The Royal Enfield Scram 411
So, we finally get the first proper look at the new Royal Enfield Himalayan variant, the "Scram 411". So, is it more of the same? The Himalayan wearing a different jacket and haircut? Or does this bike have any differences which amount to more than styling?
Well... yes and no. The Scram gets a smaller front wheel, 19" instead of the Himalayan's 21", with the same 17" size on the rear. That lowers the bike's ground clearance by 20mm but still leaves you 200mm to play with, which will be more than adequate for most people who buy this bike.
The seat height has also gone down by 5mm (to 795mm), but the controls have been lowered by 60mm and brought 20mm closer to the rider - possibly not as good for standing on the pegs in the middle of nowhere, but a boon to riding the bike in urban areas. The front suspension travel is now 190mm (10mm less than the standard Himalayan) while the rear remains the same at 180mm. a
At 185kg vs 199kg the Scram adds to its more manageable characteristics by losing weight, but it's not just things like the tank braces which have gone, it's also the centre stand. Probably not too much of an issue to the target market, but an annoyance if you took it off to the wilds, where we generally prefer to have one for when we have to take it all to bits. We'd also prefer switchable ABS on the bike, but again, we suspect the target market won't be too bothered about that, as we don't think most of them will want to be doing anything too challenging off-road.
Speaking of the target market, it's pretty obvious from the launch imagery that Royal Enfield are hoping to tap into the urban market who will ride around town all week but may want to get out to the countryside for some unmade tracks at the weekend rather than the serious greenlaner or overlander. And as a bike aimed at that kind of riding, we suspect it may be pretty good. The engine and power output remain the same as the standard Himalayan, but the ignition timing has supposedly been altered to give it a bit more pizzazz (although we won't know if the difference is noticeable until we get riding one). That should make it nimble around town - not an excess of wasted power, but enough to take you down from somewhere like London to Brighton at the weekend, exploring a few of Sussex's gentler unmetalled lanes while you're down there.
And let's face it, a lot of adventure bikes aren't used to do much more than that, even though they are capable of so much more. The bike comes in a pleasing array of colours and at just £4,599 base price, we think while some of you will want one as your main bike, many more will want one as an extra bike which gives you a grin. For the young urban hipsters among you though, this bike has a lot of potential.
You'll be able to decide for yourself when you test ride one at The Overland Event 2022.
