The iconic streets of the Spanish city Barcelona witnessed the unveiling and launch of a new roadster from RE’s stable: Guerrilla 450. The 450 in the moniker should give away the fact that it is the second motorcycle to be based on the 450 platform, the first being the Himalayan 450. The Guerrilla 450 will take a jab at the Triumph Speed 400 and the Harley-Davidson X440. Neo-retro roadsters are at war in India and with the Guerrilla’s launch, it is only going to get even more brutal and nasty. Let’s see what the Guerrilla packs, eh?
Design and ergonomics
Think of a quintessential retro roadster and the Guerrilla will fit in the silhouette with its round headlamp and a teardrop shaped fuel tank. No surprises here. Instead of Himalayan’s two-piece saddle, the Guerrilla gets a single unit which is less accommodating for the pillion. The new fuel tank can hold 11 litres of fuel and goes well with the slim tail section. What adds some brutish flavour to this roadster are the widest tyres in its segment: 120 section at the front and 160 section at the back. Setting it apart from Himalayan's towering stance is the set of 17-inch wheels at both the ends. It also gets a new handlebar and tweaked rider’s triangle which should be a tad more aggressive as compared to the Himalayan. What is bound to make it more accessible than the Himalayan is the low 780mm seat height.
Variants and pricing
The Guerrilla is being offered in broadly three variants: Analogue, Dash and Flash. The Analogue is the base variant that’s been priced at INR 2.39 Lakh and gets a semi-digital instrument cluster that we last saw on the Shotgun 650. Both the Dash and Flash get Himalayan’s 4-inch TFT cluster with Google Maps integration. The only differentiating factor between these variants is the colour options on offer. Lately, Royal Enfield has been killing it with their colour palette by offering vibrant, never-seen-before shades and the Guerrilla is no different. The Flash variant gets the Brava Blue and Yellow Ribbon colours. The Dash variant comprises the Gold Dip and Playa Black while under Analogue you've got Smoke and Playa Black. The Dash variant is priced at INR 2.49 Lakh and the Flash variant will retail at INR 2.54 Lakh.
Engine
The Guerrilla retains the Sherpa 450 engine that we first saw and loved on the Himalayan 450. While it is powered by the same 452cc, single-cylinder engine that makes 39.50bhp at 8,000rpm and 40Nm at 5,500rpm, RE says that they have tweaked the gearing and the mapping to suit Guerrilla’s character. We cannot opine on it as of now whether it has better low end grunt as compared to the Himalayan or not. The Guerrilla retains the six-speed transmission that also gets assistance from assist and slipper clutch.
Underpinnings
The Guerrilla, despite being based on the similar platform as the Himalayan, incorporates a lot of changes which will definitely reflect in how it behaves on the road. For instance, the 17-inch wheels setup is bound to make it more agile as compared to its globetrotter cousin. The Guerrilla can hold 6 litres less fuel and hence, its kerb weight has also come down to 185kg as compared to the Himalayan. Royal Enfield has also tweaked the subframe of the Guerrilla while the main frame remains the same. While thankfully RE has stuck with Showa as their suspension partners, up front we now get to see a cost-effective set of telescopic forks with gaiters. At the back, the Guerrilla retains the monoshock albeit with lesser travel and different tuning. When it comes to the braking prowess, the Guerrilla gets disc brakes at both ends – 310mm at the front and 270mm at the rear.
