Enfield Interceptor

[AllanB]

This bike has been out for a year or so now, read all good reviews and wonder if any had one. Was going to buy one in the UK, then at least try one out, but this hasn't been my year, anyway does anyone have one and are they as good as the reports say? How about the dealers in LOS, I hope they are better than the Lifan shops, who think a PDI is "Pretty Damned Inconvient"?

 

On paper, love the sound, looks, build quality (European models) and performance and I think the price is B213k?

[thaiguzzi]

Unless you have the spanners, are good with said spanners, are prepared to forego dealers doing your servicing, and are happy and prepared to do your own servicing, i would not buy one.

I am that person who does have said spanners, and is happy to use them, even on a new, warrantied bike.

In fact i trust myself over any spotty faced factory trained tech.

However, you may not be.

In fact i know you are are'nt after your CRF250L "problems"...

The reviews i have seen from actual long term owners, they all seem to do their own basic stuff, and ignore the dealers post initial sale.

I mean the motors are 8V SOHC with adjusters and locknuts, so even basic valve maintenance is pretty, er, basic.

All the above also applies to the 2V OHC 411cc Himalayan singles which i am far more interested in.

Nothing i've read or seen, leads me to suspect there have been any real problems so far with the 650 twins.

They have exceeded sales expectations in the USA, Northern Europe, the UK (best selling bike over 650cc, toppling the GS Beemers in sales charts), and in Thailand.

And, for the money, they seem excellent value.

However, they are not for me personally.

I'd rather buy a S/H 4 y/o Triumph for a bit more money.

Edit,

Udon Enfield dealer is also the Benelli agent. Read into that what you will.

As i said above, if you are prepared to work on one yourself, buy one and i'm sure you'll be happy.

If you want the dealer to do even the simple stuff, you are going into a whole world of new pain.

My 2 Bahts worth...

 

Edited September 21, 2019 by thaiguzzi

[toofarnorth]

I had a '92 Bullet , in fact it was a Thai tour using Bullets that brought me out here for good.  I am now too long in the tooth to change from my Forza but if a 650 twin was availably to try up here I would love to have a go.

[EVENKEEL]

I checked out the Interceptor at the Pattaya dealership. For the money it seems like a decent deal. Because it is a lower tech bike I would think getting repairs done would be easier. I was told it was a 2 mos. wait for one. 

 

The only way to know is to buy one, can't sit on the fence forever.

[The Cobra]

This one ?

 

https://youtu.be/2y1vouT8BmE

Edited September 22, 2019 by The Cobra

[guzzi850m2]

A couple of links below for your reading pleasure about the Interceptor. One owner in the UK done 3000 miles without any problems but that's not really telling anything about how it holds up after years of use, only time can tell but it's a simple low power engine so if it's good engineered it should last for many years.

 

Saw one in Pattaya parked at Terminal21 and I must say it looks great.

 

If you don't want to do your own maintenance yourself it's important you find a good local mechanic that you trust which isn't easy as thaiguzzi also mention.

 

https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/index.php?board=30.0

 

 

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=328437

[JaseTheBass]

I have one.

 

Upsides: Better finish on the welding than a Triumph, better gearbox than pretty much everything. They sound glorious and look 'just right'. Easy to service at home. Beautiful paintwork. Uses 'old skool' stuff like tubed tyres and proper light bulbs, so can be fixed anywhere. Engine is sweet, unstressed and well fuelled. Bosch ABS, Brembo India (Bybre) brakes. Double walled exhaust that won't discolour.

 

Downsides: Some of the brackets/bolt-on bits look a bit 'Harley Davidson' compared to a Triumph. I can't get any accessories easily from the dealer (easy on eBay), and the servicing at the dealer is rubbish (I had a horn hanging off and a missing lock nut from one of the chain adjusters after the 500km inspection/valve check). Its not a speedster - its a great 'country roads' bike that only has 47bhp from its sweet engine. You start to feel the frame rails under the standard saddle after 90 mins or so - order the touring saddle on eBay.

 

Many people erroneously view the 650s along the same lines as the dodgy previous RE bikes - its as good anything comparable but at half the price.

 

Everyone who has seen my bike has been impressed and it even gets small crowds of other bikers and non-bikers who want to talk about it and share their own stories of Enfields - I never got that when I had a CB500.

[lemonjelly]

On 11/26/2019 at 10:07 PM, JaseTheBass said:

I have one.

 

Upsides: Better finish on the welding than a Triumph, better gearbox than pretty much everything. They sound glorious and look 'just right'. Easy to service at home. Beautiful paintwork. Uses 'old skool' stuff like tubed tyres and proper light bulbs, so can be fixed anywhere. Engine is sweet, unstressed and well fuelled. Bosch ABS, Brembo India (Bybre) brakes. Double walled exhaust that won't discolour.

 

Downsides: Some of the brackets/bolt-on bits look a bit 'Harley Davidson' compared to a Triumph. I can't get any accessories easily from the dealer (easy on eBay), and the servicing at the dealer is rubbish (I had a horn hanging off and a missing lock nut from one of the chain adjusters after the 500km inspection/valve check). Its not a speedster - its a great 'country roads' bike that only has 47bhp from its sweet engine. You start to feel the frame rails under the standard saddle after 90 mins or so - order the touring saddle on eBay.

 

Many people erroneously view the 650s along the same lines as the dodgy previous RE bikes - its as good anything comparable but at half the price.

 

Everyone who has seen my bike has been impressed and it even gets small crowds of other bikers and non-bikers who want to talk about it and share their own stories of Enfields - I never got that when I had a CB500.

There’s a guy on YouTube by the name of Stuart Fillingham who’s made some great vids on adjusting the tappets etc for the interceptor 

[JaseTheBass]

'TEC Bike Parts' is another YouTube channel worth checking out for RE/Trumpy owners.

[sabaijai]

I've had an Interceptor 650 since January 2019 and since have logged 2000+ km riding around northen Thailand. I've enjoyed it for all the same reasons cited above. I've had no issues with performance or maintenance. 

 

I swapped for the touring seat and while it's definitely more comfortable than the standard seat, it's not hugely so. Maybe I last 20 minutes longer before needing a break. It looks exactly the same as the standard but has a webbing around the internal padding that better distributes your weight. I bought mine at a Royal Enfield showroom in Chennai a few months ago since I was traveling there anyway. In fact I ended up buying quite a few RE accessories for the bike there as they're half the price you'd pay for the same gear in Thailand. There's also, no surprise, a much larger selection of stuff than in Thailand. 

[siam dreamers]

 

I own both the Interceptor and the Himalayan. The interceptor is an excellent bike and great deal. Thats the reason you see so many positive reviews. Personally I don't want any other bike than the interceptor I have. If you like it go for it you won't be disapointed

 

The only two changes I have made, not shown is to move the pillion foot-pegs forward a few inches with Hepco and becker PILLION FOOTREST LOWERING FOR ROYAL ENFIELD INTERCEPTOR, To get my sons heels off the silencer, and up and over handle bar risers 22mm from Motone for my own comfort.

[pbas400]

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7Xl36GGVB4

 

 

 

Edited June 18, 2020 by pbas400