For me...very. Beyond that...a VERY fun bike to ride.
That's great to hear. I wasn't looking for anything specific just curious about your overall thoughts and if it was a bike worth looking into.

The Kawasaki W800 looks to be very similar (in appearance), do you still have it?

[Gone in 60]

Hi guys, on an extended business trip, just catching up.
I’ve ridden a Bonneville for years. When the Interceptor 650 came out, I said “Huh. Looks like a Harbor Freight knock off of a Bonneville.”

Then, I got to rent one for a day, and I really dug it. The 270 degree twin has a lot of character, plenty of power and a neat exhaust note. Looking online, I found near-new low-mile examples in the $5k range. Picked one up and really enjoy it. Even got to ride with Pdedse and his for a bit.

The ergonomics can take a bit of getting used to and some find the seat uncomfortable. But parts are laughably cheap compared to Honda or Triumph. Different styles of OEM seats can be had for a little more than a hundred bucks. Yeah, the quality, fit and finish are nowhere near Honda. I can see sanding marks under the paint on my gas tank. The finish on the chrome parts isn’t too smooth.

But, I haven’t had a mechanical issue yet. Valve adjustments are called for every 6k miles, but can be done quickly with screw adjusters rather than shims. It has enough character and a unique enough feel to it that it is different from my Triumph and my CB1100. And with six speeds, the little 48 hp mill is happy at freeway speeds with no problem.

It’s definitely a “more than the sum of its parts” bike.

https://youtu.be/HjJ491Kfeic?feature=shared

[pdedse]

Has anyone had any personal experience with one of these? I see a used one (somewhat) close by and the price seems good but I've never thought of buying a Royal Enfield. I like the looks it reminds me of a modern interpretation of a 70's era Honda CB650/750.

https://www.webbikeworld.com/2021-royal-enfield-int650/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3WGKowbz_0

Yes. Wonderful engine vibe. Easy to work on. Fit and finish perhaps not as high quality as that of Honda CB1100. Weighs 100 lbs less than CB1100. Acceleration is great. 6 gears. Some people have had issues with fuel pump, some other electrics. But parts are relatively cheap.

If you haven't ridden one and if you're able, go to dealership and ask for test ride. Local dealer practically insisted that I try one out. That made up my mind for me. I ended up buying second hand, but only because right after test ride, a nice used one popped up for sale...$5200 for a '22 with 700 miles on it.

I rode it 7000 miles over 9 months. Then I sold it last month. It was never going to be a long-term bike for me, but I always wanted to try one out. Love the bike, no good reason for me to sell it other than I wanted to return to owning a Kawasaki W800.

Forum member "Gone" also has one.

Anything specific that you would like to know?

Maybe this will help, my trip from Portland to San Diego in July:

https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/of-co...t.1659295/

And for more info than you'll really want, visit:

https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/inde...board=30.0

I suppose with RE, people want to know bottom line..."is it reliable?" For me...very. Beyond that...a VERY fun bike to ride.

Yes. Wonderful engine vibe. Easy to work on. Fit and finish perhaps not as high quality as that of Honda CB1100. Weighs 100 lbs less than CB1100. Acceleration is great. 6 gears. Some people have had issues with fuel pump, some other electrics. But parts are relatively cheap.

If you haven't ridden one and if you're able, go to dealership and ask for test ride. Local dealer practically insisted that I try one out. That made up my mind for me. I ended up buying second hand, but only because right after test ride, a nice used one popped up for sale...$5200 for a '22 with 700 miles on it.

I rode it 7000 miles over 9 months. Then I sold it last month. It was never going to be a long-term bike for me, but I always wanted to try one out. Love the bike, no good reason for me to sell it other than I wanted to return to owning a Kawasaki W800.

Forum member "Gone" also has one.

Anything specific that you would like to know?

Maybe this will help, my trip from Portland to San Diego in July:

https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/of-co...t.1659295/

And for more info than you'll really want, visit:

https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/inde...board=30.0

I suppose with RE, people want to know bottom line..."is it reliable?" For me...very. Beyond that...a VERY fun bike to ride.
That's great to hear. I wasn't looking for anything specific just curious about your overall thoughts and if it was a bike worth looking into.

The Kawasaki W800 looks to be very similar (in appearance), do you still have it?

The INT is worth looking into! Can't over-state the smile factor with it.

RE: do I still have the w800?

Um...no...I mean, yes!

No: I bought a new, left-over 2020 Kawasaki w800 café version (brown, funky handlebars) and owned it for a year. I road it 4500 miles and was able to sell it for the same price I bought it for, so that turned out well. Loved the engine, but the forward riding position...while fun to experiment with, really wasn't the best for me. I could have put other handlebars on it, but I wanted to try out an INT650, too. So I went that route.

The INT650 was going to be a fun "interum" ride till the w800 2023 version (matte blue) came to the States. I've been checking dealerships all year, but I'm convinced the '23 W is not going to make it to the States. Canada got some, though.

I mean YES!:

So I started looking at the red '22 W800 standards--but they're red...I really wanted a blue one. There are several new '22 red ones at dealerships near me, and decenlty priced. But then about 2 weeks ago, I came across a new, leftover 2021 Blue in Port Angeles, WA...about a 4 hour drive away from me. But they were selling it at MSRP, $9200. That was the add anyway. I called them up and asked, "are you really asking 9200 for that 2 year old '21 w800?" And the salesman said..."no, we can discount that". I told him a local to me dealer said $7300 would buy a new red '22 (true out the door price)...he asked if 7k would work..."no hidden costs, nothing added on, right?" I asked. He said "you bring me 7k cash and that's it".

Last Saturday, I left the house at 530am, drove 4 hours there, one signature, they loaded the bike on my pick-up and I was driving home within an hour and back by 3pm. The blue is...for me...stunning!

So are you considering a W800 as an alternative to the INT650? If so, check out this video where 2 guys give both a fair shake:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o126vI1SxRQ

My thoughts: they are both fun, fun bikes to ride. Very pleasing exhaust note. W800 has a 360 degree crank, the INT650 has 270. Both air cooled, abs. The finish on my new W800 is nicer than that of the INT650. The INT is 45 lbs lighter, has six gears while the W has five. Valve checks will be easier on the INT, but apparently not too bad on the W.

But...I obviously chose the W. Seems a little more solidly built...but, more importantly...

it's blue.

[Tev62]

Trade-in values of Royal Enfield 650's have collapsed in the UK with a number of owners expressing their shock on YouTube. It seems RE fired the UK distributor and are going it alone. Owners are being offered half of what they paid for 1 year old bikes now at the dealers. 2nd hand values are under pressure as the old importer is trying to shift loads of left over stock with £800 off new bikes on what was already a good value purchase.

[GoldOxide_imp]

... sounds like a buying opportunity for something that shouldn't be too difficult to maintain for oneself.