Royal enfield Continental GT cafe racer is a bike which would look thin, red and tall as your first impression.
I did a test riding in Hyderabad yesterday. In hot summer afternoons, it is hard to see the Neutral light green on dashboard. The self start button is so small and with a simple touch it would start.
The brakes are very sharp (front brake is sharp and it works well). The sitting position is very odd. Neither it is very sporty nor it is very traditional upright position. You feel your hands are too much close to be comfortable. As the bike moves, the first impression is that it is very light in weight and it is very easy to ride.
Most noticeable factor is its handling. You will become instantly very confident of handling it. The balance is very much central and the bike picks up speed quickly, though it is not a mind blowing one. There are absolutely no vibrations at all.at least at lower speeds as I could not touch higher speeds within colony roads.
Turning the bike is also very easy. You would sure to get doubt as to its suitability for a long journey because of its sitting position. You may have to get used it. Though you do not have to lean too much, you can not at the same sit in a near erect position either.
Seat is very comfortable, suspensions absorb all bumps and you can move backwards on the seat in a long journey and that is very important for long journey riding.
There was no scope for me to check for its speed at 100 kmph. The area given was inside of a colony.
It is a motorcycle which is quicker, better, and very, very good at handling, though it is not as smooth as a Honda CBR 250 but cafe racer is definitely a smooth bike. Acceleration is not a very great one but you feel it is quicker as throttle response. After testing this, I felt my Pulsar 220 is wooden hard and damn very hard to turn and Cafe racer picks up more than that of Pulsar 220.
But at the price of 2, 08, 960/= you have strong competitors. There is one Duke 390 with 44 BHP as against 29 BHP of Cafe racer. But Duke resale value, durability, its suitability in city driving conditions and Cafe Racer should be compared and finally the choice is very individual. Duke is very modern with a top speed of 170.It’s electronic dashboard is at the height of technology. But it does not have pillion comfort, looks like a circus vehicle, and city driving is difficult compared to Duke 200 and Cafe Racer. In city Cafe Racer is the best.