It seems that one of my favourite marques is doing rather well despite the downturn in motorcycle sales elsewhere.

Overall the motorcycle industry has seen a modest 3.4% reduction in new motorcycle registrations when compared to the ailing car industry.

But despite that Royal Enfield continues to grow from a 15% increase in 2007 to almost doubling that in 2008 at just under 30%.

Ben Matthews, UK Sales Director for Royal Enfield attributes this to the classic styling and low running costs.

Demand was also driven by the fact that new Euro laws have meant the company had to cease production of the original 4-speed iron-barrelled engine at the end of 2008 and customers seized the chance to own a piece of history.

This year all new Royal Enfield motorcycles sold in Europe will be powered by the new 500cc unit construction fuel injected engine.

The new Electra EFI starts at £3910 which still makes it an extremely competitive price.

The dealer network is extremely strong in the UK and you can view the marque at the excellent open day run by Watsonian Squire, near Morton on the Marsh, which is being held this year on June 20th and 21st from 10am. Admission is free to tour the factory and see the full RE range, plus there’s an opportunity to take a spin on one of the new unit-construction EFI Electra bikes in Standard, Classic, Trials or Clubmans trim.

I feel I should also mention that there is an excellent owners club which allows owners to meet up and provides technical help where needed.

Get more information by clicking here and also see my earlier article here