Royal Enfield is set to bring the already popular 650 twins – the Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 and the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 – to India in the coming months but before that, it seems like the company wants to add another feather in its cap. The Indian motorcycle maker is set to take on the iconic Bonneville Salt Flats in North Western Utah in America which has played home to several land speed records and attained iconic status. Their weapon of choice is the same Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 albeit in a modified avatar.
The performance drag bike seems to be based on the recently unveiled LockStock, which itself was a drag bike-inspired modification job on the Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 done by Harris Performance, a subsidiary of Eicher-owned S&S Cycle Inc.
The aim of the company behind sending this heavily modified GT 650 is not just to attain a high-speed figure, but to achieve a new speed record. As of now, the exact specifications of the changes made to the motorcycle and its exact power output are unknown but as can be seen from the pictures, the motorcycle has been stripped-off of all unnecessary bodywork in order to shed weight and has received a new front fender and new rear fender which are designed (even the headlamp cluster) to make it more aerodynamic. The suspension seems to be Ohlins and will be running a custom set up in order to tackle the salt flats efficiently. There are also special tyres on it which are meant to do the same. The chassis and the swingarm have been tweaked around with as well.
Pushing this motorcycle to the limits is the 18-year-old Cayla Rivas, daughter of former National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) motorcycle racer Chris Rivas. But don’t be fooled by her age as the young rider already has 12 speed records under her belt.
The team, at the Bonneville Salt Flats, seems to already have had tasted success. After a total of 20 runs, they have managed to clock an average speed of 150 mph (241 kmph) which is pending FIM certification (Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme) for it to be called as an official speed record.
While not much has been revealed about the bike, we do know that it's using an Ohlins suspension setup, different chassis and swingarm, NOS (nitrous oxide) for the extra boost, and of course, some modifications to the engine. With this setup, the folks at Royal Enfield were able to chalk down a total of 20 runs and hit an average speed of 241kmph (150mph)!
Siddhartha Lal, CEO, Royal Enfield and Eicher Motors took to Instagram to inform RE followers about this achievement.
Both the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 and the Continental GT 650 are set to have their global launch later this month and achievements like these will surely go a long way in creating some buzz about these motorcycles. Both the machines are powered by a 649cc parallel-twin engine making 47 PS of power and 52 NM of torque and have already been unveiled globally. It still remains to be seen as to when these get launched in the Indian market. Watch this space for updates.
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