Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 now in the PH
The Indians have a keen production attitude when it comes to building motorcycles. For them, motorcycles have to be a “jack of all trades” – it can be used as a daily rider, meaning it has to be fuel efficient; while at the same time it should be a sporty motorcycle which the rider could enjoy on mountain twisties during weekends. It should also be comfortable enough for use on long rides.
For Royal Enfield (RE), its newest jack of all trades is the Guerrilla 450.
Tarlac Circuit Hill
First, let me establish the Guerrilla 450’s proving ground: Tarlac Circuit Hill (TCH). This 1.5-kilometer go-cart/scooter race track is situated in the town of San Jose, Tarlac – roughly a 3.5-hour drive from Manila.
For its overall size and 452 cc displacement, the TCH with its 15 turns is a nice proving ground for the new Guerrilla 450.
New Sherpa Engine
In RE’s own words, “the Guerrilla 450 is meant to remind the world what roadsters are - kinetic, intuitive and eager to play throughout its wide power band” – which is largely thanks to its new 452 cc liquid-cooled, DOHC Sherpa engine producing 40 ps of power and 40 nm of torque. This is the same engine that powers the Himalayan 450.
RE also claims that up to 85% of this torque is already available to the rider at as low as 3,000 rpm.
Other features include full-LED lighting with integrated tail lights, digital gauge (top-spec variant), ride-by-wire, 17-inch alloy wheels and all-terrain tires.
First ride
As mentioned above, the proving ground for the new Guerrilla 450 was TCH – meaning no pedestrians are crossing, no other vehicles on the road, no potholes, and best of all, its 15 corners allowed us to test the bike’s cornering ability without the need to play patintero with the kamote riders of Marilaque.
Being one of the last to try out the new Guerrilla 450 on the track, I can’t help but notice that the fuel gauge did not even move after being ridden on the track for almost half a day. This signifies the Indian bike maker’s commitment to introducing fuel-efficient motorcycles for everyone to enjoy.
Additionally, this is the first time that I’ve ridden a single-cylinder Royal Enfield that did not made my arms numb due to excessive vibration. For a hundred years, Royal Enfield’s distinctive character is its excessive vibration – worse than a Harley-Davidson – that will surely make your arms numb after each ride. Riding this new bike actually felt like riding a Japanese bike.
On the corners, the new Guerrilla 450 feels planted even on its stock telescopic fork, while the single ByBre two-piston caliper on a 310 mm disc at the front and a single-piston caliper on a 270 mm disc at the rear (both with ABS) bites and stops the bike where you expect it to be, even in spirited riding.
Being a 450 cc thumper, I was expecting a bit more punch from the Guerrilla 450, or at least close to that of KTM’s Duke 390. However, RE’s offering is a bit gentle. In fact, it’s too gentle for my liking even if it's just 4.6 ps behind the Bajaj-made Duke 390. But then again, this is a “jack of all trades” bike from RE, and it must be unintimidating to beginner riders who want a good everyday home-to-office-to-home bike as well as a weekend getaway bike in one.
Overall, I think it’s safe to say that the new Guerrilla 450 is a well-rounded motorcycle that strikes a fine balance between affordability, capability, and style (heck, I even thought that this new bike was a scrambler!). I also want to highlight that this is an expressways-legal motorcycle.
It’s not the most powerful or feature-laden bike in its segment, but it delivers a solid all-around package with the charm and character Royal Enfield is known for. Price starts at PHP 289,000.
