Royal Enfield Thunderbird Gets The Redditch Treatment

Royal Enfield Thunderbird has been possibly the least sold motorcycle in the company’s portfolio second only to the Continental GT. One of the reasons for the low sales is also because the company never actually paid much attention to it in the first place. The Chennai based company has been busy with the launch of its two 650cc bikes – Interceptor and Continental GT, and had not updated the Thunderbird range in a long while. However, according to sources Royal Enfield is going to launch an updated Thunderbird 500X which gets a Redditch like treatment found on the Classic series.

What Does Royal Enfield Offer In The New Thunderbird 500X?

Royal Enfield Thunderbird has a niche following and has been a pretty sophisticated vehicle till now. While the other products in the company’s portfolio were frequently updated, the Thunderbird series was barely touched once in three to four years. However, now that new competitors like the Honda Rebel, and Benelli Imperiale are set to enter the Indian market, the company has launched the new Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X.

The Thunderbird 500X gets an all black treatment from the alloys to the exhaust with the tank being in a bright contrast colour. Like the Redditch series on the Classic bikes, the colour options are White, Red, Blue, and Yellow. Mechanically the bike is expected to carry the same 499cc Single cylinder engine which makes 27BHP of power and 42Nm of torque. Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X gets a straight handle bar and tubeless tyres which are a first for the company.

Price and Launch Date Of Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X in India

The new Thunderbird 500X has been pictured in what looked like a production ready variant. There is all possibility that the bike will be launched early 2018 in January. In terms of price, the Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X will be marginally expensive than the existing bike due to the additional features. The new motorcycle will likely co-exist with the existing motorcycle and will not be replacing it. The company just wants to make sure the sophisticated cruiser now appeals to the younger generation as well.