C5 & "competition"

[Cabo Cruz]

Good for you, Br. Jim!!! 

[WKinNJ]

..  Triumph, which has the strongest “memory lane” brand, is producing Bonnevilles that have only “styling cues” in common with the 60’s models, and for that reason I’ve not been all that tempted to buy one even though I understand they are perfectly nice and reliable.... 

As one who has ridden both 60s Triumphs and currently owns a 2001 Bonnie.  The "new" Bonneville's share more than  “styling cues” with the 60s models.  Triumph did a great job in creating a bike that looks and feels like its predecessor.     

[r80rt]

As one who has ridden both 60s Triumphs and currently owns a 2001 Bonnie.  The "new" Bonneville's share more than  “styling cues” with the 60s models.  Triumph did a great job in creating a bike that looks and feels like its predecessor.     

Yes they did.

[Cabo Cruz]

"As one who has ridden both 60s Triumphs and currently owns a 2001 Bonnie.  The "new" Bonneville's share more than  “styling cues” with the 60s models.  Triumph did a great job in creating a bike that looks and feels like its predecessor."  WKinNJ

"Yes they did."  r80rt

Brs. WK and Dannie, I agree with you with the exception of the two notable differences that follow:

1. The much heavier weight of the Hinckley Bonneville.
2. The fact that the Hinckley Bonneville feels as though it needs a 6th gear.

P.S. I used to own a 2001 and a 2005 Hinckley Bonneville.

[r80rt]

Yeah it's heavier, and bigger overall, I went up a tooth on the front to get a higher ratio on mine. I still think selling it to get a C5 was one of my better idea's 

[ace.cafe]

The Triumph and Guzzi, etc, are fine, and they are better suited to interstate highway use.
But, there's just something about the Royal Enfield that those other bikes can't match.

Here's my story, and I've told it here before.

Several years ago, I went to the Atlanta Bike Expo and helped Tait man the Royal Enfield booth. This was before I got my current Bullet. I had alot of the parts for my other Bullet build, but it wasn't put together yet, and it still isn't.
But, I was contemplating the idea of a Hinckley Bonneville or something like that. The V7 Guzzi hadn't been introduced yet, at that time, so I couldn't look at it.

This was an opportunity for me to really get a close look at the Bullet, and all the other bikes from every other maker, all at one place. I could compare them closely.
I found that almost all the bikes from the major makers looked very plastic. Alot of the bikes that  I lusted after, like the MV Agusta, didn't look as good in person as they did in the magazine glamour shots. They were nice, but not as nice as I thought they would be.
Anyway, I really spent some time at the Triumph booth, and of course I spent most of my time at the Enfield booth. I sat on both these bikes, and looked them over real close.
And my conclusion was that the red Deluxe Bullet that was in the Enfield booth looked like it should cost twice what the Triumph cost, but  actually cost several thousand dollars less. The direct comparison was no contest in my mind.
Virtually everything was plastic on the Triumph, and everything was metal on the Bullet. There was almost no chrome on the Triumph, and the Bullet had gleaming chrome all over it. The Bullet engine looked vintage, but the Triumph engine didn't. It looked "retro", but not vintage.
After that day, my decision was made. I actually made the statement to Tait that I thought that the Bullet was the best looking bike at the show. And I think it was.

Not long after that, I bought my used black 2000 Bullet DeLuxe that I ride now.
And every day I like it better and better. I don't get tired of it.

So, unless interstate touring is your thing, I'd say that it's damn hard to beat a Royal Enfield for the overall motorcycling experience. And they're still less expensive than those other bikes are.

Take the UCE, for example. Either the G5 or C5.
The C5 is one of a kind. There's nothing else that comes even close to that. Nobody is producing a 50s looking bike, except RE. Even if it is a "retro", it's a real good looking retro. And it has all those nice modern features like E-start and EFI and 5-speed and unit construction and improved handling to go with those unique antique looks.
The G5 has all the same advantages in a 60s looking package, and offers a kickstarter. I don't know, but it might be the last kickstart bike left that you can buy.

So when I look at these bikes in comparison to the market, I think about how the RE bikes are actually great bargaiins at lower prices than "the competition", and how I think they are more bike for the money than the other bikes are. And I know that I'm not the only one that feels that way. I think RE has a good set of new models here, and they are going to be a force in the retro market that they are in.

[r80rt]

Can't argue with that!

[Cabo Cruz]

Amen, Brs. Ace and Dannie!  By the way, Tom, I was at that ATL show and stopped by the RE booth a couple of times.  In addition to looking at the bikes, I wanted to meet Tait Bolton and visit with him for a bit.  He was getting something to eat when Graciela, my wife, and I made our first stop by the booth.  She and I, coincidentally, were hungry ourselves and left to get a bite to eat, also.

We went back to the RE booth some thirty minutes later and met and chatted with Tait and another fellow who was with him.  So, as it turns out, I saw you and spoke with you twice on that Saturday afternoon!  Now, this pleasent surprise is worth, at minimum and in honor of our chance meeting and that gorgeous red Deluxe, one Sunday: WOWZAA!!!

[Blue Ridge Wheeltor]

C5 Ain't got no competition

retro
soul
character
unique
simple
durability
collectable
no competition....I would agree. Nothing i would sell my Enfield for...

until now...
http://sovietsteeds.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8849

[r80rt]

I've ridden a Ural solo and owned a Ural Tourist, not bad but I wouldn't trade my Enfield for two of them.

[Cabo Cruz]

Well, Br. Blue, I gotta ask:

Is that new Ural solo going to be a) overpriced, b) overweight and c) underpowered -- for its size and weight?

[r80rt]

I don't remember the price of the solo I tested, but it was over weight and underpowered.

[Blue Ridge Wheeltor]

I don't remember the price of the solo I tested, but it was over weight and underpowered.

This is a whole new solo. Shorter wheelbase, rear disc.

[Cabo Cruz]

Got specs?

[Blue Ridge Wheeltor]

Well, Br. Blue, I gotta ask:

Is that new Ural solo going to be a) overpriced, b) overweight and c) underpowered -- for its size and weight?

Apples and oranges.
yes, the price is about 1k high, but some think $6400++ for a single cylinder Enfield is high.

Owerweight? Steel weighs more than plastic.

Underpowered? Some might argue that a bike not able to cruise at 65 is underpowered. Only 45 hp, but even the nes Ural with sidecar can cruise at 65, this one should run all day at 75.