Royal Enfield has done a great job with revamping its older variant of the Thunderbird into a refreshed new style and coming up with the Royal Enfield 500X. But then the question arises, is it better than its older variant or fails to be?
About the looks of it
Talking into the changes that it brings to the look, Royal Enfield has done its homework when it comes to improvising the looks. The bike comes in a few bright colors like the blue and orange.
To add some sporty element to the bike the handlebars provided are the straight short ones in kind. This sure does get the rider more upfront, but the footpegs happen to still be in the old variant’s style for the relaxed position.
The tubeless tyres and the rim tapes that match the bike’s color sure add to the looks of it. The seat on the ride is a single piece style. The seat is also embroidered with color that matches that of the ride itself. The small detailing of the kind sure adds to the looks. Although going into details you might come across a few imperfections as well.
The paint job on the fuel tank might not be the smoothest you’d have come across and also the wiring on the ride is exposed at many points which is kind of messy.
The ride itself
The bike is much like the previous variants of it, although to make the ride smoother Royal Enfield adds gas charged shockers to the ride that goes well unnoticed in the quality improvement of the ride.
It is said that the bike seems to be vibrating quite a bit through its initial couple thousand of rpm but the cushioning of the seats seems to manage to cover that throughout the drive.
There have been no changes made to the braking system or tire dimensions either which isn’t bad either.The engine on this ride is powered by the 499cc motor from the Thunderbird 500, which produces 27.2hp and 41.3Nm of torque.
One of the considerable change made to the bike includes the addition of alloy wheels to it. Weighing the same as its predecessor (198kg) the ride produces and overall similar output performance.
Should I go for the new one?
If you wish to be a part of the Royal Enfield community and would want to go for a thunderbird this might be a sweet ride for you if you can live with the few little flaws on this ride.
At Rs 1.98 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai) – which is a fair increment, in which you get factory-fitted alloys and tubeless tyres, as well, the new Thunderbird is Rs 7-8,000 more expensive than the regular models you get a ride with a lot richer looks. For all those who own the previous Thunderbird, you might want to hold on to it. Have you tried your hands on new Royal Enfield 500X ? Share your experience with us.
