Royal Enfield Interceptor INT 650 & Continental GT 650 could gain alloy wheels
Royal Enfield is working towards expanding the list of optional accessories for the 650 Twin. The "Motorcycle Configuration" section of Royal Enfield’s website has three columns – Electrical, Luggage and Wheels – that say “Coming Soon” when clicked. While the list of accessories would be updated soon, we expect to see alloy wheels arrive under the Wheels column.
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The motorcycles currently use a pair of 18-inch wire-spoke wheels that add a retro look to the package. However, wire-spoke wheels come with the compromise of tube tyres, which are tedious to repair in case of a puncture as compared to the tubeless units. The addition of alloy-wheels would bring the convenience of tubeless tyres on the 650 Twins.
The Luggage tab is likely to receive the option of saddle stays for ease of motorcycling on long rides while the Electrical accessories could include an alarm system for the 650 Twins. We would also like to see the addition of optional LED headlight and LED blinkers to the options list, but that is not likely to happen anytime soon.
Meanwhile, Royal Enfield has suffered from negative sales for four consecutive months. Domestic sales of the Chennai based two-wheeler brand stood at 60,066 units in February 2019 as against 71,354 units in the corresponding month last year, marking a fall of 16% Y-o-Y. Overall numbers fell from 73,077 units in February 2018 to 62,630 units last month.
However, exports have looked up since the launch of the Interceptor INT 650 and the Continental GT 650. Royal Enfield offers the 650 Twins in India, UK, USA, Australia and Thailand. The company exported 2,564 units in February 2019 as against 1,723 units in the same month last year.
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The Interceptor INT 650 and the Continental GT 650 use a 648 cc parallel-twin, air-cooled engine that delivers 47 bhp of maximum power at 7,250 rpm and 52 Nm of peak torque at 5,250 rpm.