Royal Enfield USA unveils new model: C5 Special

Royal Enfield Bullet C5 Special.
(Upswept exhaust and headlight visor are not standard equipment.)

Royal Enfield USA's top-of-the-line Bullet Classic 500 now comes as a bigger motorcycle, the C5 Special. You may need a magnifying glass to see the difference in photographs, but you'll feel the difference in your bottom.

The difference to your bottom line is likely to be only about $100.

For that you get a larger, 19-inch front wheel (as opposed to two 18-inch wheels on the C5 Classic), a somewhat different riding position and a straight front fork as opposed to the offset fork on the C5 Classic. The fork is the same length as before, but with different geometry.

The C5 Special will be available in all 50 states.

According to a notice that went out to U.S. Royal Enfield dealers last week, the C5 Special will appeal to larger riders who find the C5 Classic smallish but prefer its styling to the B5 and G5, which use the 19-inch front wheel.

The new fork and larger front wheel will give a more cruiser like feel on the highway. The C5 Classic will remain the choice for those who want maximum handling.

The new C5 Special will be available in all C5 colors except the Red Chrome.

Royal Enfield C5 Special in teal.

For sale: 2 Royal Enfield C5s with kick start

If you lived in North America and wanted a hot new Royal Enfield Bullet Classic 500 that you could kick start, you were out of luck.

The "C5" model, as they're called, come with fuel injection, electronic ignition and the new Unit Constructed Engine. But so far, in the U.S. and Canada, they come with electric start only. The kick start, beloved by some, cursed by others, is unavailable.

Until now.

Two of the new motorcycles, one red, one black, both with kick start levers, are for sale on eBay in Ontario, Canada. You can buy them, but you might have trouble getting them registered.

"Almost brand new 2010 Royal Enfield Classic 500 C5. I am having trouble registering this in Canada, so (I) decide to sell," the seller writes.

I emailed him to ask about the motorcycles. He replied:

"These bikes are electric and kick starts. Can't be registered in Canada because manufacturer is not in Transport Canada list. I purchased them from India without knowing this — BS — and lost money and time."

Well, that explains it. In India, the C5 does come with the kick start mechanism. Note the sari guard on the left-rear of the red motorcycle, designed to let an Indian woman in a flowing dress safely ride side saddle.

Clearly, these bikes were made in India for the home market.

Where they go from here is the question. It will be interesting to see how the eBay auction works out.

Royal Enfield motorcycles in India: can you pick out the differences?

This lovely picture of a Royal Enfield C5 motorcycle was sent by Ranjith, a Ph.D student at Tufts University in the U.S. He wrote:

"Hi. I am an avid follower your blog. My friend just bought a brand new C5 Royal Enfield and I thought I will point out an important difference between the 'Indian' Royal Enfield and the exported one: sari guard!"

He's referring to the screen on one side of the motorcycle, intended to protect the flowing clothes of Indian women, who ride side saddle, from the spokes. Note the little "foot stool" at the bottom of the sari guard for both feet.

These used to be available as an accessory from Royal Enfield USA, but I don't see them in their on-line catalog at the moment. I have heard that some jurisdictions in India actually require the sari guard as standard safety equipment. Perhaps that explains why it is fitted to this motorcycle, even though it has no passenger seat.

Even without the sari guard, this would be a very nice looking motorcycle. The gray color is not available in the U.S so far. It is available in India on the Bullet Classic 350.

I asked Ranjith if his friend's C5 had something else we miss here: a kick start lever. The U.S. C5 is electric start, only.

"It indeed does have a kicker," he replied, attaching another excellent photo as proof, and adding "I personally would never buy a Bullet without a kicker and frankly I am quite disappointed that the export models do not have one."

Perhaps the U.S. will eventually get the gray color and a kicker; or, at least, the sari guard!

Royal Enfield C5 gets a kickstart in India

New Royal Enfild Classic motorcycles sold in India will have kickstarters, according to Royal Enfield's press release on the new bikes. The text of the press kit specifies both electric and kick start, and the press kit picture shows a Classic 500 (usually called the C5 in the U.S.) with a kickstart lever.

C5s sold here so far have only the electric start. Many Royal Enfield fans consider having a kick start lever part of the appeal, even if some admit they rarely use it. Owners of original Royal Enfield Bullets use nothing else, of course, since kick starting was all they had.

It takes a bit of technique to do it right, and that is seen as part of the fun (occasionally the frustration) of owning a Royal Enfield motorcycle.

Electric start is standard now on all new Bullets in the United States, but only the C5 drops the kickstart entirely.

Adding kickstart parts to a C5 without one would be no simple matter, since the mechanism is well inside the unit constructed engine and transmission. In contrast, the electric starter parts are easily reached. You can see the thinking of the engineers here: the kick start mechanism in fact is a liability; losing it eliminates one more thing that can go wrong in an expensive way.

Still, there it is, in the press kit picture. I am indebted to my sharp eyed reader Andrew Marsh for spotting this (it also has received attention on the Classic Motorworks Forum). Andrew is the fellow blogging about the decisions he faces in his quest to own a Royal Enfield motorcycle. Check out his Quest for a Royal Enfield blog.

Here come Royal Enfield C5 and Military

Promised by the summer of 2009, the Royal Enfield Bullet C5 motorcycles are now in the rail yard in Minneapolis, Minn. From there they will go by truck to U.S. importer Classic Motorworks in nearby Faribault, Minn. These are the retro-styled but really quite modern new Royal Enfields unveiled to the world last year in Cologne, Germany

They are the top-of-the-line pride-and-joy of Royal Enfield, a company that for half a century kept building a circa-1955 British-designed motorcycle in India. The time-piece brand was rediscovered by the British, Europeans and Americans in the '90s. Now the Indians plan to show the world that they can deliver modern features and improved reliability along with heritage appearance.

Along with the C5s in the rail yard is the first shipment of the G5 Military model Royal Enfields. Americans demanded that Royal Enfield keep making them a motorcycle in olive drab, and here they come.

Both C5 and G5 motorcycles come with unit-constructed engines, electric start, electronic ignition and fuel injection, front disk brake, and, maybe best of all, self-adjusting pushrods. The C5 has an improved frame and swing arm; the G5 has kick start as well as electric start.

The Royal Enfield Military has always come with metal pannier boxes, looking like .30-cal ammo cans. These are gone, but the picture shown here, from Classic Motorworks, demonstrates that buying and fitting tan saddlebags can produce a satisfactory World War II appearance. To be truly accurate, you'd have to paint the motor and exhaust, too. Could you bear to do it?

Suggested retail price of the C5 is $6,395. The G5 Military's suggested retail price is $6,095.

Spy shot: C-5 Royal Enfields bound for U.S.

Spy shot! New Royal Enfield C-5 motorcycles bound for the U.S. are shown undergoing packing at the factory in Chennai, India. The picture was supplied by U.S. importer Kevin Mahoney, who visited India recently. Mahoney describes his travel, complete with lost luggage, on his Buzz Blog.

The dramatically new, yet retro-styled C-5 is officially named the Royal Enfield Bullet Classic 500. When it arrives in the U.S. it probably is going to commonly be called the C-5, however, to distinguish it from the G-5 already on sale here.

Like the G-5, the C-5 uses Royal Enfield's new unit-constructed engine, with fuel injection and maintenance-free hydraulic lifters, improved clutch and a front disk brake. It has an electric starter but, unlike the G-5, no kick starter.

The C-5 is designed to resemble a Royal Enfield of 1951. That makes it even older in appearance than the 1955 model Royal Enfield Bullet built virtually unchanged in India all these years. It is considerably more retro-looking than the G-5, which resembles the '70s-styled Electra model.

Unlike Royal Enfields of previous decades, both UCE models are designed to cruise at 70 mph with a little extra in hand for passing. They remain 500cc machines with long-stroke single cylinder "thumper" engines.

The suggested price for a new C-5 in the U.S. is $6,395, making it Royal Enfield's most expensive model here. That price doesn't include set-up, shipping or tax.

Royal Enfield Classic in short supply?

Cycle World Photo

The dramatically new, yet retro-styled Royal Enfield Bullet Classic 500 isn't even in the United States yet, but many of them may already be gone.

Referred to as the C-5 model, these motorcycles got a positive review in Cycle World's March edition. The magazine's writer and photographer travelled to India to sample C-5s right off the production line in Chennai. They cited the unit-constructed engine, fuel injection and maintenance-free hydraulic lifters before concluding that, while everything has changed, much has remained the same.

"All the creativity is built into the machine. The only idea that wasn't new to Royal Enfield was that the virtues and pleasure of riding a (formerly) British Single should carry on," Cycle World wrote.

The C-5 is designed to resemble a Royal Enfield of 1951. That makes it even older in appearance than the 1955-era Royal Enfield Bullet built virtually unchanged in India all these years. But its appearance disguises a more sophisticated frame (painted to match the body work) and swing arm, improved clutch and front disk brake.

Unlike Royal Enfields of previous decades, the UCE models are designed to cruise at 70 mph with a little extra in hand for passing. They remain 500cc machines with long-stroke single "thumper" engines. You won't be going too fast to smell the roses.

But will you be able to buy one when they eventually get here later this year?

"Nothing has changed about the delivery time of the C-5s," according to Kevin Mahoney, of Classic Motorworks, the U.S. importer.

"The one thing I will say is that the first container and most of the second is spoken for by dealers already. If guys want one they better get to their dealer now."

The suggested price for a new C-5 in the U.S. is $6,395, making it Royal Enfield's most expensive model here. That price doesn't include set-up, shipping or tax.

What they're saying about the new Enfield

As a "fly on the wall" at a gathering of Royal Enfield motorcycle dealers, I took notes on comments they made about the new Royal Enfield unit construction engine (UCE) and the new G5 and C5 motorcycles it will go into.

The dealers attended a training session on the new engine Feb. 12 and 13 at Classic Motorworks, the U.S. importer. Dealers are the people most in touch with customers. Here are some of the things they had to say as they learned about the new engine and sampled a 2009 G5 motorcycle:

"The older the look, the better."
"How many senors are there that can fail; that WILL fail?"
"Brilliant." (Said sincerely.)
"No left-hand threads?
"No Whitworth? I'm out!" (Said in jest.)
"People are in love with the kickstarter."
"Very Japanese." (Said as a compliment, I think.)
"It's a gamechanger."

Kevin Mahoney, head of Classic Motorworks, made comments of his own. Among them:

"The hydraulic valve lifters are imported (to India) from America."
"You just get on it and ride."
"The warranty has doubled to two years. We haven't put a mileage limit on
it but we may, because I think these bikes are going to get ridden."
"It's a gamechanger."

The Indian engineers doing the training were naturally full of praise for the new Royal Enfield they helped created. Suddenly, the Royal Enfield Bullet, almost unchanged for 55 years, has a modern engine, goes faster, stops better, and gets even better mileage. With hydraulic lifters, O-ring chain and fuel injection it will require less maintenance.

So, yes, the Indians too said: "It's a gamechanger."

Enfield switches gear for new UCE motor

The Indian engineer helping disassemble a prototype of the new Royal Enfield motorcycle engine paused a moment and held up a pretty metal gear. He had just pulled it from the cam array deep inside the unit constructed (UCE) motor.

Now he wanted to draw the attention of his audience, American Royal Enfield dealers gathered Feb. 12 for a training session on the new engine.

"Only metal in the prototype," said K.S. Sarveswaran. "In the production bikes it is plastic."

The dealers literally gasped. A plastic gear near the beating heart of a Royal Enfield motor?

The dozen men had watched the disassembly of the UCE motor with obvious approval. Although the prototype engine had been used hard (it had served about 20,000 miles they were told), it still looked great. UCE motors like it will power the new Royal Enfield G5 and C5 motorcycles when they go on sale soon in the U.S.

But a plastic gear inside the motor, where it turns the oil pump? The dealers couldn't believe it.

"We'll be making those out of metal," one commented, to general agreement.

Sarveswaran, a senior manager for Royal Enfield engine design and development, seemed a bit bewildered by the reaction. "In production, only plastic," he repeated, explaining that "it does not take any strain." The dealers were skeptical.

Watching, Kevin Mahoney of Classic Motorworks, the U.S. importer, seemed to realize what they were thinking.

"Is it a cost issue?" he asked the three Indian engineers present. "Is the gear made in plastic because of the cost?"

No, he was told: it's not a cost issue. The gear is made of plastic to reduce noise in the bottom end. Sound was a priority in designing the new motor. While the traditional Royal Enfield Bullet exhaust "thump," beloved by Indian riders, was to be saved, the noise from gears and push rods was to be curbed.

The dealers nodded. That might be OK, although one spoke about getting some of those gears made up in metal -- just in case.

The disassembly manual dealers were given shows the gear in white plastic.

It drives an oil pump that is said to deliver four times as much oil as the spindle gear arrangement of classic Royal Enfield Bullets, and to do it without maintenance.

That has to be the case, of course, since the unit constructed engine encloses all its bits deep inside, whereas the classic Bullet oil pump can be pulled out roadside, if you have to.

My guess is that few dealers and even fewer owners will ever see the plastic gear.