The bike is with me for almost a year or more clocked @15000 Km so far(Sept 16)
Likes: The looks, the design enhancement over a old RE product, LED ring and instrument panel, trip meter, side stand on signal(red light on dash board), the indicator, horn and start stop switches are well located ergonomically. Overall seating posture is nice, comfortable seats and height also. Well balanced weight and quite broad handle bar. The seat Hooks are very useful on both sides for hanging even a laptop bag or helmet
Driving Experience(Strictly personal):
The electric start is pretty good(never tried kick start yet-not needed). At idle it feels somewhat Bullet but as you accele_45rate it looses its contemporary Bullet thump. it sounds more or less any four stroke strong engine.(If you forget it is RE then it is OK but those who die for Bullet will not like this sound)
the gear shifting in cold start is good but then becomes rough(though better than old bullets) as it gets going and runs for 8-10 km. The ride and balance is very good and it is very comfy till 70-80 km/hr speed. Above that you feel the vibrations and noise. the engine becomes very hot even for shorter runs, Breaks are OK. Disk break is good.
Overall a good bike if you ignore it as a bullet and think in isolation. Bullet lovers will get disappointed for sure, tried it with some guys using bullet
Some how on wet roads I didn’t get that confidence in handling and breaking. Straight line handling is always better(may be due to good weight balance and grip due to weight)
NOTEWORTHY BAD EXPERIENCE: There were problems with the chain since 2nd service. used to get loose and noisy(when change in speeds or changing the gears due to jerks on loose chain) . Finally had to change the sprocket and chain just after 14000 Km of running. Very strange feeling. Have not expected such a major part failure of such a proven brand. Height is the service person told the life is only 11000 km. Cant believe it. Had my old Rajdoot run for 90000 yes 90 Thousand Km without any change of chain or sprocket.
What need improvements
Silence touches the foot rest bracket. I checked in many such bikes but it is like that on Thunderbird. You can see a ditch made to relieve such kind of interference on any small bike 1/4 the cost of this. It must be touching whenever the suspension works, every time.
Lots of vibrations after 80 km/he speed. RE Should do something as the design theme is cruiser bike but you can cruise it below 80 speed all the day long trips. Min 100 km/hr should be a comfortable ride
Overall though it looks a rugged and long cruise bike it is worth only making short trips or city commute due to the above factors otherwise it is good comfortable bike with reasonable fuel efficiency and price.
I would suggest a buyer to have a look or test ot for more than 50 km before buying and cross check the intentions of buying before you make a decision if you have not only fallen in love of the brand and looks.