ROYAL ENFIELD SCRAM 411 (2022 - on) Review

Riding position and seat is all day comfortable. The rear suspension is crashy on potholes/rougher roads. The preload adjuster is difficult to reach. The brakes are adequate. They will stop you but there is no feel whatsoever. The rear brake started binding on me around 1k miles.

It has a characterful engine. It will go all day and sounds great. Proper old-school. You buy this bike knowing it is very underpowered. It will ride up to 60mph no problem at all. Motorway speeds and overtaking is where it falls down. Even overtaking between 45-60mph can be a struggle.

In the first 6 months of ownership; the horn stopped working, the rear brake began binding, it stalls on it’s own accord regularly, rust has set in despite being treated/garaged and ridden only in summer so far. It has thrown up two engine warning lights, the cat converter lining collapsed and the sump guard sheered a mounting tab. It’s only been ridden on roads and has 1800 miles on the clock. Not great.

It is an inexpensive motorbike to buy. It is cheap to fuel, a tank costing £15 on premium and will last around 200 miles. Insurance is expensive for what it is though, I had similar quotes for bikes that are more expensive and more powerful (Honda CB650R) for example.

The tripper nav pod is a nice touch and works well. I fitted factory options when purchased (touring mirrors/centre stand/engine & radiator/heel guards). I would say they are a must however they are expensive in correlation to the bike’s price (£600).

This being my first big bike, I only had my 125 eliminator to compare it to, and it feels good. The front brake isn't amazing but gets significantly stronger after a few hundred miles.

The engine is extremely under stressed, which is good, but also extremely underpowered which is not so good. It will do 80mph with my fat arse on it but motorway overtakes are a fantasy on the scram.

I was initially impressed with how well the scram managed living outside throughout the winter, showed no signs of corrosion or wearing. I had 3000 miles with only an inner tube going. Then, one day after work, the bike randomly wouldn't start without throttle, it refused to idle and would die as soon as you let off the throttle. I've had the CEL on a few times.but always managed to reset it. Not impressed recently, RE roadside assistance are useful but not the most accurate with ETAs

Super cheap to buy and run, no complaints there

Genuinely couldn't imagine better for the money, ABS, tripper navigation, fuel gauge and gear indicator, pukka

Touring back roads. Find brakes quite adequate. Seat comfier than previous 21 Himmy.

Low rev torque & a true air cooled thumper tune

Headlight switch unit replaced under warranty. ACF50 treated since new and ridden through two winters and seems pretty good. Steel spokes have tarnished.

Achieving about 90+ mpg on premium E5 99 Ron Shell V power fuel. It pinked badly on the E10.

Simplicity and bargain price. Changed to bar end mirrors. New full Delkevic exhaust system from new. O/E exhaust is low grade SS so tarnishes brown / purple very easily.

I find the front brake fine. I ran it in with care. 1.5 to 2 hours is enough.

True air cooled single thumper growl. Fitted a Delkevic full exhaust system from new, de-cats the engine, much livelier response.

It’s a very low cost fun bike for steady riders

Getting 80 - 100 mpg on checking using premium 99 Ron fuels to avoid pinking issues with the new E10 grades.

Swopped the large mirrors over to simple Oxford bar ends, cleans the view & look. Swopped over to black Tec levers - much nicer. The Tripper output depends on a smart phone fully linked up & a decent phone signal so I don’t bother with it.

It will do 60 mph all day every day and a top speed around 80 mph and the brakes are adequate. The stock pads are probably the issue with the brakes so swap them out for high performance ones.

Understressed engine that lasts it just need’s regular services at 3000 miles and oil every 6000 miles. I would rather have a well serviced bike than something doing 18000 miles between services!

It’s basic but functional

Anyone who things the bike is under powered or the brakes are no good, are clearly not riding it as it is intended. It's not about 0-60 traffic light bursts of acceleration. It cruises along beatufilly at 60-65mph. 70mpg cruising is perfectly fine. Lets face it, most motorways are never a consistent 70mph limit anyway with varying speed limits and traffic to contend with. The Scram 411 can do everything from the commute to work, days out and going on holiday. Just in a more rleaxed way. It handles bumpy lanes well and feels stable and planted at all speeds. The seat is comfy enough for me for a good 2 hours or more. You can carry a pillion of course but I don't.

A wonderfully smooth air-cooled single. It chugs along sweetly at all speeds. No rev counter needed anyway. You just listen to the engine and keep it in the sweet spot. A superb slick 5 speedgearbox is a pleasure to use. The bike gets off the mark and up to speed nicely. It's only top end speeds which take time. But that doesn't bother me. I have my R1250R for faster riding.

Not had it long but its built tough. The welds aren't the prettiest but you need to look past that part. It's not a CCM Spitfire! Nothing rattles. It just works. Keep on top of cleaning/ACF50 and you shouldn't have any problems. Basic servicing needs are appealing. Wheels spokes are durable and shine well even after time.

Servicing will work out around £180-200 every 3k. The manual says oil/filter changes every 6k. Valve clearances every 3k. However, it makes sense to change the oil/filter every 3k to keep the engine running sweet. It's basic, and parts are cheap to buy.

Basic. ABS. 2 trip meters. No rev counter but its not needed. Tripper navigation is a plus. It works. Loads of accessories available if you want to jazz it up even more. Adjustable levers, side stand extender, oil cooler guard, rear master cylinder heel guard are all I have. Tyres might be CEAT brand but they roll well, not noisy at all. Decent grip.

Great bike for plodding around on, happiest on B roads but will happily cruise at motorway speeds but not much faster, brakes seem ok and no issues.

Cracking little engine lots of torque, maybe they could have squeezed a few extra BHP out of engine.

Only done 700mls so far and no mechanical issues. Clock have a bit of condensation in, I’m not a welder but could probably make a neater job on some of welds.

First service cost me £120

Apart from small satnav that’s similar to a beeline everything else is just basic.

Forks are the worst part of the bike, over damped but loosen up with a few miles and the rear damper is less of a problem but average. The front brake pad compound is different to my Himalayan and much better feel. The first 50 miles it was awful and wooden but suddenly improved. It's fine now, but not great. The 19inch front wheel and wider tyre feels much better on the road than the 21inch, no weaving now, and it's not much worse off road. The bikes too heavy to do serious off roading anyway so it's not a massive disadvantage.

Better than my Euro 4 Himalayan. Feels more lively, tickover and starting much improved. Am now thinking twice about putting a cam in it as it's almost good enough. Still a slow bike though, but that's why I bought it.

Quality seems fine. Plating on components looks solid and the paintwork is very well done. It's a match for many modern Honda's but doesn't quite have that integrated feeling of higher quality bikes where all the components fit together beautifully. It's not built like a late 80's Honda which is what I'm most used to but perfectly acceptable.

I'm planning to service it myself after the first service which is about £175. It's going to get modified anyway so the warranty will be redundant but I'm not worried that it will go wrong and a single cylinder air cooled bike is cheap to rebuild anyway.

Clocks are great to look at, it has a tripper which will get used occasionally but I'm old fashioned and like a bike to do what I say and not decide it's going to do something else when the mood takes it.