Royal Enfield is all set to introduce a new variant of its popular Thunderbird model in India, called the Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X. The Thunderbird 500X comes with considerable cosmetic updates along with some new features and equipment, but there are no changes to the powerplant.
The new Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X series will come in a new dual tone colour scheme, a lot similar to the Classic 350 Redditch editions. Like the Redditch edition, the bikes will essentially come with a glossy black base coat with the fuel tank painted in a contrast vibrant colour.
On the features and equipment front, the new Thunderbird 500X comes with all-new matte black alloy wheels with matching reflectors,and tubeless tyres, which are a first-of-its-kind on a Royal Enfield. The bike also gets a new matte black silencer instead of the chrome one on the standard Thunderbird. The split seats on the Thunderbird have also been replaced by a new one-piece seat and the rear grab rail with back support has been given a miss. The bike also comes with a new flat handlebar, while the projector headlamps and LED taillamps remain unchanged, although they are now in black colour.
Mechanically, the bike is expected to receive no mentionable changes, and it will continue to be powered by the existing BS-IV compliant, fuel injected, 499 cc single cylinder engine, which comes mated to a 5-speed gearbox.