Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 By Ben Purvis
As a brand that until recently was a bit-part player in a minor niche of the global market, Royal Enfield's renaissance over the last few years has been remarkable. With the new Guerrilla 450, the company takes another huge step into the mainstream with an affordable, modern roadster that rivals machines like Triumph's Speed 400.
The Guerrilla is based on the same platform as the new-for-2024 Himalayan 450, sharing Royal Enfield's new 'Sherpa' single-cylinder engine, which marks multiple firsts for the company. It's the first liquid-cooled Enfield engine, and the first with double overhead camshafts, as well as debuting ride-by-wire throttle technology into the company's range. In short, the 452 cc single is a completely modern design, unlike the 1950s and 1960s throwbacks normally associated with the company.
With 39.5 hp (40 PS/29.44 kW) and 40 Nm of torque, power is on a par with the Triumph Speed 400, but the Royal Enfield has more torque thanks to a 54 cc capacity advantage, and the Royal Enfield undercuts the Triumph's price, though not by a wide margin. The two bikes have more in common than their general layouts, too, as both carry traditional British brand names and play on their heritage, but are actually manufactured in India.
Like the Himalayan, the Guerilla has a six-speed gearbox - a number that's still unusual for a Royal Enfield, since most of the brand's bikes use five-speed boxes - and the main frame is identical. There's a new seat subframe, though, and different suspension to make the Guerrilla a road-only bike without the Himalayan's off-tarmac abilities.
Right-way-up, non-adjustable forks that are shorter than the Himalayan's upside-downers, along with a 17-inch front wheel, help shorten the wheelbase and steepen the rake, and by swapping from a 17-litre fuel tank to an 11-litre design, the Guerrilla's weight is also reduced by 7 kg to 184 kg wet. The seat height is 780 mm.
Although lacking the endless functions of some modern bikes, there's some useful technology on the Guerrilla's small, circular TFT dash, including map-based navigation using Google Maps when linked to a smartphone. For the first time on a Royal Enfield, there's also a choice of riding modes - 'eco' or 'performance.'
More Royal Enfields incoming
The Guerrilla isn't the only new Royal Enfield on the way as design registrations have emerged showing two further models - a 650 cc twin-cylinder scrambler and a lightweight electric bike.
The scrambler is based on the Interceptor 650 and expected to carry the name 'Interceptor Bear 650' - a title that's been trademarked already in multiple countries alongside a stylised graphic showing the silhouette of a bear. It shares the frame and the air-cooled 650 cc twin engine with the Interceptor, along with the twin-shock rear suspension setup, but gains upside-down forks and new bodywork.
Wide, flat bars give a scrambler riding position, and the Interceptor's twin exhausts are swapped for a low-mounted two-into-one system with a silencer on the right-hand-side. The twin instruments of the Interceptor are swapped for a single circular unit that appears to be identical to the TFT screen used on the latest Himalayan and the Guerrilla 450.
The lightweight electric model is similar to an unreleased concept bike, the electriK01, which was partially revealed in a leaked photo back in 2022. It's a lightweight, retro-styled single-seater with a girder fork, matching the electriK01 design, but the new design registrations show a different, finned battery pack and changes to the frame. Royal Enfield's owner Eicher has filed several trademark applications around the world for the name 'Flying Flea' - a reference to the lightweight WW2 miliary bike used by paratroopers, which shares some notable design similarities with the new electric model, including the single saddle and the girder forks.
