2024 Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 review – Cruiser, custom and unlikely sportsbike in one

Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 overall rating

There’s more to Royal Enfield’s Shotgun 650 custom cruiser than meets the eye. On the face of it it’s a simple retro cruiser dripping with Bike Shed custom cool and it’s laid back and all-day comfy, but it’s also sporty and fun to ride with neutral handling, lots of grip and an engine that’s packed with torque and a deep throbbing exhaust note.

There are few things not to like and that’s quite a trick, but it gets better, because it’s also solidly finished and nicely detailed. It punches well above its weight and all for a lot less than its retro cruiser competition.

Watch our Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 video review here:

Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 at a glance

Reasons to buy:

• A 270 degree crank, makes for a characterful engine.
• Air and oil cooled, providing that authentic retro charm.
• Simplistic design.
• Neutral stance, ever so slightly sporty with its 18inch wheel.
• Reconfigurable rear subframe, either two up with a pillion, or single bobber seat and a luggage rack. Designed to be easily converted between them all.

Reasons to avoid:

• Shared components, across the Royal Enfield range including the engine platform, keeps value down, but it doesn’t make for a unique or leading edge design.
• Rider aids are not present, but also not required, appealing with its charm over its performance.

Offering immense value for a modern take on a retro base, it is perfect for sweeping through the bends and listening to that characterful twin engine propelling you along. It’s ideal for a Sunday morning and even a daily commuter.

Jump to

• Ride and handling
• Engine and performance
• Reliability and build quality
• Value vs rivals
• Group test
• Standard and optional equipment

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Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 handling, ride quality and brakes

At its world launch in California, Royal Enfield were keen to demonstrate how the Shotgun 650 is more than just a cruiser and has the minerals to fire through the twisty canyon roads in the hills north of LA. It’s through these seemingly endless switchbacks where it shows off its sporty side.

New generation Royal Enfield’s are neutral handling, surefooted and roll effortlessly into corners. Developed, engineered and tested by many an ex-Triumph employee, the Indian-built Shotgun 650 has the easy, balanced feel of a Hinckley machine.

It too, has pounded endless laps of Bruntingthorpe Proving ground at their Leicestershire Technology Centre, around their Idiada test base in Spain and on the road. It’s a machine that looks like it’ll trip over its own shoelaces at speed, but never does.

The steel backbone chassis is based on the Super Meteor 650 cruiser’s, albeit with sportier-sized wheels and steering geometry. Upside down Showa Separate Function Big Piston Forks and twin shocks give a clue to the Shotgun 650’s intentions and while it’s a hefty 240kg, crashes over big bumps and will easily graze its mid-mounted pegs, it carries its weight beautifully and shines on smooth, winding tarmac. Caress the bars with light inputs and it floats from corner to corner with little effort, using the engine’s low-down grunt and smooth power to maintain momentum.

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Ceat tyres (100/90 x 18 front, 150/70 x 17) have all the dry grip you need (we haven’t tested it in the rain) and while the single front disc and twin-piston Bybre caliper set-up won’t set the world alight, the rear with its 300mm disc/twin piston caliper, has monstrous power. If you’re used to giving it big footfuls of rear brake, you’ll need to introduce some finesse to your braking.

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Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 engine and performance

Like the chassis, the Shotgun 650’s air-oil cooled parallel twin-cylinder engine is the same as the Super Meteor 650’s and the one that’s wowed us before in the Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650. Producing 46bhp@7250rpm and 39lb-ft@5650rpm of torque, it’s perkier than its modest power figures might suggest, thrives on its low-end grunt, has a smooth throttle response and just the right amount of character without, being too vibey.

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Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 reliability and build quality

Out of the crate there’s nothing cheap feeling about the Shotgun 650, despite its affordable price tag. Its blue, white, grey or green paint jobs are quality, and classy touches include the enamel-like finish on the rocker and engine covers, handlebar clamp and cast headlight surround.

The seat is nicely stitched and the mudguards and side panels are metal, not plastic. It’s too early to say how reliable it will be but looking at our Owners’ Reviews of the almost-identical Super Meteor 650 and the Interceptor 650 and Continental GT twins, which have the same engine, it’s a mixed bag.

Many have found their Royal Enfield’s to be trouble-free with minimal corrosion and good build quality for the price and for some the opposite, so buyer beware.

What goes wrong?

• Relay contact failure – Some riders have reported electrical relays failing, which can lead to issues with the starter, lights, or fuel pump. This might be due to poor-quality contacts or moisture ingress. In some cases, its just cheap relays, so to rest easy it is a cheap enough fix to update them to a known brand like Bosch.
• Clutch cable loosening – The clutch cable tends to stretch over time, leading to improper clutch engagement. Regular adjustments as part of your maintenance checks or an upgraded cable with better durability can help.
• Sticking gears (3rd to 4th, to 5th) – Some riders have trouble shifting between these gears, likely due to a stiff gearbox, misaligned shifter, or poor lubrication. Proper break-in and oil changes help mitigate this.
• Engine paint – Thin in Places – The paint on the engine casing may be inconsistent, leading to premature wear, peeling, or exposure to rust. This is often a cosmetic issue but can be frustrating. Be sure to prevent any ingress and wear by using a protective spray during the harsher months
• ABS ring warning after heavy rain – Water exposure can cause ABS sensor errors, possibly due to dirt buildup or a weak electrical connection. Cleaning the ABS ring and sensor after wet rides usually helps as well as a good dielectric grease on the wiring  connection blocks.  
• Shake Down – Loose Bolts and Loose HT Leads – Vibration from the engine can cause bolts and high-tension (HT) leads to loosen over time. Regular tightening and thread-locking compounds can prevent this.

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Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 value vs rivals

As a mid-pegged custom cruiser, the Shotgun 650 doesn’t have any direct rivals, but compared to retros from the big brands it’s affordable and great value for money, which is why the new-generation Royal Enfield have been such a success. Claimed fuel consumption is a 62mpg, which isn’t as good as it could be for a 650 in such a light state of tune and short, 3000-mile service intervals.

Other models in a similar market sector include the Honda Rebel 500, which uses the firm’s well-used parallel-twin engine in a small cruiser chassis and the Kawasaki Vulcan 650, which does likewise with the engine from the Ninja, Z and Versys 650s.

Royal Enfield’s own Super Meteor 650 and Interceptor 650 are also rivals, being based on the same platform, and the incoming Moto Morini Calibro does a very similar job, too, although we’ve not ridden one yet.

Quick rival comparison:

• Honda Rebel 500 – The very frugal, very adaptive 500 engine used in Honda’s CB range. Light weight and with a low seat height makes it a very accessible ride
• Kawasaki Vulcan 650 – A parallel twin shared across the other Kawasaki platforms, with a modern contemporary styling.
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Group Test: Cruising for a mild bruising – Group testing the Kawasaki Eliminator 500 vs Honda’s CMX500 Rebel SE vs Royal Enfield’s Shotgun 650

A few non-American brands have been stepping into the cruiser market, and they are doing so with some very decent offerings. In the spring of 2024 MCN tested middleweight cruisers – the Kawasaki Eliminator 500 and the Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 – which join the segment’s established leader, Honda’s (slightly updated for 2024 with new paint options) CMX500 Rebel – and they all cost less than £7000.

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Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 standard and optional equipment

The Shotgun 650 is a cruiser and a scratcher, with styling inspired by the custom world. Royal Enfield teased it as the ‘SG650’ prototype at the 2021 EICMA motorcycle show, with its mix of old school ‘restomod’ styled bodywork and modern upside-down forks.

It’s sold as a two-seater, but the pillion seat can be removed to reveal a rack, or the whole rear subframe can be quickly unbolted with four screws for a bobber-style, single-seat set up. From there you could go full ‘Bike Shed’ and cut down the mudguard, fit a loud pipe, or wherever your turn-ups take you.

Standard equipment includes a centre stand, Showa suspension, a classy dash, LED lights, coke bottle grips, finned exhaust clamps and a Monza stye fuel cap. The dash is a classy analogue/digital mix of old and new. Separate gauge is a turn-by-turn Google sat nav that links to a smartphone via Bluetooth. Neat switchgear is sturdy, simple and easy to use with button to scroll through dash. Old school-style rotary switches operate headlights and kill switch.

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