First Ride: Royal Enfield’s Bear 650 is a motorcycle with added personality

What is it?

Royal Enfield’s new-model onslaught continues with this bike – the Bear 650. Designed to evoke some feel of classic scramblers from the 1960s, it’s here to bring a clever blend of old-school looks with more modern underpinnings.

But in a market where the scrambler-style motorcycle is in hot demand, what can the Bear 650 do to stand out and is it worth considering? We’ve been riding it to find out.

What’s new?

Back in the 1960s, a hardcore race called ‘The Big Bear Run’ used to take place in the Mojave Desert, California. Aboard a 500cc Royal Enfield Fury, rider Eddie Mulder won a shock first-place position and it’s this racing heritage that the brand is attempting to bring into the Bear 650. As a result, it gets a scrambler-style two-into-one exhaust, a kicked-up rear section and even a competition number board for that racing feel.

It’s got a similar basis to some of the brand’s other 650cc models like the Interceptor and Continental, but gets a raised ride height and a more aggressive look overall. You’ve got beefy Showa 130mm forks up front, too, as well as a 19-inch front wheel and 17-inch rear.

What’s it powered by?

As the name suggests, the Bear 650 gets Royal Enfield’s 650cc twin engine with 47bhp and a healthy 56.5Nm of torque. Enfield says that this torque level helps to improve mid-level performance compared to its other twin models, too, so you shouldn’t have to change down the six-speed manual gearbox as often in order to up the pace.

The aforementioned exhaust system helps to offer a ‘broader powerband’, according to Royal Enfield, while a claimed fuel economy of 62mpg could see 185 miles being extracted from a fill of the Bear’s 13.7-litre tank – though this is hardly being pitched as a long-distance motorcycle.

What’s it like to ride?

With the more scrambler-focused design you’d expect the Bear 650 to be a little more aggressive than the other twins within the Royal Enfield range – and it is. While the throttle response isn’t too sharp, the ride is somewhat on the firm side and you can find yourself being a little unsettled by bumps and bumps in the road. That said, it’s still a very fun motorcycle to ride and though the 47bhp on offer is hardly enormous by modern motorcycle standards, it’s enough to get you up to speed in good enough time. The extra beef from the brakes is a welcome addition compared with bikes like the Interceptor, mind you, and provide extra confidence when you need to stop in a hurry.

The upright bars help to create a more relaxed riding position overall, too, and even though a lack of screen means you’re getting most of the wind blast to your chest, it doesn’t feel uncomfortable to ride even at greater speeds. We did find the gearbox to be a little wooly at times, mind you, and had a few ‘false neutrals’ during our time with the bike.

How does it look?

It’s hard to fault the way the Bear 650 looks as – to our eyes at least – it’s one of the prettier bikes on sale today. With its retro-inspired design and painted frame, it’s a motorcycle that’ll definitely turn heads wherever it goes. Some may see the silencer as a little too large for the Bear, but we’re sure that this could be solved with an aftermarket version should you buy this bike.

You’ve got three colourways to choose from – Petrol Green, Golden Shadow and a special edition Two Four Nine which harks back to the number worn by Mulder back in the 1960s. They’re all very complementary colours to the look of the bike overall, though we’re sure that the Bear 650 will be squarely in the sights of customisers who want to take things further.

What’s the spec like?

Royal Enfield is just as aggressive with the Bear 650’s pricing as it is with its other bikes. With the Bear coming in at £6,749, it’s a fair chunk under what you’d pay for a similar scrambler-style motorbike from the likes of Triumph or Ducati. And, as we’ve come to expect from this brand, the Bear isn’t overladen with technology, but what there is makes a big impact.

There’s the TFT display which incorporates Enfield’s Tripper navigation system, for instance. It links to your smartphone’s Google Maps app and, as a result, provides excellent turn-by-turn navigation right where you need it. You’ve also got a USB-C charging port for keeping that smartphone topped up, which is handy given that mapping services tend to drain them quickly. LED lights are included across the board, too, which is a first on any Enfield twin motorcycle.

Verdict

The Bear 650 gets the scrambler style of motorcycle nailed. It’s great to look at, feels peppy and agile to ride and has boatloads of character as well as a decent level of technology that’ll make it easier to use every day.

Most importantly, it does this for a very tempting price. So if you’re looking to get onto a scrambler without paying too much, the Bear 650 offers a very attractive proposition.