The Himalayan is not your conventional Royal Enfield. Countless man-hours have been spent on its research and development. And as the name suggests, this motorcycle is built to take on the Himalayas.
While the Himalayan was appreciated for its simplicity, its 24.5 horsepower became its nightmare. Everyone who rode it wished for more power. However, there are conditions where power is not the top-most priority but simplicity is, and that’s where the Himalayan shows its true colours. Guys at Fuel Motorcycles realised that the Himalayan could be made better if they’re able to remove some of that excess fat. This motorcycle reminded them of an ‘80s rally bike. So the process of building a custom Royal Enfield Himalayan begun.
Fuel Motorcycles is a two-wheeled lifestyle brand born in 2012 in Barcelona by a group of riders brought together by the common love of motorcycles, adventure, and vintage culture. They started building their own bikes and very soon caught the attention of the most important blogs and magazines around the globe becoming one of the very well-known customizers in the scrambler and café racer scene.
The main aim of Fuel Motorcycles was to make the bike compact, lightweight, and classic-looking. So the stock headlamp was replaced for a vintage enduro mask. The seat was removed to fit in a solo unit and a strong grille was put at the pillion part to mount some small luggage. Both the front and rear fenders were replaced to suit the new headlamp design. Indicators were also replaced. The stock exhaust was taken out and a new Suzuki RMZ 450 exhaust was modified and fitted.
All the tank protection was removed to save weight. On the left side, one of the tank protectors was used as a support for a side case. Other changes include a stronger Tomasselli handlebar, USB charging port, and a unique Koso speedometer. Of course, the stock tyres had to go and a new set of Pirelli MT 21 Rallycross was used.
The 411cc single-cylinder engine of the Himalayan was left untouched but a Powertronic ECU was installed to enhance power by a margin and improve the responsiveness, refinement, and fuel efficiency of the engine. There’s also an option to turn off ABS which would be helpful in off-road conditions.
Fuel Motorcycles is planning to take their modified Himalayan at the Scram Africa 2019 edition where the bike would face all kinds of terrain like mud, asphalt, sand, etc. and cover almost 4000km which would be a good testing ground for their build up.
