There are a lot of people out there today who are obsessed with the past. What’s old is new again, and the motorcycle industry is no exception. There’s no shortage of new motorcycles meant to emulate what some might call the golden era of motorcycling. But no company seems to do this as well as Royal Enfield. The iconic moto manufacturer is launching what looks to be one of the coolest retro bikes with the new Classic 650. It’s big, it’s just powerful enough, and it nails the retro look so well because Royal Enfield itself is still very old-school.
Royal Enfield has been ridiculously hot in recent years. The India-based brand ended its 2025 fiscal year moving 1,009,900 motorcycles globally. Yes, 85 percent of those motorcycles were sold in India, but the brand is making great headway into its original home in England and here in America, too.
Every single one of those motorcycles was a middleweight, too. Big RE doesn’t sell any heavy cruisers, fast sportbikes, or anything of the sort. It trades entirely on retro vibes and its iconic slogan: “Made Like A Gun”. I have found that Enfield’s marketing isn’t that much puffery, either. Where many retro designs are plasticky and feel like modern bikes with vintage dress, Royal Enfield still likes making motorcycles out of girthy, real metal. My Classic 350 feels like it was born in the 1960s, even though it has modern brakes and fuel injection. Yep, I put my money where my mouth is and bought a modern RE. It’s easily one of my favorite motorcycles.
As it turns out, young people will buy new motorcycles if you make the bikes both affordable and attractive, which is something that America’s motorcycle companies are currently struggling with. Somehow, Royal Enfield hasn’t lost its magic touch in launching a slew of new models. The new Classic 650 doesn’t really break any new ground. Instead, it takes what I think is Royal Enfield’s best-looking bike, the Classic 350, and injects those looks into a bigger, more capable platform.
A lot of motorcycle brands lean on the past, but Royal Enfield has historically done it better than most. That’s because, for better or worse, Royal Enfield was resistant to change for decades. The company was making a non-unit constructed iron block carbureted 350cc single cylinder engine until 2010, when most other brands had long moved on to more advanced techniques. Its replacement got fuel injection and unit construction.
One of the biggest advancements to Royal Enfield came in 2018 with its 650 twin platform. This engine is simple by modern standards. It has four valves per cylinder, a single camshaft, and is air-cooled. Yet, with 47 horses in the stable and 38 lb-ft of twist, a Royal Enfield 650 can actually hit the ton, or 100 mph for you non-riders out here. The 650s are especially important for Royal Enfield because they make up 25 percent of the company’s exports. That makes sense. If you want to take a Royal Enfield onto an American interstate and don’t want to run the engine at its limit the whole time, a 650 will be your pick.
The Classic 650
The Classic 650 hit the show circuit in 2024, then hit the road in international markets in March 2025. Now, it’s finally in America, and you can pre-order one right now.
At its heart, the Classic 650 is similar to Royal Enfield’s other 650s. It has the same 47 HP and rocks a steel tubular spine frame. Royal Enfield hasn’t been afraid to stretch this platform out. The Classic 650 is mechanically similar to the Continental GT 650, INT650, Guerilla 650, Bear 650, Super Meteor 650, and Shotgun 650. In this case, the Classic 650 will slot between the Super Meteor 650 and the Shotgun 650. Royal Enfield’s 650s are fun, just fast enough, and handle well despite looking like they rolled out of a time machine.
What makes the Classic 650 different from all of the other 650s is that its style is like the Classic 350, but scaled up. This is a motorcycle with minimal plastic. Basically, everything is metal from the fenders to the switch cubes on the handlebars. In my experience, all of this metal makes Royal Enfields feel more expensive than they actually are. These bikes feel substantial, like you’re handling something that was milled from a large block of metal.
The consequence of this is that the Classic 650 weighs 535 pounds wet, up to 63 pounds heavier than RE’s other 650s. But you aren’t really buying a Royal Enfield if you’re looking for a featherweight. You aren’t buying one of these for tech, either. You get an analog speedometer, and your only bits of tech are ABS, a monochrome LCD odometer, LED lights, a USB port, and a tiny, retro-style pod for turn-by-turn directions. If you’re looking for riding modes, radars, big screens, stereos, heaters, or other tech, you’re looking at the wrong bike. A Royal Enfield is a bike where what you see is what you get. You even start it with a physical key, just like the old times.
Other notable features in the Classic 650 include a 31.5-inch seat height, a six-speed transmission, a Showa inverted fork, Showa twin rear shocks, and ByBre brakes. A single 320mm disc handles stopping up front, and a 300mm plate brings up the rear. Nothing here will knock your socks off. Just about every competitor makes more power and weighs less.
However, in my experience, a Royal Enfield offers a ride that the competition can’t. Riding an RE makes you feel like you’ve time-warped to a time you’ve never lived in. The bike reminds you why you got your motorcycle endorsement in the first place. The fact that you don’t pay a fortune for that privilege is the sweetener.
How It Rides
As for how the Classic 650 rides, here’s what our friends over at RideApart say:
One thing I will say is that it’s a pretty substantial machine, with a claimed curb weight of around 535 pounds. Lifting it off the side stand might surprise you a little bit, as a matter of fact. And while it’s true that it uses the same tried-and-true 650cc parallel twin engine that’s found in five (!) other Enfields in the current lineup, there are curb weight differences to be found in the lineup.
[…]
Once you’re moving, that 650cc p-twin engine is pleasantly smooth in operation as it burbles down whatever roads you happen to encounter. On our ride in north Florida, in and around the historic city of St. Augustine, we didn’t really put the Classic 650 through any serious twisties. Instead, gentle curves and straight lines were the order of the day, but that left more than ample time for the sightseeing a bike like this is built to encourage.
The upside-down Showa front fork and rear shocks were more than up to the task of soaking up any lumps and bumps in the road, though to be fair, most of the roads we were on were quite smooth and well-maintained. Brakes, which are made by ByBre but bear Royal Enfield badging, do a fine job of stopping you as and when expected. The six-speed gearbox shifts up and down very smoothly, and I found zero false neutrals throughout our day of riding; something I definitely can’t say for every bike I ride.
The Classic 650 is up for pre-orders right now for a price of $7,499. For that price, you get your choice of three colorways: teal, black and chrome, or red and white. Personally, teal would be my pick. The price places the Classic 650 as one of the more expensive RE 650s. However, it’s still cheaper than other retro rides like the Kawasaki W800 and the Triumph Speed Twin 900. Of course, the RE has a smaller and slower engine than either of those, too.
The pre-order period ends on March 31. After that, examples should start appearing in Royal Enfield dealers. If you’re interested in reading a review, I highly recommend hopping over to Janaki’s review at RideApart. I’m hoping to get in contact with Royal Enfield’s media folks, so I stop missing these press rides.
Something I continue to find refreshing about the motorcycle world is that a lot of brands still care about affordability. Building the latest and greatest is cool and all, but who cares if you can’t afford it? So, bravo to Royal Enfield for staying the course, even in these trying times. The fact that, at least per reviews, it sounds like the Classic 650 is a good bike is only icing on the cake.
Top graphic image: Royal Enfield
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