Royal Enfield has taken off the Thunderbird 500 and Bullet 500 from their website when clicked for online bookings. Only leftover stock will be sold now.
Royal Enfield has decided to discontinue the 500cc models in India because of BS-6 norms. Ahead of that, Royal Enfield has discontinued online bookings for the Thunderbird 500 and Bullet 500. Seems like their stock is getting over.
Our dealership sources suggest that the stock of Classic 500 is still left but that of the Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500 and Bullet 500 are on the verge of getting over. Heavy discounts are being offered on all RE 500cc models.
Royal Enfield has a lot of reasons to discontinue the Thunderbird 500, Classic 500 and Bullet 500. First of all, they use a very old 500cc engine which is costly to upgrade. Secondly, RE was not able to get desired sales figures from these 500cc models, for the past couple of years.
Also Read: BS-6 Royal Enfield Himalayan To Get new Colours, Switchable ABS And Hazard Switch
Each of the RE 500cc models cost above 2 Lakhs on the road, which is steep. Also, since the launch of the 650 Twins, people are opting for them instead of the 500cc models. For just 30,000-40,000 extra, you can get a 650cc twin-cylinder motorcycle. Who wouldn’t?
Bullet, Thunderbird and Classic use the same 499cc air-cooled single-cylinder engine with TwinSpark ignition. The motor is capable of producing 27 BHP and 41.3 Nm of peak torque, mated to a 5-speed gearbox. Quite a torquey engine.
Instead, Royal Enfield is heavily revising its smaller 350cc engine. The engine will get fuel injection as standard and the power figures will also be increased. The new motor will be smoother and the bike will be able to achieve a slightly better top speed.
Also Read: BS-6 Royal Enfield Classic 350 Launched; Now Starts At Rs 1.65 Lakhs
If you want one of these 500cc models, you should head out right now. RE has commenced its BS-6 launches with the first one being new Classic 350. It will soon launch the Himalayan, Bullet and Thunderbird with their BS-6 engines.
