2018 Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X, Thunderbird 350X to be launched on February 22: More details revealed

There were a lot of speculations over the launch of the sporty Thunderbird 500X and 350X models from Royal Enlfield in India and that it would coincide with Auto Expo. But If the emerging reports are to be believed, the new Royal Enfield Thunderbird X range will only be launched days after the biennial expo. 

Although the launch of the new Royal Enfield Thunderbird was rumoured around the Auto Expo,  Financial Express, citing sources close to the development, reveals that the 2018 models will come on February 22. 

Both Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X and Thunderbird 350X were spied in their fully revealed avatars in December 2017. The notable updates on the X range of Thunderbird seem to be the vibrant colours along with features like a new handlebar, new seats and blacked-out alloy wheels. The new Thunderbird 500X and 350X models will also feature matte black finished exhaust, telescopic fork and dual shock absorbers.

From what we heard so far, both new variants of Thunderbird will not see any change in the engine. While theThunderbird 350X will feature the same 346cc Single Cylinder, 4 stroke engine, which can churn out 19.8 bhp of power 5250 rpm and a peak torque of28 Nm at 4000 rpm, the bigger Thunderbird 500X will get the same 500cc engine unit of the original Thunderbird. It can generate 27 bhp of power and 41 Nm of torque. Both engines come mated to a five-speed gearbox.

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Other changes will include new single-piece seat instead of the split seat on the regular Thunderbird and the new Thunderbird 350X will not get a backrest like the one in the current model. The duo is also expected to get ABS as an option along with features like disc brakes at both ends. Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500X is expected to come in new sporty Blue, Yellow, Red and White colours and the Thunderbird 350X is likely to be offered in red and white colour shades.

There have also been reports that the new Thunderbird X range will come as limited edition. The Thunderbird 500X and 350X could get a price tag slightly higher than the current models.