Royal Enfield Interceptor Bear 650 Long Term Review

The simplest way to describe the Bear 650 is to say that it is an Interceptor with Showa suspension but there is more to it.

Following a few months of riding, we appreciate the fit-and-finish and overall quality of this motorcycle which places it as a premium product. While everyone agrees with that, our posts on social media have consistently met with comments expressing displeasure about the motorcycle’s ride quality.

Yes, it is not a softly-sprung setup but we believe the damping is just right for high-speed handling, which is among the reasons why we enjoy riding this one hard. So, it is a compromise some are willing to live with. A discussion about the suspension set-up led to a suggestion that Royal Enfield should have offered an optional suspension kit for a plusher ride and that struck us as an excellent idea. We hope Royal Enfield give thought to it because it appears there is a market for it; people who want an Interceptor but with greater ground clearance and a comfortable ride. Once monsoon passes, we intend to frequent some of our favourite trails astride this modern classic scrambler.

Edit: 02-07-2025

Ridden: 2,100 km
Like: Quality, handling
Dislike: Weight

Life with the Royal Enfield Interceptor Bear 650 so far has been without incident. Over the past xxx kilometres, the motorcycle has allowed us to use it as intended without much by way of maintenance. It has also become our favourite Royal Enfield 650 yet. In our review, we spoke at length about the way in which Royal Enfield have improved the quality of their motorcycles. After a few months of using this motorcycle on a daily basis, we feel it goes beyond paint and fit-and-finish. In all this time, there was never a moment when the motorcycle did something unexpected or threw a tantrum. Its performance has remained consistent since day one.

We are pleased to report that the fuel range readout is fairly accurate. There were times when I ran the range down to the last 20 km or so before refuelling and it did not throw any surprises there. If social media are anything to go by, we have been told that the Bear has few fans because of its suspension set-up. In a way, we understand. This is not a motorcycle for those seeking a plush and leisurely ride. This is certainly a machine that sits firmly in the performance end of the 650 line-up and has the capability of carrying on undeterred even if the roads are lacklustre. Anyway, we feel Royal Enfield could easily solve this problem by offering a suspension kit that provides better ride quality or one that suits Indian road conditions as part of their optional accessories. However, in our opinion, it is high time we demanded better roads than softer suspension.