I own a Thunderbird for the past 4 years. Sold the bike about two days back - And yes it’s a great relief..
If you’re planning to buy a Royal Enfield vehicle, please think twice, you’ll end up spending a bomb just to maintain the vehicle. Over the past 4 years I’ve run the vehicle for only 25000 kms. This year alone I have spent almost 17000 on engine work alone (I’m not a rash rider either)... The vehicle feels good to ride, no doubt about that; however the amount you send on the maintenance of the vehicle; trust me, it’s not that much of a bargain. The quality of the spares for the engine ’Suck’. Even the spares for a TVS 50, last longer. The Tappet valves are not built for the high speed engine that the Thunder Bird has, it’s made just right for the older versions of the Bullet. The tappet valves make an extremely loud noise while running; it basically drowns beating sound of the engine. If you tighten the valves, the valves wear off in a couple of months under normal riding conditions. The whole bike is made of Rot metal (Rotten Metal) I think. The bike keeps rusting up however had to try to maintain it, even the alloys at the fork area rust.
The average cost for a regular maintenance check up every 3000 kms used to be around 1500 - 1800. Even 500 cc bikes will cost lesser. My suggestion to a buyer, if your in a position to spend around Rs. 6000 a year on maintenance, go ahead and buy the bike and if your not, consider other options.