2025-on Royal Enfield Bear 650 review | affordable scrambler version of the popular Interceptor 650

The Interceptor 650 is the bike that truly relaunched Royal Enfield after years of keeping post-war designs on the books way past their use-by date (although we’ll admit to enjoying the charm of those old chuffers anyway). Classically styled, with air-cooled charm and a welcome uplift in fit, finish and riding experience – yet very, very affordable.

They were an instant hit in 2018 and remain so now within the retro bike market, with further variants and updates consolidating the initial popularity. However, there has been an obvious omission from the Interceptor family, a scrambler.

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Not that owners waited – plenty have been built as home-brew customs to good effect – but the official version is finally here. The Interceptor Bear is named in homage to Eddie Mulder’s 1960 victory in the Big Bear Run across the Californian desert, where a 16 year-old unknown rode his privateer Enfield Fury to victory in the tough point-to-point desert race. It was the launchpad for his career, and a win that gave Royal Enfield serious clout in the north American off-road racing scene of the time.

The changes to the road-only Interceptor seem subtle, but also the most significant derivation from base spec since the bike’s launch. Core frame geometry remains unchanged, but there is a longer swingarm, and the rear loop/subframe is new to give a gentle upwards sweep from just behind the rider.

The shock mounts have moved a little, and front-end geometry changes courtesy of new triple clamps, longer Showa USD forks (very similar to those on the Meteor and Himalayan 450) and the 19” front wheel.

Higher bars give a more elbows-out feel when seated, and allow a certain amount of ability to stand up and stay in control off-road. Slightly more forward-set footpegs and a new seat further adjust the riding positiom to match. It’s no rally bike – think fire roads, dusty tracks and gentle, dry-weather green-laning – but the intention is to give it enough ability to dive off the highway and enjoy unmade roads.

The result is predictably similar in feel to the Interceptor: 47bhp isn’t blowing your socks off but it gets up and going early on with a thumpy, torquey delivery that has a certain classic feel without vibes becoming excessive. Cable-actuated throttle is a rarity on a big bike, but it’s here and still giving decent response, with just a touch of lean-fuel grab at the very first touch: nothing you don’t adapt to and ride-around after 30 minutes.

The chassis is the surprise: despite looking like a throwback to appeal to riders of advancing years, it’s firm, willing and stable when you avoid the brakes and keep speed up for corners. There’s only preload  adjustment at the rear, but the seemingly-basic Showa components are set up for lively riding as they come – arguably, they’re a little too firm, with a lot of high-speed compression that gives you the occasional jolt over broken surfaces.

The launch demo bikes still had less than 500 miles on at the time of test, so they may bed-in and develop a little more cush, but it’s unlikely it’ll ever float through potholes and scarred asphalt.

You do appreciate it when the going is smooth: what it lacks in outright speed it makes up for in momentum. 40-70mph curves are its happy place, sweeping along in total security. Braking performance is average at best: but it’s enough.

Off-road performance is… minimal. It might have extra suspension travel over the Interceptor, but it’s still less than an MT-09 (for example). The geometry isn’t suited to anything really tricky, and the 19in front wheel similarly gets flustered if there’s anything more than smooth-ish, dry fire roads to deal with. We spent a limited amount of time on a dusty trail in California, but even there it was prone to following ruts and getting loose in any kind of free surface.

The MRF (Madras Rubber Factory) tyres claim to be 50/50, with a tread pattern very closely mimicking Pirelli’s Scorpion Rally half-and-half fitting, but they ride more like an 90/10 road-biased fitting in either scenario. Consider it comfortable on unmade, but designated roads, and riding the kind of track that leads you to a nice camp site on your riding holiday…

The economy associated with producing bikes in India (and for India too – the home market has embraced the British-founded brand as their own over the years) can still feel like an awkward conversation in a Western market context, but it’s something that Enfield exploit to good effect.

The sheer production volume, and economies of scale, means they’ve been able to specify perfectly good Showa suspension (albeit with just rear preload adjustment). Don’t let the lack of damping screws fool you – the critical parts are good quality and benefit from plenty of R&D between the Indian mothership and R&D centres in the UK and and Spain, so the fixed settings are pretty good.

The 650 lump with its discreet oil-cooling it may only make an A2 licence-friendly 47bhp, but the lugging, torquey delivery delivers both charm and satisfying – if not blistering – progress. It’s not meant to be thrashed and tear your face off – it’s about instant smiles, and warm, nostalgic satisfaction. And it delivers, too.

Internal components and state-of-tune are untouched, but the black engine casings and 2-1 exhaust with accompanying tweaks to the map fatten the low to midrange power further compared to the Interceptor.

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Preconceptions and stereotypes regarding Indian production are silenced when you drink in the detail of a modern Royal Enfield in the metal. Everything from paint, through fasteners and bracket to detailing, is superb, and only getting better with successive models.

The triple clamps are a case in point – a simple alloy casting would work, but they’re forged to enhance both form and function, with a more robust anodised finish to hopefully ensure it looks as good years down the line as it does from the showroom. The retro-style switchgear, and flat-faced levers for the Bybre brake/clutch give it a reassuringly robust finish from the behind the bars, too.

Enfields are loved by long-standing riders with traditional values for their low running costs and simple ownership prospects. Warranty concerns aside, they’re easy to work on yourself if you like, or they are a shorter, less costly job if you leave it to a dealer to care for. Skinny tyres don’t cost much to replace, and decent service interval lengths, including 'screw and nut' tappets, valve clearance checks are also a low cost exercise.

The Bear is the first 650 to receive the neat round TFT dash, complete with Bluetooth/Google maps connectivity, as seen on the Himalayan 450 and Guerilla 450. The size means it’s not the easiest to read, but it does the job without detracting from the clean lines. ABS is standard, traction control is not.

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There’s precious little else on the Royal Enfield not responsible for basic function, but that’s to be expected. Fripperies like cruise control, big iPad-like screens and other modern-age creature comforts would detract from the simple, robust charm – and hike the price. To sweeten the tech deal though the Bear is one of the first Enfields to come with full LED lighting.

The Royal Enfield showroom is the wrong place to go if you want to spend your life cycling through menus, or having your ride managed by digital aids. But for the price, the hard parts and features are perfectly acceptable. Pricing uplifts for different paint schemes does chafe a little, given there’s only a tank, number boards and tail in colour rather than raw finishes…