Author Topic: You convinced me, new bike. GT No Way!  (Read 10608 times)

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Professor

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on: March 15, 2014, 03:38:10 am
I looked at the new Enfield's several times and test rode the GT and the C5. I went on Amazon and bought four or five books on people (Americans and Brits) who went to India and rode them for long periods touring in India. I wanted to get the insight of what the Indians are about as motorcycle people. Excellent reading and highly recommended. Now, I get it. India is a developing country and the bikes reflect their needs. By the way, they are durable if maintained. These guys rode them and rode them. Also see what the new UCE bikes had to come about. Japan sells plenty of bikes in India. Royal Enfield plans to stay in the game. Good for them! 

The GT was my first choice until I rode it. What a looker!! Sadly , it is just a notch above the other bikes in overall performance. I know for certain I will be blasted off this forum for saying this and shown no mercy......but it is my honest opinion. There will be many used GTs on the market. The performance does not match the look, profile, image projected. The look will wear off once the owner gets weary of the relatively slow bike. I know speed is not every thing, image and economy is important certainly in India where gas is very expensive. But, on my test ride, the first thing the guy at the stop light asked me was how fast is that thing? How much HP? You, see he does not have any idea what it is, he thinks it looks fast, so it must be.

A Honda 250R single will give it a run. A 300 twin Kawasaki Ninja will eat it alive. Yes, I know that does not matter to you.  But this is a Ford 427 Cobra with a four cylinder engine.

It can't walk the walk as they say. But, it can talk. The Classic I bought makes no pretense. It is honest and it is what it is. A very cool British retro bike with modern engineering. I don't  care if it has 22 HP, it does not have to be anything else. It gets the job done.  While at the dealer I saw a single I had read a lot about about. So, I took a test ride. The KTM 690 Duke won my heart. It has 68HP around 50 lbs of torque and weighs 337 lbs dry/350 lbs wet. On sale for $7790.  So , I bought both. I am not passing this way again. I have nothing else I am addicted to. Both were discounted so I got out for way less than a BMW Adventure bike. The KTM walks the walk for a single. I have the best of both worlds.

Now shoot me.
« Last Edit: March 15, 2014, 03:44:11 am by Professor »


suitcasejefferson

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Reply #1 on: March 15, 2014, 03:55:52 am
The GT is a beauty, but it is not a sport bike, at least not a modern sport bike. I have ridden both the CBR250 and the Ninja 250. I found both to be completely bland and boring, more like kitchen appliances than motorcycles. The RE has character and charm that no Japanese bike can come close to matching. I might have gone for the GT, but I can't handle the lean forward riding position. I arthritis, fibromyalgia, bad knees, and bad shoulders. Even my '97 Suzuki GS500 was uncomfortable. It is what I sold to buy the Enfield. I got the B5 because it is the most vintage looking, and also very comfortable. When the gas eventually ruins the paint, I'll probably have it painted red.
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Professor

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Reply #2 on: March 15, 2014, 04:00:53 am
The 300 Ninja is not boring with 40 HP at the crank. The well dated Kawi 250 was replaced in 2013. Worn bones need to be upright. I understand.


ace.cafe

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Reply #3 on: March 15, 2014, 04:28:08 am
I think you are saying pretty much what has been said here many times. I think you will find a lot of agreement with your assessments and impressions..

That being said, I expect to see a lot of GT's coming in for modification as their warranties start nearing expiration, and maybe some prior to that. They don't have to stay at the stock hp level forever.

Congrats on buying both.
That was pretty cool!
« Last Edit: March 15, 2014, 04:42:25 am by ace.cafe »
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Ducati Scotty

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Reply #4 on: March 15, 2014, 04:30:04 am
A Honda 250R single will give it a run. A 300 twin Kawasaki Ninja will eat it alive. Yes, I know that does not matter to you.  But this is a Ford 427 Cobra with a four cylinder engine.

You do know the Cobra was just the AC Ace that Shelby put a 289 in, and then later a 427.  The AC Ace?  That light, nimble little English car?  The one with the 4 cylinder motor?  You knew that, right? ;)

Scott


Professor

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Reply #5 on: March 15, 2014, 05:01:26 am
You mean the AC Bristol, a spin off of the Bristol Aero, the British airplane manufacturing firm?  Yes, did know that. But, it was not a 427 SC Cobra. The American Carol Shelby did that one and it was not a four cylinder. It ripped. The AC Bristol did not. I've driven them. The GT looks fast, it is not. The 1968 Enfield Continental GT 250, based on the Crusader was slow as well. 80mph downhill. Despite the ads, it did not rule the street. It all a matter of perspective. In life it is important to know what things are, more important to know what they are not. I wish every GT owner years of rapture and joy. With my Classic I won't have to explain to people why my bike can't get past 75mph.  ;) ;)


suitcasejefferson

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Reply #6 on: March 15, 2014, 05:43:05 am
I also found a GSX-R600 boring (and very painful) Yes it has lots of power, but you can't use it on the road. It's a track bike, and it would probably be fun on a track, if you were into that kind of thing. I am not the knee dragging type. Despite all it's power, it's engine is electric smooth, and has a high pitched whine, instead of the Enfields thump thump thump. I got an Enfield to get away from just that sort of thing. It looks good, it feels good, and it sounds good. And except for the EFI, which will be replaced with a carb if it ever fails, it's about as simple as it gets.

I do understand speed. I've been a hot rodder since before getting my drivers license. I drive a turbocharged V8 powered '93 Chevy S10 pickup that makes over 500 hp. I can lay rubber anytime I want. But it's the acceleration I like. Simply driving fast is not much fun. I would also enjoy driving a Model T, but I can't afford one. And I never felt the need to justify what I ride or drive to anyone. As I get older, I find that I get more fun out of older things. I would have liked to have another '66 Triumph Bonneville, like the one I had 20 years ago, but can't afford that either. The Enfield fit the bill perfectly.
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wildbill

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Reply #7 on: March 15, 2014, 08:26:51 am
true-the gt is a bit down on power and no better off than any of the other enfields...if it has an extra 2 bhp i have not found it yet. saying that it will pick up a bit of bmp once i get the sports muffler i purchased. it worked on my c5's and i'm sure it will be a bit more zippy here.
ok -we lost out on power but we all agree it is great eye candy  :)  plus the brembo front disc brakes, the rear disc compared to the drum, handling, ride quality gearbox. snail cams gone, paint and finish.
best of all it was $1k cheaper than expecxted retail price when i picked the red beauty up.
how long will i keep it? well it brings a smile to the dial every time i pass it. i'd say it might be here for quite some time but if i get the urge to buy another bike i will put this gt aside as a looker and maybe next time buy the new tan c5 when one enfield is not enough ;)
will this happen. well if i have a good breeding season with my finches and things look good at the moment...... :D anything is possible


mattsz

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Reply #8 on: March 15, 2014, 09:21:56 am
I know for certain I will be blasted off this forum for saying this and shown no mercy......

Professor - are you disappointed we're not trying to run you out of town on a rail?  ;D

The haters will continue to hate; the enthusiasts will continue to enthuse.  The RE guys aren't stupid - they know what it would take to kick the asses of the big boys in what would be, for them, the export market, and they've chosen not to do it.

The thing about most of us here?  We don't give a damn what anyone else thinks about our choice of rides...


Sectorsteve

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Reply #9 on: March 15, 2014, 09:30:46 am
i hear ya mate. i love all the enfields and the GT looks sweet, but IMO i love the C5 heaps. i cant really see the GT being much different. i had the choice to buy any bike when i was looking. the C5 was and is the right machine for me!
ive done about 6 long trips on my C5 and racked up the miles in a short time. brilliant bike. im sure the GT is too, however i dunno if it would work for long trips and i really dont know how much different it is performance wise.  sounds minimal.


Professor

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Reply #10 on: March 15, 2014, 05:11:31 pm
Enfield owners are a more mellow group bike wise and in temperament.......it seems.  Actually, I really enjoy the company of the few I have ridden with. If you buy an Enfield by nature you most likely care less what others think, and march to your own drummer. Motorcycles are political parties. Harley and BMW riders seen to be the most political about bikes and what they ride. To be very honest one of the things I like most about Enfield's is that this a absent. It really is about riding. In the end pride of ownership is good, but pride in general and being constantly one-up on every body else is tedious and boring to be around. There is a saying, "two motorcycles is a ride, three is a race." I have certainly been there many, many times. Time to move on.


dginfw

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Reply #11 on: March 15, 2014, 05:49:35 pm
Yes the GT will lose a race to any modern bike with any sporting intent....but it's fun in its own way.
There's an old saying that its more fun to drive a slow car agressively and fast then it is to take a fast powerful car and drive it slowly.
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barenekd

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Reply #12 on: March 15, 2014, 06:36:12 pm
Quote
You mean the AC Bristol, a spin off of the Bristol Aero, the British airplane manufacturing firm?  Yes, did know that. But, it was not a 427 SC Cobra. The American Carol Shelby did that one and it was not a four cylinder. It ripped. The AC Bristol did not.

The AC Ace Bristol had a 2 Liter 6 cyl pushrod engine in it. The engine as basically a 1937 BMW design that Bristol built under license. The engine and car had a variety of changes over the years with several power options being available.
In '62, Carroll Shelby talked to them about putting a Ford engine in it and AC was happy to comply as their supply of Bristol engines was running out. The first 75 had 260 CI engines in them, then they went to the 289. In '66 the 427s came out with a wider heavier chassis. These were built in the US with AC supplying the bodies. AC built some in England with Ford 428 Interceptor engines.
The whole story would take a book!
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Craig McClure

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Reply #13 on: March 16, 2014, 12:20:46 am
Speaking of Cobras, My friend Dean Stone, in St Louis County, had a red 427, & gave me a couple of rides I will never forget. He could pass on a 2 lane road, going into a blind corner & ZAP there was time to do it all again safely - Like it turned back time. Pretty sure it did something to me I have not yet gotten over, know what I mean?
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hillntx

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Reply #14 on: March 16, 2014, 05:20:42 am
I had this discussion with my dealer at the International Motorcycle show.  When asked if I was going to get a GT, I had to honestly say it is a nice looking bike, but not enough of a performance change from my C5 for me to justify the purchase.  I can't help but look at that bike and think it's the precurser to something better and faster.  That double cradle frame had to have more than a 535 in mind when designed.  Why add Brembo brakes to a 29hp bike?  The standard RE brakes are more than sufficient for the power level to stop the bike quickly.  I'm seriously hoping a second cylinder shows up in the near future and makes the GT into a real cafe bike.

With that said, the GT is a great looking bike and I hope they sell a ton of them.