I am surprised that a thread that started out concerning the newly released Thunderbird (which is real , not hypothetical ) has turned to another "when will we be seeing the Twin thread......and will it be V or parallel etc etc) . Don't get me wrong I would be pleased to see the twin, though even if it were real, I am not sure there is any better chance of us getting it than the Thunderbird, and anyway, there is a whole R and D research curve to go into that (and regulatory emmisions control and so on) before it could ever be a reality. I suspect the main target audience for the prospective twin is the Indian market as a way to outflank other makers like HD on their own turf in India where brand loyalty would give them an automatic boost. A twin, even if spectacular, would appeal to only a subset of the RE following here, (which is a small segment of the motrcycle market) and would face some pretty stiff competition from Triumph (class leader) Kawasaki W 800 (if they ever bring it here) Guzzis , HD Sportster etc. It would be real hard to outflank these in quality performance and price, so the only real selling points would be vintage cache , kick start (if they did it) and brand following : Here in NA , though , that would be only a slice of the already small
" RE Brand Loyal" slice of the market. So and uphill climb for the twin. Even the Kawasaki W 650 which was impeccably made, fantastic looking and reliable as all get out and had a lot of modern hidden tech (4 valves, bevel drive OHC)id not sell well here and was eventully discontinued. Probably because , for most of the NA market it is up against just too much competition for it's vintage type performance to compete. And there is no way that a stock RE of similar displacement would outshine the performance of the W 650 much.
The 500 UCE, however is in a category of it's own and not really going toe to toe with any existing bike other than say the Suzuki 650 single (which is decidely a "cruiser" and sacrafices function for form. . And as far as lumping the new Thunderbird into a "Cruiser" category, really what the heck does that mean? Most "cruiser" have much longer wheelbase, lower seat height, steeper rake, heavier weight by far, and yes, larger dispacement: But this , though dubbed a "cruiser" for the Indian market, is really just a standard roadster with a split level seat, fairly upright ergos, the same (acutally shorter ) wheelbase as the Bullet, thus easily manouverable at low speeds and small turning radius, lighter weight than the bullet, THE SAME MARKET BEATING MILEAGE , reliable low maintenance UCE engine , and a whole lot of neat features like a super big gas tank with huge range, 4 way flashers, convertable bag seat with underseat storage, front and rear disc brakes etc etc. And it looks pretty spiffy to me.
In other words, to me , regardless of whether you call it a cruiser or a standard/roadster, it does everything the Bullet does a bit better and offers a whole lot of practical versatility besides. If the UCE 500 classic can sell here, I see no reason why this, at a reasonable albeit higher price point shouldnt sell. I would definitely rather pay for better brakes, larger tank, better lights , and convertable seat than more chrome and retro looking seating . This to me looks like a very practical machine. If it is good for "Indian roads" why the heck would't it be good for ours? (at least as much as the Classic and G 5 are). Remember the adage the only valid comparison for the Bullet is itself in it's various iterations over time. I think that this is the natural progression of a great survivor and that it fills a definite niche that could go global , especially in an age of ever increasing fuel prices. Frankly, RE was always know as an innovator in it's Redditch days, and I think this kind of forward thinking represents a continuation of the same entrepenurial spirit. Names like "cruiser" and "roadster" are just labels, but the reality of the machine is its utilitarian and esthetic value: The Thunderbird looks like a hit to me. Just my opinion. Nigel