I rode a Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 for 3000 miles around Europe and found two big problems

Embarking on my debut long-distance tour filled me with a mixture of excitement and nerves. As I left my hometown of Peterborough a Euro-virgin, and heading for Calais on the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450, my brain was whirring with all the worst-case scenarios that might happen on a 3000-mile adventure.

Read more

• Update one: First impressions of the Himalayan 450
• Update two: Heading off-road with the Himalayan
• Update three: Is the 450 too modern for 411 purists?

The plan was simple: there was no plan! I had booked 12 days off work, a Eurotunnel ticket to mainland Europe, and that was it.

As I worked my way south towards the Swiss Alps, a place I’d heard so many epic things about, anxiety gave way to pure excitement. The Himalayan worked through tank after tank of fuel with ease, and I soon found a sweet spot balancing wind buffeting, fuel economy, and the need to cover distance.

On the French autoroutes, with a speed limit of 130km/h (81mph), the Enfield comfortably cruised at 80, with plenty of revs to spare. The windscreen, paired with my LS2 Explorer adventure helmet, did its job well, and I managed to maintain over 50mpg at this speed – which meant 160 miles before the reserve light came on. And the Himalayan delivers a surprisingly comfortable ride for long stretches of motorway, and is a huge improvement over the air-cooled 411cc model.

However, on day two, shortly after crossing the Swiss border, my worst nightmare became a reality. The engine warning light lit up on the dash, and the bike entered limp mode, limiting my speed to a frustrating 40mph. I feared this might be the end of the trip, but after disconnecting the battery and reconnecting it again, the issue seemed to disappear.

For the next few days, all seemed well, so I pushed ahead into the heart of Europe, exploring the breathtaking roads of the Swiss and Italian Alps – where I quickly discovered the limitations of the Himalayan’s handling.

As the roads tightened and the elevation climbed, the technical hairpins proved a little too much for the bike. Even though the Trailmax Meridian adventure tyres delivered plenty of consistent grip, the Himalayan struggled to turn sharply, and gave a strong feeling of understeer in tight corners. To compensate, I adopted a more cautious riding style, using more rear brake to help pull the Himmy into the corners.

Then, just as I entered Italy, limp mode returned. A call to Royal Enfield resulted in the bike being inspected in Milan. After a full day of investigation, the problem was traced to a faulty throttle position sensor. A new throttle and sensor were installed, and the issue didn’t return. The root cause of the sensor failure is still under investigation. While the problem was regrettable, it was a positive test of Royal Enfield’s customer support.

With the bike fully operational again, and with renewed spirts, I set my sights on the Pyrenees for the second leg of the journey. The roads in the Pyrenees were much more sweeping and flowing, a perfect match for the Himalayan’s long, low, and stable geometry. The Himmy holds a line beautifully on this sort of road, making for some of the best riding I’ve experienced. The Pyrenees, without a doubt, were my highlight of the trip.

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After a few days relishing these incredible roads, I began the journey home, hugging the French coast all the way back to Calais.

Looking back on the adventure, touring Europe lived up to its hype. Covering 3000 miles in just 12 days with no fixed itinerary delivered a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The Himalayan really revealed its strengths and weaknesses, too.

It excels on motorways and flowing B-roads but struggles on more technical, tight and twisty roads – especially when heavily loaded. While the overall performance was solid, the mechanical failure on such a new bike was disappointing, and coupled with some handling quirks, I was left craving a little more refinement. The upside was that it did deliver a real sense of adventure, even if it came with a few bumps along the way.