Future proof
Royal Enfield has unleashed the brand new Classic 350. It has much riding on its shoulders and we tried it out to see if it can be good enough to carry the legacy forward
Back in the early 2000s, Royal Enfield was in desperate need of a saviour. That saviour came in form of the Classic 350 and Classic 500. The bikes transformed the perception people had regarding the brand. It has been long since that revolution took place and now it was time to give the Classic range a new lease of life. Enter the brand new Royal Enfield Classic 350.
It is a strange predicament for a company which gets slack if it changes or makes its bikes a bit too modern. So the task at hand was to change everything and yet change nothing. At first glance one might be hard pressed to spot the differences. But look closely and you will spot the brand new twin downtube frame which has come from the Royal Enfield Meteor. As far as dimensions go, the wheelbase remains identical at 1,390mm, but the overall length has gone up by a few millimeters. What is substantially better is the ground clearance which now stands
IT IS A STRANGE
PREDICAMENT FOR A COMPANY WHICH GETS SLACK IF IT CHANGES OR MAKES ITS BIKES A BIT TOO MODERN. SO THE
TASK AT HAND WAS TO CHANGE EVERYTHING AND YET CHANGE
NOTHING
THERE IS NO ROUGHNESS ANYMORE AND VIBRATIONS HAVE BEEN CURTAILED TO NEAR ZERO. REV UP THE ENGINE AND IT STILL REMAINS RATHER SMOOTH
at 170mm. The front suspension now sports 41mm forks and the rear shock absorbers offer a little more travel at 90mm. Moving on to other changes, we can tell you that the new Classic 350 comes with larger disc brakes. While the front disc is now a 300mm unit, the rear disc is a 270mm unit. Dual channel ABS also comes as a part of the package. The tyres are larger both up front and at the back. While the front tyre is now a 100/90 19in, the rear tyre is a 110/90 18in unit. Tubeless tyres will be offered with the alloy wheel variants.
Moving on to the other major change and this comes in form of the engine. The old UCE 346cc lump has
been replaced with the 349cc single which we have seen on the Meteor 350. The motor is tuned to offer 20.2bhp and 27Nm of torque. Number crunchers out there by now have spotted that the torque on offer has gone down by 1Nm and power has gone up by 1.1bhp. The gearbox though remains a 5-speed unit.
Now that we have listed out the things which have changed, let’s get on to the pressing subject of looks and features. The Classic 350 from a few feet away looks rather identical to the bike it replaces. But step closer and keen eyes will be able to spot the new headlamp nacelle. It continues to feature the twin pilot lamps and the round headlamp as seen on the outgoing model but they are different. On the downside, we think that not having LED lighting or even a DRL is an opportunity missed for the brand considering these are the two most common after market accessories added by owners. It would also be a modern touch to a retro motorcycle. The indicators too come from the Meteor and feature bulbs. Atop the nacelle sits the brand new instrument panel. It features an old school analogue speedo with tell tales below (which are now brighter and easy to read). But below the speedo sits a digital readout which displays fuel level, odo, twin trips and a clock.Thank heavens then that the Classic 350 finally gets a fuel gauge. On the right side there is another digital pod which houses the Tripper Navigation system. The gauge seamlessly blends into the design and comes as a boon and brings the Classic 350 to the modern age. Another major change comes in form of the ignition lock. Gone is the age old fork mounted lock and in comes the ignition key operated lock. The handle bar houses switchgear which once again comes from the Meteor. They are of good quality and we loved them. What feels flimsy are the chrome mirrors which tend to get loose over time. The fuel tank has been rede
signed and the chrome version we had glistened in the sunlight. One can also spot the new retro style logo and the knee pads. The quality of the chrome and the paintjob is top notch. The fuel tank capacity though has gone down by half a litre to 13 litres. The seats have also been redone and gone are the springs underneath. The two side boxes on either side are present too however one offers a little bit of storage space. Just enough for your documents. The rear end comes with a new tail light cluster and all the lights feature bulbs and not LEDs.
Swing a leg over and the Classic 350 feels very friendly and comfortable. The riding position has changed a bit and as a result it feels more comfortable than before. The handle bar falls to hand easy and the seat height too has not changed. This means that most Indian frames will find it easy to sit on the Classic 350. Start up the bike and the motor feels rather smooth and silent. There is no roughness anymore and vibrations have been curtailed to near zero. Rev up the engine and it still remains rather smooth. The gearbox shifts crisp and the bike takes off with zest. As you shift up to fourth and fifth cog, the new Classic 350 can be ridden at speeds as low as 40 or 50kmph. There is no knocking or jerks felt from the engine and it just goes rather smooth. The best bit is that incase one decides to gather speeds, there is enough torque to pull through to 80kmph with no need of a gear change. This is brilliant and reminds us of the old school Bullets which were known to do this. The sweet spot of the new Classic though is between 80 and 100kmph. It gets to these speeds easy and there are literally no vibes to bother you. Beyond 100kmph, things tend to slow down. On the downside, the clutch does feel a bit heavy and one will notice it while riding in maddening traffic.
When it comes to the ride, the new Classic 350 impresses again. It absorbs bumps well and inspires confidence to take on the rough. It also feels rather nimble and is easy to maneuver in traffic. Around corners too the bike inspires confidence. There is ample clearance too. So no scares of scraping anything. The brakes offer good bite and the bike can be hauled down rather easy.
AS YOU SHIFT HIFT UP TO FOURTH
AND FIFTH COG, THE NEW
CLASSIC 350 CAN BE RIDDEN AT SPEEDS AS LOW AS 40 OR
50KMPH