Royal Enfield Launches Bullet Trials 350 and 500 In India — Leh-Ladakh Ready From The Factory

Royal Enfield has launched the Bullet Trials in India at a starting price of Rs 1.62 lakh. The 2019 Royal Enfield Bullet Trials is a homage to the Royal Enfield Trials model from 1949. The Bullet Trials of yesteryears is a legend of sorts and earned Royal Enfield a lot of accolades back in the today.

Fast forward to 2019, and the Bullet Trials 350 has been launched at Rs 1.62 lakh and the Bullet Trials 500 has been launched at Rs 2.07 lakh.

What Is Trials?

Trials was one of the motorsport events that were a big deal back in the 1950s and 60s. It started off in the early 1920s as 'reliability trials' organised by manufacturers to demonstrate the endurance and reliability of their motorcycles.

By the late 1920s, roads were well-developed and hence, the event was moved off the road and onto a dedicated off-road track marked on challenging terrain. Since then, motorcycle manufacturers in Europe made it the grand success that it is today.

Royal Enfield & Trials

Royal Enfield launched the Bullet in 1932 and due to its sturdy build and reliable nature, the motorcycle soon came to be known as the perfect motorcycle for Trials. The Bullet soon started raking in trophies at various Trials events across Europe and this included legendary events such as the International Six Days Trial (ISDT).

In 1937, Royal Enfield's riders won 37 trophies at various Trials events cementing the motorcycle's success. Legendary Enfield rider Johnny Britain dominated the Trials Championships for 15 years straight astride the Royal Enfield Bullet.

Of course, the motorcycles were specially modified for Trials Championships. Based on these Trials bikes, Royal Enfield launched the Bullet Trials in 1949. It carried the same rugged looks from the Trials bikes and it also had similar features.

The motorcycle was pretty successful and it was this very motorcycle that impressed the Indian Army. Once the Indian Army had seen the Bullet Trials' prowess at handling challenging terrain, an order was placed for 800 such motorcycles to patrol the border areas.

As a result of that, the company set up its Indian division to assemble the motorcycles here and today, Royal Enfield is called an Indian motorcycle manufacturer. The Bullet Trials then is a really important motorcycle for Royal Enfield.

2019 Royal Enfield Bullet Trials Launched In India

The 2019 Royal Enfield Bullet Trials 350 and 500 carry over several design traits from the vintage model. The motorcycle is based on the standard Bullet but has several mechanical and aesthetic changes done to it.

Up front, it comes with a rubber dust-protection sleeve on the telescopic fork, and the fender is shorter and narrower. The handlebar is now higher and features a cross-brace just like most off-road race bikes.

The rear swingarm has been redesigned and the rear fender too has been chopped, reducing its length and width. At the launch event, Royal Enfield displayed motorcycles with a single seat and a rugged luggage rack at the back.

The Bullet Signals is available in just one colour option - Silver with Chrome detailing. There is just one major design difference between the 350 and 500 - Chassis colour. The Green-coloured chassis is the 500cc model and the one with the Red-coloured chassis is the Bullet Trials 350.

It isn't just the aesthetics that has been made off-road friendly, but the motorcycle features off-road friendly tyres, wheels and exhaust. Up front is a 19-inch spoke wheel and at the rear is an 18-inch spoke wheel and both are shod with off-road tyres from Ceat. The off-road ready theme continues with the aluminium bash plate and the upswept exhaust muffler.

Royal Enfield also has several accessories on offer and that includes a headlamp protection grill, crossbar padding, etc. The Royal Enfield Bullet Trials 350 is powered by an air-cooled, 346cc, single-cylinder engine with a maximum power output of 20bhp and a peak torque output of 28Nm.

The Royal Enfield Bullet Trials 500 on the other hand is powered by an air-cooled, 499cc, single-cylinder engine with a maximum power output of 27.5bhp and a peak torque output of 41.3Nm. Braking is handled by disc brakes on both ends and ABS is a standard feature.

Thoughts On Royal Enfield Bullet Trials 350 & 500 Launch In India

Royal Enfield is one of the few motorcycle manufacturers in the world that has stayed true to its heritage and rich history. Almost all Royal Enfield motorcycles on sale today have their roots in a Royal Enfield motorcycle from the history books.

This is exactly what makes RE motorcycles attractive as they look like their classy old ancestors but ride like any other modern bike would. Be it the RE Classic, Interceptor 650, Continental GT 650 or the new Bullet Trials, these motorcycles are all based on the same principles. The Royal Enfield Bullet Trials should be a fun-to-ride motorcycle and you might just want to own one of them.