Sales Season: Motorcycles (and Passenger Cars as well)
by Ujjwal Dey
Every year, the dealer, his sales force and the finance agent has a big boot up their behind, from their top management. The leadership makes an “example” out of you, instead of leading by example. You all will toe the line to meet the ridiculous sales targets and achieve or die trying. Sure, you will grouse,”It’s not possible”….or “too much competition”….or “market is saturated”… or “it’s the economy / elections / new COVID strain / et al”.
OEM and manufacturers of various brands of cars and motorcycles must sell their stock sitting in warehouses around the nation. This is especially true in nations such as India where the insurance company decides the value of the vehicle instead of the condition of any vehicle. The insurance being mandatory by law—decides a vehicle’s value by date of manufacturing and identified by its chassis number (that is VIN in USA). The value of your new vehicle in your garage or their warehouse depreciates radically as soon as the clock strikes 12 and you celebrate the New Year.
So, my twenty-year-old Royal Enfield Std Bullet 350 is not in fact more valuable—but valued like scrap metal—despite all its paper and performance being so very good after all the years of use and abuse.
Now, you know the urgency for the salesman to pitch you shit you don’t need with offers you can’t afford. Hang on for Vehicles with heavy cash discounts, free accessories—which until November were being sold as branded accessories worth five figure sum of money. Loans? Instant disbursal! Not to your bank account—to the dealer’s account. “They” know you and they know their dealers and wheelers.
Now you also know why I might wanna get rid of a perfectly beautiful Enfield which has the classic right-hand-side gear shift, a direct to neutral lever, and cast-iron engine. It’s getting devalued and governments around the world want to outlaw old vehicles even if they run fine and have the right documentation.
Having said that—there truly has been a surge of beauties in the world of motorcycling in the past two years, including improved performance parts and technology. Evej aftermarket accessories are now included as factory fitted standard components.
In India, the financial year ends on March 2025. So, after resisting the big sales push by car companies in December—I am bearing the onslaught of offers from Triumph, Aprilia, Harley-Davidson, Royal Enfield and Jawa/ Yezdi. All these brands have reinvented and revived themselves to survive historical slumps.
I narrowed the battle down to is Royal Enfield Bear 650 Vs Harley-Davidson X440?
Friends who are experts say both are good. One of them, Mr. Vivek Sahay, who has done test rides on various popular new models said, X440 performs better in city riding compared to Bear 650. Both are competitive on the highway.
For me, in aesthetics, of course, Enfield is a beauty. Yet, both are good for a balance between “torque” with “speed” factor availability. Other factors are X440 is under H-D branding so market (prospective customers) are scared of future parts availability, cost of minor repairs and of course— resale value is a big deciding factor for all vehicles in India.
Meanwhile the Enfield 650 twin engines are derided for their heating issue. X400 does not seem to have these complaints. Vivek says, riding style and conditions will affect the heating. Also to consider, I might add, is Air-cooled engine (Enfields) will obviously perform differently compared to Oil-Cooled H-D engines.
Parts won’t be a problem as Hero Mavrick is using the same engine as the Enfield. Suspension of Enfield is not as good as its competing Harley and Triumph middle-weight segment motorcycles. For me, the riding position of Enfield is easy with simpler technological inclusions compared to the more refined Harley-Davidson X440. Removing a tire for puncture repair is a lot easier on an Enfield for the local roadside mechanics compared to the imposing, intimidating brands such as Harley-Davidson. Certainly not a people’s motorcycle at the H-D prices. Its other models sell for even more in India. Maybe POTUS Trump will cut the import duty for us, or Bandit will have lots of free time to build a V-Twin for me.
Side Views — Bear 650 at the local showroom in Mumbai during launch in November 2024
Enfield’s Interceptor-Bear-650 works on all roads like my Hero Xpulse 200cc but has a better seat. Riding long distance on XPulse is like using a child’s bicycle seat for long distance touring. (The seat change will surely affect height and/or handling, weight, etc)).
Bear 650 also has the same features as in X440. Bear 650 has better finishing and materials—- making the motorcycle look worth its price. X440 however has been derided for poor finishing touches at some spots. When X440 launched alongside Triumph Bajaj Speed 400 – everyone called X440 ugly and thoughtless. It took a lot of test riding and actual long-distance riding for people to realize that the bike is bigger, more purposeful and in many ways better than Triumph Speed 400. However, Triumph Scrambler 400 X still beats X440 in the eyes of the masses when it comes to value for money (specs Vs price), aesthetics and……yes, resale value.
The 650cc parallel twin cylinder engine is a tried and proven engine of Royal Enfield, including at AFT (Flat Track) Racing in USA. It has ample torque and the speed is more than enough for India’s roads. After all, we don’t have autobahns here…..as yet.
Bear 650 has a round all-digital TFT dashboard displaying Google Maps along with motorcycle and ride information
AFT latest Results….
https://www.americanflattrack.com/events/14124/view/2658736/results
X440 won’t do well on bad roads of course, and its top speed is less with a 440cc engine, whereas the Bear has a 648cc engine and official top speed of 165 kmph. X440 offers 27 bhp with 38 Nm torque. Bear offer 46.8 bhp with 56.5 Nm torque. The magic in Bear 650 twin engine is their two-in-one exhaust offering a boosted performance –though India has a fascination with twin-pipes (one at each side of the motorcycle).
This is the first time a factory fitted Enfield has been given a two-in-one header exhaust.
Distinguishing features on X440 is the Assist & Slipper Clutch and its single cylinder engine. It’s not the first time Harley-Davidson has a single cylinder engine and it raced such single cylinders in the past. The last appearance of a single-cylinder motorcycle was in 1978 when the Harley-Davidson SX 250 model exited the production line.
Another distinguishing feature which I dislike is, top-end X440 S model having only Black color option or the newly available Baja Orange color. Both are awful. Black maybe be “cool” and good to have in USA—but here it captures intense heat from the sun and is anyways an inauspicious color.
The Bear 650 is available in a range of colors (including black) with no difference in its features—just the change of price along with each color. The specs remain the same for each variant of Bear 650. My favorite is the “Honey Bee” color with its mix of yellow, white and blue.
But, but, but, X440 is a “Harley-Davidson”— the very reason I started riding a motorcycle and got addicted to Bikernet.com since 2003 and started contributing since 2006. And what if it’s a “poor man’s Harley” — I don’t live in a luxury home nor do I have a lavish office….no expensive everyday clothing nor gourmet food. Heck, I can’t afford Starbucks or Netflix! LOLz. X440 can show aspirational mindset maybe?!? (a positive way to look at it).
I intend to get rid of the 20+ year old Enfield before government confiscates or otherwise outlaws old vehicles despite its proper pollution and fitness certificates. They are under constant pressure from Europe and US institutions (if not from those governments). The vehicle does not meet the required Euro norms. Equivalent emission standards is termed as “Bharat Stage”. Latest is BS-VI Phase 2.
I am undecided about selling the Hero XPulse motorcycle, but I don’t want four-wheelers. Too much trouble to maintain and also, its related expenses, parking, insurance, documentation and fuel consumption tracking, et al.
Alternatively, I could keep both my existing motorcycles and put a fat down-payment on a Hyundai Exter car. Howzzat for a “googly” (not exactly a curve ball but similar concept in game of “cricket”). Hyundai Exter is a bestseller with fully-loaded goodies at a great price. The full-package for a middleclass owner. A cool vehicle for city and long-distance travel. Hey, I would then be able to have a pet cat or dog along for trips. It’s lonely and sad talking to Alexa all the time.
Comparison of Bear 650 and X440 on BikeWale.com – CLICK HERE TO COMPARE
Keep in mind, these motorcycles were shortlisted as per their price factor as the main constraint. They are both within Rs.410,000 which is approximately $4733 with the X440 being a lot more affordable (under $5000 category).
Royal Enfield Interceptor Bear 650 in Mumbai city costs Rs.408,000 which is US $4710
Harley-Davidson X440 in Mumbai city costs Rs.342,000 which is US $3948
(Dollar rate at 0.012 per Rupee. So, One US dollar is equal to Rs.86)
Dream rides? Harley-Davidson Road King! Or as a start to V-Twins, Indian Scout! (Road King and Scout are no longer offered in India market).
More to come, hopefully!
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Special Thanks to Vivek Sahay for his insight, fellow rider at The Musafirs.
Special Thanks to Soniya Royal Enfield, Mumbai for inviting me to the unveiling of Bear 650 last year.
Special Thanks to Rydex Hero, Mumbai for having an X440 motorcycle at their dealership and allowing enquiring minds.
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