Liquid-cooled Royal Enfield 450 Single Spied

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You wouldn’t immediately guess that the modern-looking roadster is from Royal Enfield. The new 450cc liquid-cooled engine will power multiple new models. (S. Baldauf/SB-Medien/)

The renaissance of Royal Enfield has been remarkable to witness over the last few years as a brand that was once mocked for its old-fashioned throwbacks has become envied for its growth and sales success. Now it’s preparing to take another huge leap forward by introducing water-cooled, DOHC machines that throw off any lingering sense that Royal Enfield is an anachronism.

The bike you see here, was spotted in Spain near the Idiada test facility south of Barcelona, which is a huge testing ground for cars and motorcycles that has long been favored by brands such as Triumph and KTM for its year-round good weather. With many of Royal Enfields’ staff at its UK-based R&D facility having history at Triumph’s factory, situated just a few minutes’ drive away, perhaps it should be no surprise that the company is using the same proving grounds. With no branding or logos, you probably wouldn’t guess that the machine was a Royal Enfield. First, there’s no old-fashioned air-cooled engine, and the styling isn’t overtly retro. It’s a straightforward roadster-style machine with a midsized, modern single-cylinder engine that could as easily be a Japanese or Italian model as one that’s set to be manufactured in India.

It is a Royal Enfield, however, and we understand that the new engine has a capacity of around 450cc. The same motor was spotted earlier this year in England, when Royal Enfield was caught evaluating its next-generation Himalayan adventure bike, which will also use it. In this instance, the more standard style of the bike it’s fitted to, has sparked suggestions that it’s the replacement for the Himalayan-based Scram 411. Although the use of 17-inch alloy wheels instead of 19-inch front / 17-inch rear wirespoke units of the Scram 411 eliminates any lingering “scrambler” elements, so a different name might make more sense. Royal Enfield has a hoard of unused trademarks including Constellation, Flea, Flying Flea, Sherpa, Roadster and Shotgun (given the standard look of this bike, the simple “Roadster” might suit it).

Although designed at RE’s R&D facility in the UK, the bike clearly has the Indian market in mind. There’s a saree guard fitted on the left-hand side under the passenger seat to stop long clothing from getting tangled in the rear wheel or chain—something that’s usually present on Indian-market bikes—but given Royal Enfield’s global presence, any new model is likely to appear in all markets once launched.

In terms of specifications, there’s speculation that the single-cylinder engine makes around 40 to 45 hp, which is a huge step up compared to the 24.3 hp of the current Scram 411′s 411cc, air-cooled, SOHC single. However, the fact that the front brake appears to be carried over from the existing Scram, with a two-piston sliding caliper and single 300mm disc at the front, suggests the performance isn’t high enough to merit stronger stoppers. The frame is a steel-tube design that appears to be identical to the chassis featured on the next-gen Himalayan, but gets a straight, cast-alloy swingarm where the Himlayan’s curves downwards to add more ground clearance. The bike in these images has a simpler, standard fork instead of the inverted one seen on spy pictures of the next Himalayan. Although largely hidden in these images, the rear suspension is catered for by a surprisingly long monoshock that’s mounted almost horizontally, directly connecting the swingarm to the frame without any rising-rate linkage.

This slightly different angle shows the modern headlight and front end. (S. Baldauf/SB-Medien/)

Several elements of the bike look to be close to production. The headlight, for instance, is a stylized unit with a horizontal split between the upper and lower sections and is expected to be shared with the coming Himalayan. It’s flanked by LED turn signals, matched by similar units at the rear, while the fuel tank also looks similar to the design seen on prototypes for the Himalayan’s replacement. The exhaust, complete with heat shields and catalytic converter, also looks showroom ready, suggesting that the mechanical side of the bike’s development is largely complete.

However, there are several elements of the bike in these pictures that are still very much in the prototype stage. There are no instruments, for instance, and the bars are mounted on temporary, adjustable risers to help establish the riding position. The mirror mounts are also prototypes designed to offer extensive adjustment for width and height, helping to nail down the design parameters for the final units, and the pillion footpegs are bolted to bodged, bare steel brackets, again indicating the production parts haven’t been finalized yet.

Earlier prototypes of the water-cooled Himalayan replacement and this more road-oriented model were spotted in India early this year but since neither model has appeared as part of Royal Enfield’s 2023 range, they’re expected to have several months’ more development ahead of them before they’re officially launched, probably in late 2023, as key components of the company’s 2024 line-up.

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