The Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 is arguably one of the most successful models to roll out of Royal Enfield's assembly line. Alongside its sportier sibling, the Royal Enfield Continental GT 650, the Interceptor helped propel the once-obscure Indian manufacturer to global stardom, making it a brand known for offering stylish, impressively performing bikes, at an affordable price tag.
For the 2023 model-year, Royal Enfield updated the 650 Twins with alloy wheels equipped with tubeless tires. This upgrade is one that was welcomed by a lot of enthusiasts looking for more performance out of their bikes, as the new tubeless alloy wheels shed weight, improved handling, and broadened the selection of tires that could be installed on the bikes.
Having said that, it doesn't appear that Royal Enfield is slowing down when it comes to releasing new versions of the Interceptor 650. In India, Royal Enfield's home country, Eicher Motors Limited, Royal Enfield's parent company, recently filed a patent trademarking the name "Royal Enfield Interceptor Bear 650." What exactly this means isn't yet clear, as Enfield hasn't made any announcements, or released any teasers about an upcoming Interceptor 650 iteration.
That being said, this hasn't stopped enthusiasts in India from speculating. After all, Royal Enfield has always been about customizing its bikes, and has previously released all sorts of special-editions of its models. Indian motorcycling publication Bikewale speculates that the Bear could be a scrambler-style, off-road capable version of the Interceptor 650. On top of that, we can surely expect the bike to feature a special paint job and special bolt-on accessories.
In terms of performance, we can expect nothing to really change with the special-edition model. It'll almost certainly retain its 648cc, air-cooled, fuel-injected, parallel-twin engine which delivers 47 horsepower and 36 pound-feet of torque. Nevertheless, if a new iteration of the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 really is under development, chances are it'll be launched during India's festive season – around the third quarter of 2023.
