Royal Enfield has always been accused of treating the Indian customer as a step child. The reason for it is that, in the past, the company has often launched new and improved products overseas while neglecting the domestic market completely. They had been developing an all new integrated engine with a twin-spark set up as well as fuel injected 500cc mill. The 500cc bikes in both EFI (Electronic Fuel Injection) and twin-spark variants are already churning out good numbers abroad. However, due to stringent emission norms, Royal Enfield had to stop selling the 350cc models overseas.

For the local market, the company has decided to introduce a twin-spark setup for the smaller 350cc engines too, codenamed the TBTS or the Thunderbird Twin-Spark. We had already told you about the first few twin-spark Thunderbirds being delivered to Indian customers last month.  Production of the bike is on in full swing and the folks at RE invited a few automotive journos for a first dekho of the new T’bird. While some of us expected a track day ( remember the Rider Mania at Chennai a few years back?), we nevertheless got a chance to ride and experience the new engine on the scenic ECR (East Coast Road) highway to Mahabalipuram and back. Not a long ride, but enough to judge the performance of the new engine.

Visually, not much has changed, though you can’t help but notice the modern engine. The gearbox is now integrated and the cylinder head too is different with a twin-spark setup. The weird looking kick lever does spoil the bike’s appearance though. There are new ‘Royal Enfield’ decals on the tank and the customary ‘Twin-Spark’ stickers on the side panels as well as behind the backrest. Other visual alterations include a new rear fender, a new seat and the drive chain that is entirely shifted to the right.



Swinging a leg over the bike immediately made me feel at home on the familiar soft saddle. The chopper style handlebars felt great though the rear view mirrors didn’t provide a good view of the action behind. Thumbing the electric starter made the mill come to life and though there is an automatic decompressor to make things easier if one has to kick start the engine, RE claims to have improved the starter motor for a prolonged life. As I pulled in the lever to shift into first, I couldn’t help but notice the lighter clutch. Later interactions with the RE chaps confirmed the same – the use of new plates (the ‘box now has a six-plate construction) and springs has made the action softer. The gearbox remains the same, though these minor changes make sure the gears slot with much more confidence as compared to the T’bird 350 LB bike. I did encounter false neutrals on the ride, but I believe a Bulletier has to live with this.