A cruiser motorcycle gently wafts across the highways allowing its rider to observe the world at their own leisurely pace while sitting in calm-inducing comfort.
While some would call these leisurely beasts a work of art with their long stretched-out shapes, these cruisers have developed a bit of a bad boy image thanks to the feared biker gangs of the west.
Whichever way you look at them, cruisers have become icons of the bike world and so it came as no surprise that Royal Enfield, the nostalgia motorcycle maestro decided to move down this route.
In fact, Royal Enfield is going for all the feels with the Super Meteor 650, which is named after the first motorcycle from the brand to hit 100 miles/hour (160.9km/h) back in 1959.
Unveiled back in 2022 in Milan at the EICMA show, the Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 quickly made its way onto our roads soon after. We decided to pit the new Super Meteor 650 against the rumble strip roads of Bangalore to find out if the new Royal Enfield was up to the mark or if it was cruising for a bruising.
Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 Design & Features
The Super Meteor 650 is the first spin-off of the 650 Twins lineup since it was first introduced with the Interceptor 650 and the Continental GT650. And while it may be based on the same platform, the Super Meteor 650 more than distinguishes itself from its siblings with its elegant and elongated cruiser design.
The Super Meteor 650 sure looks like a cruiser from the past with its heavily raked front end, round headlight, teardrop-shaped fuel tank, scooped-out seat, front set footpegs, long and low exhausts and chunky rear tyre and fender. This image is further enhanced if you opt for the touring model that adds a large windscreen along with tall and wide touring-style handlebars.
On the other hand, the new Super Meteor 650 from Royal Enfield brings quite a few modern features like upside-down forks at the front, alloy wheels and twin-pod instrumentation which offers features like an analogue speedo along with an inset LCD display on one that shows off the fuel levels, gear position indicator, odometer, dual trip metres.
The smaller pod gives you turn-by-turn navigation when linked to your phone via Bluetooth and is standard fit on the two higher-spec Enfield Super Meteor 650 variants – Interstellar and Celestial. Also seen is a USB port to charge your device.
Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 Specs & Dimensions
The Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 may be based on the same platform as the 650 twins but the cruiser is quite a bit longer than the other two motorcycles powered by the firm’s twin-cylinder engine.
The Super Meteor 650 measures 2,260mm long, 890mm wide and 1,155mm tall. The cruiser motorcycle sports a 1,500mm long wheelbase. Compared to the Interceptor, the Super Meteor 650 is 141mm longer and sports a 102mm longer wheelbase.
The Super Meteor 650 continues to be powered by a 648cc, parallel-twin SOHC engine that pushes out 47bhp and 52Nm of peak torque. Like the engine, the 6-speed gearbox remains unchanged.
However, the Super Meteor 650 sports a new chassis and suspension setup. The Super Meteor sports a steel tubular spine frame with a 43mm USD front fork and twin shocks at the rear both of which are provided by Showa.
The new frame has also allowed for the Super Meteor’s low seat height of 740mm which makes the bike more accessible for those who are slightly vertically challenged. The Super Meteor 650 offers a ground clearance of just 135mm.
Braking duties on the Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 are carried out by disc brakes aided by dual-channel ABS. The front wheel sports a 320mm disc while the rear features a 300mm unit. Both disc brakes are clamped down by twin-piston callipers.
The Super Meteor 650 from Royal Enfield features a staggered setup for the alloy wheels that come shod with tubeless tyres. At the front, the cruiser rides on a 19-inch wheel while at the rear, the bike sports a 16-inch unit. The wheels are shod with 100/90 x 19 (front) and 150/80 x 16 (rear) Zoom Cruz tyres from Ceat.
Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 Riding Impressions – Creamy Smooth Cruiser Burdened By A Two-Face Suspension Setup
The Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 will be a breeze to ride for those used to cruisers. However, for those coming from other types of motorcycles, the laid-back feet-forward riding posture may take some time to get used to.
As usual, Royal Enfield’s 648cc, 270-degree parallel twin engine steals the show here once again. While it lacks low-end grunt, the engine shows off its tricks when it goes past the 4,000rpm mark. Keep the revs high and both you and the bike will remain happy on the go while delivering a mileage of around 24km/l.
For short distances, the engine keeps its cool rather well, however, on longer journeys, the feet forward riding style may just leave you a bit red as the twin does tend to get hot on long rides. The gearbox on the Super Meteor 650 slots into place with ease and allows for hassle-free shifts despite the lack of slip-assist. However, the 2-way gear lever will take some time to get used to.
Now we come onto the bugbear, the suspension setup. The Super Meteor 650 is rather stiffly sprung due to its rather chunky 240-kilogramme kerb weight. This weight is rather noticeable at very slow speeds but thanks to the brilliant chassis and USD front fork remains an afterthought otherwise.
The cause for our annoyance are the ultra-stiff rear springs which feature way too much rebound for our liking as was evident by the throbbing of our backs. For a better riding experience ride with a pillion or get the fixed panniers and fill them with your dumbells…
However, the stiff suspension setup does come good when combined with the large section rear tyre. Add in the brilliant USD fork up front which matches the sharply raked steering angle of the RE cruiser and the Super Meteor 650 allows you to take the turns with ease.
The large disc brakes along with the dual-channel ABS setup are more than enough to bring the heavy Super Meteor 650 to a halt quickly. However, the ABS setup does tend to kick in a bit too early which is slightly annoying.
Final Thoughts About The Royal Enfield Meteor 650 – The King Of The Middleweight Cruise
The Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 more than lives up to the super in its name. With an aggressive price of just over Rs 3.5 lakhs, the Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 is one of the best middle-weight cruisers around despite that rather harsh rear suspension setup.
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