Royal Enfield Joins Electric Motorcycle Bandwagon
“Royal Enfield has several projects in the pipeline and the electric platform is one of them," said Rudratej Singh, President of Royal Enfield. "We are in an investment phase in the project where we have a team that is working on different ideas and concepts with a long-term focus. We will disclose our plans at an appropriate time.”
Royal Enfield might have been pretty predictable with the models it has been releasing as of late, but it was just announced that it is in the process of developing an electric bullet, consistent with its ‘Made like a Gun’ motto.
Yes, that is right; they have officially joined the band wagon. Others have made the shift so it is only time Royal Enfield has caught on. Its sudden shift is definitely welcome, but whether it will have a market is still largely unknown.
Furthermore, there is an increase in emissions regulations being implemented in India in 2020, so we suspect the electric powertrain to be released at the same time.
On top of the electric model coming down the pipeline, Singh additionally announced the company is in the process of developing two new platforms that are set to replace existing offerings in order to pass increasingly strict emissions regulations. Because the outfit’s new 650cc twins already meet current emissions standards, one can make reasonable assumptions as to what models will likely get replaced.
Meanwhile, Royal Enfield has launched its first “Vintage” store in Chennai to capture the second-hand market for their bikes.
The Vintage store will deal exclusively with pre-owned, refurbished and restored Royal Enfields.
They plan to expand the concept throughout India and possibly overseas as part of the company’s worldwide expansion.
This year the company opened its first store in the USA, cheekily in Milwaukee, headquarters of Harley-Davidson.