Jerry Eichenberger wrote on 02/14/08 at 13:28:41:Before settling (I think) on buying a Savage, I had thought I wanted a Royal Enfield, until I investigated.
Except for just one model, they all have drum brakes, front and rear - really outdated.
Don't expect more than about 75 mph top speed, unless you weigh under 100 pounds, have a tailwind, and it's in perfect tune. It's not an interstate highway bike - of course, when it was in its heyday in the late 1950s and into the 60s, there were no interstates here. Motorways in England were beginning, and of course, the Germans had a few autobahnen by then.
According to my buddy, a local dealer who dropped RE from his line-up, ( he sells Suzuki, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Polaris, Triumph, Ducati and Aprilia) the quality control is the pits, warranty claims take forever, and the tooling at the factory is the same old stuff that the Brits used 45+ years ago, and is just plain worn out.
There are very few dealers nationwide if you need help while on a trip with one of them.
Other than all of that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?
Up to the point where it put the primary chain through the cases, not bad when it was actually running.
1950's British engineering and design, Indian quality control -- even the export grade Enfields are a reliability disaster, especially if you think a 500cc bike should ride at least as well as an old Honda Super 90!
Yeah, drop-dead gorgeous, but my wife was getting tired of picking me up so I could bring it home on the trailer!
(And yes, the shift was on the right, and that's a disk brake up front!)