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Royal Enfield’s Super Meteor: a cruiser bike honoring its heritage

Jaco Zijlstra — Tue, 14 Mar 2023 17:05:12 +0000

Back home in Amsterdam, we just had the first ride of the year cut short due to rain, really cold rain that is…

So, when I got invited to test the new Royal Enfield (RE) Super Meteor in the South of France, ‘yes please’ was the only possible answer!

Our hosts Motomondo and Sima had prepared a bunch of brand-new bikes for us to ride in Marseille, most of them with 10km or less on the clocks. So careful with the tyres on the first kilometers! Especially as we had some rain in the early morning, fortunately the only rain we’ve seen that day….

The RE Super Meteor is a retro cruiser – with all the cruiser characteristics you might expect – low seat, hourglass shape seen from above, large tank, forward controls, high and wide handlebars. You sit upright with your arms and legs stretched forward. Not really familiar for a sportsbike rider like myself, but I have to admit, it’s comfortable and allows you to keep riding all day long!

The 648cc engine – the same basically as the engine on the Interceptor INT 650 or the Continental GT 650 bikes – is a 4 stroke, Air-Oil Cooled Parallel twin. A so-called ‘mid-segment’ bike, not as big – or intimidating if you prefer :-) – as your typical Harley or Indian cruiser. But plenty of ‘oomph’: 47 horsepower, accelerates quite quickly, lots of torque with 80% of the power delivered below 3.000rpm, and a very steady and comfortable ride at highway speeds.

As mentioned above, I’m a sportsbike rider, so especially cornering had a bit of a learning curve for me. Having the peg feelers scrape the asphalt in nearly every turn – most of them are 180 degrees on the fabulous ‘Route des Crêtes’ – was a bit scary at first. But you learn to lean less and not to worry too much about the scraping.

And then you’re set – this is a bike that is very easy to ride. Smooth throttle, effortless shifting, good acceleration, more than adequate braking by the single disc brakes front and back. There even is ABS on board. Plus USD forks with a 120mm stroke, an RE first. The bike has a low center of gravity, feels quite stable on the straights and is easy to steer into the corners. This can be attributed to the 16” rear wheel and the 19” front wheel in true cruiser style, but, according to RE, is certainly also courtesy of the new frame and swingarm which have been developed in conjunction with Harris Performance in the UK.

When you first sit on the Super Meteor, it feels higher than you’d expect standing next to it. But that height works – for me, I’m of average height at 1m75, but also for the more ‘vertically challenged’ colleagues on the ride, and even for those exceptionally tall Dutch guys that were riding with us.

Moving to the looks then: the Super Meteor is unmistakably a cruiser with its narrow waist and big teardrop-shaped tank. It also reflects the RE heritage quite well, for example by its chrome tank badges with historic RE logo.

The Super Meteor 650 is available in five colors: black, blue, dark green, grey and dark red. There is a minor price difference between the single color painted ‘Astral’ models and the two-tone ‘Interstellar’ models.

However, what really struck me is that for €300 more, you get the Super Meteor 650 Tourer, which comes with a nice luxury one-piece touring seat with embroidered logo, windscreen, and a pillion backrest. That seat does not only look great, but is a bit softer and more comfortable as well. So even if you’re not into backrests or windscreens, I would still go for the Tourer model and just store the windscreen and backrest.

All in all, the RE Super Meteor was a blast to ride on the curvy roads of the Route des Crêtes. The only minor setback were the tyres, which were no match for the brakes and lacked some grip at an angle. So I would shell out for a pair of more grippy touring tyres pretty quickly I guess.

The RE Super Meteor is a very reasonably priced mid-segment bike with an engine that has proven its worth, and featuring high-end components such as ABS, upside-down front suspension, and LED lighting. Plus TBT (Turn By Turn) navigation, linking to your smartphone. We did not get to test this however, as we were just trying to keep up with Joel, RE’s Marseille dealer, who clearly knows these roads very well…

So who’s this bike for? Well, obviously you have to dig the cruiser style, but RE had some specific target groups in mind when they built this bike:

female riders, looking for a classic style and easy-to-ride bike
returning riders, looking for a classic-looking, dependable weekend toy
Royal Enfield afficionados who want an upgrade or more modern bike
first time buyers looking for a lot of value for money, a brand with history and an un-intimidating riding experience…

Prices vary in Europe due to different taxes for new motorbikes (still…), but range from €7.200 for the single-color Astral model, €7.400 for the two-tone Interstellar and €7.700 for the Tourer in Italy, to €9.499 for the Astral, €9.799 for the Interstellar and €9.999 for the Tourer in the Netherlands.

So go and try one out at your local RE dealer if you’re interested…

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Review: 2021 BMW S1000R

Ron Betist — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 06:45:46 +0000

Faster, lighter & meaner
Custom bikes will always at the core of BikeBrewers existence. But almost every custom art piece spawns from something that was produced by a motorcycle manufacturer. We feel it is only right to occasionally highlight new models we consider to be cool enough to be seen among all those magnificent custom dreams.

In this piece our Spanish Brewer Thierry Tronquit Prats zooms in on a new Bavarian brew: the 2021 BMW S1000R.

Going back in time
It all started in 1992, when BMW developed the R1100RS which developed 90hp and 95 Nm of torque. The engine was a 1085cc air-cooled boxer with a top speed of 218 kph for 239 kg. It was a half-faired naked machine which at that time was very aerodynamic. As the years went by, BMW enhanced the bike by making it lighter, improving the boxer engine and aerodynamics.

In 2009, BMW launched the S1000RR ditching the boxer engine and replacing it with a 999cc inline-four configuration which had an output of 193 hp and a maximum torque of 112 Nm. The claimed top speed was 305 kph. The motorcycle featured a dry weight of 183 kg and it featured electronics like Race ABS, DTC, and a couple of rider aids. Since then, the S1000RR has gotten lighter, faster, more powerful and loaded with the latest technology.

A few years later, we have ridden into the year 2014 now, BMW launched the naked version of this powerful super-bike called the S1000R sharing the engine, gearbox, frame, suspension and fitting straight bars. In one word: INSANE!

Six years later, BMW have revamped their roadster based on the 2021 S1000RR. It is lighter, faster and is equipped with even more power. This is a super high tech machine filled to the brim with modern technology such as ABS Pro, Dynamic Traction Control (DTC), full LED lighting and much, much more. Just as you may expect from the German technicians.

Power center
Let’s talk about the engine. It’s the same inline 4 you will find in the S1000RR but with a slightly different configuration … a more linear power delivery! It produces 165Hp available at 11.000rpm with a torque of 114Nm available at 9.250rpm. BMW has also modified the gearbox making the 4th, 5th and 6th speeds longer lowering consumption and the level of noise. For the first time, they have also added the engine drag torque control (MSR) so that the back-wheel won’t skid when you are brutally accelerating or violently down shifting.

Frame
How about the frame and the swingarm? The frame called Flex Frame is completely new and is not as wide as before therefore giving the pilot a better position and more freedom to move around. The suspended swingarm has been taken from the S 1000 RR and the spring strut with Full Floater Pro kinematics is now positioned considerably further from the swingarm and engine axle. This prevents the motor from overheating due to residual heat and ensures an even more stable temperature behavior and an even more constant damping response. In combination with the swingarm, which has its roots in motorsport, this results in increased grip and less tire wear.

Of course, the 2021 S1000R model comes with the latest technology. Its equipped with DTC (dynamic traction control), ABS Pro, which also works when you need to brake while in a curve, and three driving modes: Rain, Road and Dynamic. The Dynamic Pro is an open map that you can adjust to your preferences with the MSR (engine drag torque control) and the DBC (Dynamic Braking Control) which will help you in case of an emergency braking.

At the controls
Regarding the TFT screen, it comes with a 6.5 inches screen for better reading and more information. The rider can choose from different displays depending on the purpose. The Pure Driving display, for example, provides all the information needed for normal highway driving, while another center display show displays for lean angle, deceleration and traction control.

A Bluetooth smartphone interface is already included as standard to enable app-based arrow navigation. The TFT screen is conveniently operated from the handlebar by means of the multi-controller. The optional M package provides a third center display with a display bar and lap timer.

Brighten up your day
The new S1000R uses state-of-the-art LED technology: new LED headlight with optimized low beam and high beam; newly designed LED turn indicators and taillights. The rear indicators have been adopted from the S 1000 RR and feature an integrated tail / brake light function. Safety in night driving is ensured by the adaptive turning light, which is a component of the Headlight Pro as a factory option. The rider benefits from better road lighting when cornering to make night riding even safer.

Let’s finish the review of the BMW S1000R by talking about its design which is more dynamic and remains faithful to its appearance “tail up – nose down”. Pure power with an aggressive look putting more weight on the front tire for better handling. It comes in different color schemes keeping the sporty and dynamic appearance.

Thierry only has one question for BMW: When can we test ride it on a track?

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