Which do you think is more difficult if you’re a manufacturer: Designing a completely new motorcycle from the ground up, or rethinking one of the most beloved models that your company makes? This is all hypothetical, of course, since we’ve never designed a motorcycle.
Still, it seems like coming up with a worthy successor to a beloved bike must be a lot of extra pressure. On the one hand, you know that technology needs to evolve, or else people outgrow it, and it loses relevance over time. On the other, there’s a nagging sense of necessity to make only the correct changes that riders will respond positively to—and above all, to not mess up this thing that they already love.
While we can’t say for sure what was going through the minds of Mark Wells and all the folks at Royal Enfield who had a hand in the new Himalayan’s design, it certainly seems like a big ask. Riders are, after all, emotional creatures—and we become attached to our bikes. For that reason, when you start to change a thing that we love, you must tread very carefully.
Royal Enfield is planning to reveal the new Himalayan in all its glory on November 7, 2023 at EICMA—exactly one week from today. In the leadup to that announcement, it’s carefully been conducting the collected anticipation of fans worldwide to a veritable crescendo.
In early October 2023, Enfield revealed the first official image of the new bike. Then, Internet-famous world moto traveler Itchy Boots began releasing her carefully timed video series riding a new, pre-production Himalayan in the Himalayas.
Now, Royal Enfield has put together a short film of its own, showcasing what it calls the Final Test of the new Himalayan. In it, various test riders and Enfield staffers all conduct a relay test, riding new Himalayans from Enfield’s manufacturing facility in Oragadam, Chennai up through Bengaluru, Udupi, Goa, Pune, Indore, Sawal Madhopur, Chandigarh, Manali, Leh, and Hanle before eventually arriving at the world’s highest motorable mountain pass, Umling La.
How high up is Umling La? It’s a full 19,024 feet (or 5,798.5 meters) above sea level. On the way up, you pass a signpost along the road that tells you when you’ve officially ascended higher up than Everest Base Camp. That’s how high it is.
Full details aren’t available just yet, but Enfield itself confirms in this video that the engine is a new 452cc single-cylinder design, making a claimed 40 horsepower (as has long been rumored). It’s Enfield’s attempt to walk a fine line in giving existing Himalayan 411 fans more of what they want—mainly, power, an improved suspension, and a better overall experience to encourage more time spent in the saddle.
Will it succeed? We won’t know until Royal Enfield finally divulges the details, and the new Himalayan finds its way into the hands of riders. If you’ve been following RideApart on Instagram (and you totally should if you haven’t), then you know that we’ve been testing the new Himalayan. We’ll have our own review for you soon. But ultimately, as always, it’s the riders who decide how they feel about new bikes.
Are you excited about the new Himalayan? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
