The Royal Enfield Meteor, developed between the Bruntingthorpe facility in the UK and Royal Enfield Chennai in India, is brand new for Europe. It is a small capacity, single-cylinder cruiser which retains Royal Enfield's trademark retro charm but with modern engineering and good technical specs to bring it bang up to date. An attractive motorcycle, it comes in at an entry level price for the basic model of around £3749 so is actually affordable.

Sporting a Euro 5 emission compliant 349cc SOHC air-cooled engine with a long stroke and electronic fuel injection system, the new four stroke engine produces 20.2bhp @ 6100rpm with peak torque of 19.9lb.ft @4000rpm. It's looking good for urban riding about town rather than cruising perhaps?

It is a comfortable motorcycle designed to be accessible with a low seat at 765mm, high spec modern suspension and a strong chassis offering stability, good cornering and manoeuvrability. The frame has a new twin down-tube spine behind a 15 litre teardrop fuel tank to give it that cruiser look. On the ground it has alloy wheels with tubeless tyres and non adjustable 41mm forks offering 130mm travel at the front with a set of rear twin shocks with 6 step adjustable preload.

More good points? Well, it is as economical to ride as they come, running at a claimed 100mpg, time will tell if this is with a following wind, downhill but it sounds good for now. One of The Meteor's technical additions is a Royal Enfield first, a Tripper™ navigation system powered by Google Maps and the Royal Enfield app for connectivity via Bluetooth, between the rider's smart phone and the motorcycle. This gives the rider access to directions through the intuitive display and has a USB for phone charging.

A new prototype motorcycle has also been spotted testing in India and is thought to be the Royal Enfield Hunter 350, although it was camouflaged to give nothing away. It looks retro inspired and is likely to have a similar engine to the Meteor 350, so watch this space.

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