Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650: Riders on the storm!

The Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650. What a name! In one glance you know it's a cruiser, a 650 twin and more capable than your non super Meteor 350. They could have simply named it the Meteor 650 but that would have been like serving idli without sambhar or dal without tadka or sushi without wasabi. The Super brings the zing in the name and in the way it makes you feel. Nobody does marketing better than Royal Enfield, you gotta give it to them for this one.

The styling of the Super Meteor is that of a premium category cruiser. The top end Celestial variant, especially in the red and white paint scheme with its tall windscreen and pillion backrest looks like an Indian motorcycle from a distance. Like an Indian "Super" Chief to be precise. While the lower Astral and Interstellar variants look much like the Harley Davidson Dyna range of motorcycles. It's not a blatant copy like how the Thar - Wrangler relationship is. It's more of a true to the tee cruiser design where the front end is high and raked out. It flows into a teardrop tank which then continues to flow to a lower seat neatly merging into a lower tail section. It also comes with modern equipment never seen before on a Royal Enfield. You get Showa upside down forks, led lighting and a massive 300mm rear disc brake by Bybre. You also get brushed aluminum design bits on the fuel lid and the switchgear casing. The flow of the overall design, the USD forks, the premium adjustable levers, the rotary switches, the right mix of black and chrome at all the right places, the monogram, the stickering and the powder coated chassis just seal the deal on how visually appealing the Super Meteor looks. It truly looks the part of a motorcycle not twice but thrice its price.

What many pompous, self proclaimed automobile gurus will not tell you is that this is an entirely new motorcycle ground up. Yes, it shares the RE 650 twin engine with the Int and GT 650s but that is where the similarities end. The mainframe is all new and this one uses the engine as a stressed member. Manufacturers don't usually do that unless they are super confident about the refinement of the engine. That brings me to the engine which gets a new intake and a new exhaust that not only makes the motorcycle sound sweet, it also smoothens out the torque curve compared to the Int and the GT 650s. The engine sits low in the frame. That, along with the low seat height makes the center of gravity extremely low and that makes its 240 kgs of heft disappear as soon as you straddle the motorcycle. Works like magic really. The motorcycle feels large but very tightly put together. There are no unwanted squeaks and squeals that Royal Enfields of the past used to specialise in. All the touchpoints: the handlebar grips, the clutch and brake levers, the seat, the footrests they all seem like built to last. If the build quality of a Triumph Bonneville Bobber is at 10, I would rate the build quality of the Super Meteor at 9. It is that good. The ergonomics are not that of a cruiser, they are that of a hardcore cruiser. The feet are really long stretched forward. You do sit upright but for riders with short hands, there is a slight stretch to reach the handlebars. I hope RE offers taller handlebars that are more pulled towards the rider as an accessory to complete the cruiser straddle for people of all sizes. That said, if you want to look badass, the Super Meteor is the motorcycle for you. Given how Dyna inspired this motorcycle feels, you do feel like Jax Teller from the Sons of Anarchy, sitting across the Super Meteor and rolling around town with sunglasses and attitude. It doesn't get any more badass than this. 

Fire up the engine using the rotary switch and you experience what the end product 5 years of continuous development looks like. It's almost like polishing a piece of carbon non stop for 5 long years and you finally get a sparkling diamond. This iteration of the 650cc parallel twin is now a real gem, a sparkling diamond. It has reached its pinnacle in terms of refinement and finesse. Given the heft of the motorcycle on paper at least, there are no big surprises at pick up. Wring open the throttle once you get rolling and boy oh boy you are hanging on to the handlebars like a monkey. The linear but oodles of torque, coupled with crisp fuelling and an upright riding position just throws you backwards and if you are carrying a pillion, getting a backrest fitted would be highly advisable. Riding through traffic, you realise that the clutch pull is fairly light. What really surprises you though is the quality of the gearshifts. The shifts are so smooth, so precise that you begin to doubt if this gearbox is indeed designed by Royal Enfield. The large heel and toe shifter might also be contributing to more leverage at the gear lever and hence a lighter feeling gearshift. 

Despite being substantially heavier than the Int and the GT 650s, the Super Meteor feels extremely light and nimble on its feet once it gets going. A cruiser format may not be the best corner carver but you manage corners differently with this one. The slightest of countersteering input and the Super Meteor happily tips into a corner. Once leaned in, you have to hold on to your urge to accelerate out of the corner. This is a long motorcycle and it would be easy to overcook it on corner exit. Once you're fairly straightened up, go full gas and the Super Meteor charges towards the next corner like an arrow searching for its target. So it's like full speed in a straight line, brake, lean in, go slow slow slow, onto the throttle and then boom! Full gas! Oh it's fun. It's seriously fun. While you're having fun, you know that the brakes are sharp and have got your back in case you need to bring this juggernaut to a stop. Just don't brake like how they teach you on track days. Show some respect for the rear brakes and use both brakes equally for the shortest braking distance. Aiding the cornering and braking performance is the 150 section 16 incher rear tyre, the widest rear tyre on a Royal Enfield yet. Now coming to the weak link of the Super Meteor or any cruiser motorcycle for that matter: suspension. The upside down Showa's upfront do an amazing job at soaking up the bumps and keeping the Super Meteor planted and settled through corners. The tuning of the rear suspension is firm and while that does contribute to the handling fun, through bad patches of road, it sends the potholes unfiltered up your spine and neck. Moreover, since the feet are stretched out and the handlebars are high, there is almost no body weight resting on your feet and hands and the entire weight is only on your back. This position also makes it impossible to stand up on the motorcycle while going through a bad patch of road. That said, people do ride cruiser motorcycles and they do eventually get used to it. What you get in return is what matters more.




This is a coming of age moment for Royal Enfield. They have created a truly global product with the Super Meteor 650 and not just a cheap alternative for someone who cannot afford a Triumph, Harley or Indian motorcycle. The fit, the finish, the refinement, the touch, the feel, all parts of the motorcycle are finally singing the same tune. When you chose your life partner, how did you do it? You did not ask for her height, weight and body measurements. You did not care about what others thought of her. You met her with a clear mind, spent time with her and you felt good about it. You felt so good about it that you wanted to meet her again and again and again and each time you met, the feeling grew stronger and stronger. The Super Meteor is that kind of a motorcycle. So ignore what journalists, influencers and bigoted automobile dinosaurs tell you on YouTube. They have their wives, girlfriends and mistresses sitting in their garages. If you are in the market to find yours, do not give the Super Meteor a miss. If you don't like it, that's alright, there's more coming from Royal Enfield real soon. So stay tuned and ride safe!


Pictures courtesy: royalenfield.com