Royal Enfield’s New Café Racer, The Continental GT
Royal Enfield, the English heritage brand that moved to India around 50 years ago, has launched its new café racer, the Continental GT – named after a model sold from the English factory in the 1960s.
Under the rider is a re-engineered Bullet engine, with a 535cc capacity and fuel injection, matched to a five-speed transmission with wet clutch. Power is a modest 29hp. The chassis is by renowned English specialist Harris Performance. It features 41mm conventional forks, twin Paoili rear shock absorbers and Brembo disc brakes. It has a top speed of around 150km/h with the not-too-loud factory performance pipe fitted. The Continental GT 535 weighs more than the Bullet 350, the lightest motorcycle in the Royal Enfield range, and one that weighs 180 kilograms. A 13.5 liter fuel tank, instrumentation that includes a speedometer and tachometer, and disc brakes at both ends round off the equipment list on the Continental GT 535. Both the front and rear disc brakes features a floating set up, with double and single calipers respectively.
The transmission is a highlight, light and accurate in its action. The steering is light and sharp, grip is decent thanks in part to the Pirelli sport rubber, and suspension is firm. The package weighs a claimed 184kg with 90 per cent fuel, seat height is 800mm and fuel capacity is 13.5 litres. More to come from its introduction here in Malaysia soon.