Royal Enfield Bullet Trials 350 and Bullet Trials 500 were launched last year, at a price of Rs 1.62 lakhs and Rs 2.07 lakhs, ex-sh, respectively. Both motorcycles have now been discontinued. There is no official update from the company, regarding the reason behind discontinuation of the two motorcycles. As per a few dealers, the reason is possibly low sales.
Aiming to boost sales, Royal Enfield had launched Bullet Trials motorcycles in March 2019. The company was hopeful that a new product will be more attractive to customers in the times of slowdown. Most Royal Enfield motorcycles have registered negative growth in recent times including the bestselling Classic 350.
Bullet Trials motorcycles were expected to reverse the trend, but unfortunately they too have failed to make any significant difference. As inventory continued to rise, some dealers came up with an innovative idea to give the Trials motorcycles a Classic makeover.
Royal Enfield Bullet Trials modified with twin seat setup
As Classic is the top selling Royal Enfield motorcycle, getting the Trials transformed into Classic gives them a better chance of making it to the streets. It may be recalled that Bullet Trials Works Replica 350 was launched at Rs 1.62 lakh whereas its 500 cc counterpart came at Rs 2.07 lakh. The powertrain and transmission of Trials is the same as that of Bullet motorcycles.
Trials motorcycles are meant for off-roading and come with some unique features such as dual-tone colour scheme, single seat, shorter fenders, longer suspension, upswept exhaust pipe and higher set handlebar. Trials 350 was powered by a 346 cc engine that generates 20 hp of max power and 28 Nm of max torque. Trials 500 was powered by a 499 cc engine that churns out 27.5 hp / 41.3 Nm. Both engines were mated to a 5-speed gearbox.
The makeover process being undertaken at specific dealerships is focused on introducing a limited number of changes such as adding a pillion seat and replacing the upswept exhaust with a regular unit from Classic. The idea is to maintain the exclusiveness of Trials motorcycles, all while making them a more viable option for Classic customers. This modification helped a few dealers to clear stock of RE Trials.
With stocks of Bullet Trials over at almost all dealers, it is the end of road for the motorcycle in the country. Royal Enfield had also launched the Trials for export market. It is not clear if they will discontinue the same from the export market or not. Will we see the Trials with BS6 update? We will know in the coming weeks or if it was another idea that failed to click due to the on-going slowdown.
Source: Bike - rushlane.com
