The rumours of the termination of the Royal Enfield 500 series are turning out to be true as the Thunderbird 500, Thunderbird X 500 and the Bullet 500 have been taken down from the online booking page on the company’s website. The Classic 500 is the only 500 series model that can be still seen on the company’s online booking webpage.
Also Read: BS-IV Royal Enfield Interceptor INT 650 and Continental GT 650 dispatches stopped
Regular followers would know that a report from November last year started the talks of discontinuation of the Royal Enfield 500 series. The source report quoted people close to the developments, stating that the 500 cc engine powered motorcycles are ‘unviable for the domestic market’.
The 350 cc range accounts for the majority of the sales, while the 500 cc models account for a very negligible share. Moreover, the new 650 cc range – the Interceptor INT 650 and the Continental GT 650 – are delivering promising sales performance (domestic and exports), and thus, retaining 500 cc range may not be the most popular opinion.
If you have been following our website, you would know that Royal Enfield's year-on-year sales performance in the domestic market has been negative. At the same time, exports started showing positive performance since late 2018, which incidentally is the same time when the new 650 Twins were introduced.
In other updates, the company has launched its first BS-VI compliant motorcycle, the BS-VI Classic 350, in the domestic market, and the bookings for the motorcycle have begun at the dealerships. The online bookings for the BS-VI Royal Enfiled Classic 350 are yet to begin. In fact, the company has not listed the BS-VI model on its website yet. The BS-VI Classic 350 features new colour options and a few updates to the instrument cluster. The updated model is available from INR 1,65,025*.
Check out the complete price list below:
| Colour Option | Price* (BS-VI) | Price* (BS-IV) | Difference |
| Classic Black | INR 1,65,025 | INR 1,53,903 | INR 11,122 |
| Gunmetal Grey | INR 1,69,791 | INR 1,55,740 | INR 14,051 |
| Signals Stormrider Sand | INR 1,75,281 | INR 1,64,095 | INR 11,186 |
| Signals Airborne Blue | INR 1,75,281 | INR 1,64,095 | INR 11,186 |
| Stealth Black | INR 1,81,728 | NA | NA |
| Chrome Black | INR 1,81,728 | NA | NA |
The Chennai-based two-wheeler brand has also released a teaser video for the BS-VI Himalayan, and the motorcycle should be launched in our market very soon. An updated, BS-VI Thunderbird 350 could also arrive soon.
Also Read: Specially commissioned Royal Enfield Himalayan Sleet gets gloss finish
On the other hand, the company is testing its next-generation models that will use Royal Enfield’s new architecture. The next-generation model range will reportedly arrive by mid-2020.
*Ex-showroom Mumbai
