Shotgun hits the target... Royal Enfield Shotgun 650
New delivers surprisingly perky power and handling
Heading into downtown Los Angeles from the freeway, Royal Enfield’s new £6699 Shotgun 650 basks in the orange glow of a real-life California Instagram filter. Its 46bhp twin cylinder, 270º crank engine burbles gently along in sixth gear; and as we filter through a sea of Teslas and rub shoulders with the wheel nuts of unfeasibly large trucks, it feels reassuringly weighty, like an American cruiser.
Here at its world launch, we’ve been in the saddle all day – and these final few miles are a chance to waft along and take in the iconic scenery. The big twin is roomy, easy to ride, stress-free and comfortable for hours on end.
Scratcher’s delight
Things weren’t this laid-back earlier, though. Royal Enfield have been keen to demonstrate how the Shotgun 650 is more than just a cruiser and that it has the minerals to fire through the twisty canyon roads in the hills north of LA. And, scything through some challenging switchbacks, it really shows off its sporty intentions.
Current Royal Enfields are neutral-handling, surefooted beasts that roll effortlessly into corners. Many ex-Triumph employees are involved in development, engineering and testing – and the Indian-built Shotgun has the easy, balanced feel of a Hinckley bike.
It has pounded endless laps of test circuits and covered thousands of road-testing miles. It’s a machine that looks like it’ll trip over its own shoelaces at speed, but never does.
Sure, it’s a hefty 240kg, it crashes over big bumps and it easily grazes its pegs, but it carries its weight beautifully and shines on smooth, winding tarmac. Caress the bars with light inputs and it floats from corner to corner with very little effort, using the engine’s low-down grunt and smooth power to maintain momentum.
Ceat tyres (100/90 x 18 front, 150/70 x 17 rear) have all the dry grip you need (no rain in southern California…); and while the single front disc and twin piston Bybre caliper set-up won’t set the world alight, the rear’s 300mm disc/ twin-piston caliper set-up has monstrous power. If you’re used to giving it big footfuls of rear brake, you’ll need to introduce some finesse to your braking.
Refined power
The steel backbone chassis is based on that of the Super Meteor 650 cruiser, albeit with sportier-sized wheels and steering geometry. Its engine is the same too, and has wowed us before in the Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650. It’s perkier than its modest power output suggests, thrives on its low-end torque and has just the right amount of character without being too vibey. Royal Enfield claim 62mpg, but you’d expect more from such a lightly tuned 650.
Instant custom
So, the Shotgun 650 is a cruiser and a scratcher with styling inspired by the custom world. Royal Enfield teased it as the ‘SG650’ prototype at the 2021 EICMA motorcycle show with its mix of old-school ‘restomod’ styled bodywork and modern upside-down forks. It’s sold as a two-seater, but the pillion seat can be removed to reveal a rack, or the whole rear subframe can be quickly unbolted with four screws for a bobber-style, singleseat set up. From there you could go full ‘Bike Shed’ and cut down the mudguard, fit a loud pipe and go wherever your turn-ups take you.
Big on value
But what makes the Shotgun 650 so appealing, like all Royal Enfields, is the price. It’s the antidote to the über-expensive retro, but there’s nothing cheap feeling about it. You get Showa suspension, a centrestand, a classy dash, LED lights, Coke-bottle grips, finned exhaust clamps, a Monza-stye fuel cap and a turn-by-turn satnav.
Its paint (blue, white, grey or green) is quality, and classy touches include the enamel-like finish on engine covers, handlebar clamp and headlight surround. The seat is nicely stitched, and mudguards and side panels are metal. Thirty-one accessories are listed, including our test bike’s bar-end mirrors.
‘It floats from corner to corner with little effort’