[The Pianist]

Originally Posted by RT13

Well it’s here.

Attachment 2620227

bsa-gold-star-india-debut-on-august-15

Thar 5dr + BSA launch on the same day?

No national holiday for the auto journalists!

[Senotrius]

They need to price it a lakh less (than RE650) atleast to storm the market. Otherwise it'll end up being a niche product like jawa/yezdi.

[hikozaru]

> 'British' brand
> August 15th

Surely nothing could go wrong.

Jokes aside, while there is a case for it being some sort of a RE500 replacement, the Indian market values smoothness and the sound of a twin a lot more, for better or worse. It is going to be a hard sell if it is not significantly cheaper than the RE650s.

[gkrishn]

Single cylinders wont cut it. It will buzz, vibrate. Refinement wont be that of 650 twins.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by gkrishn

Single cylinders wont cut it. It will buzz, vibrate. Refinement wont be that of 650 twins.

Big singles don't vibrate and definitely don't buzz. They thump. Which is why they are called thumpers. Its an engine characteristic that is found even in modern thumpers like the KTM Duke 390 and definitely the 690, especially at standstill. You just do not get the deep satisfying Bullet type thump because of the much higher engine revs. But at standstill you can feel it clearly. A big single is a timeless thing of beauty every man should own and ride and feel at at least one stage in his motorcycling journey through life. He would be incomplete without it.

Cheers, Doc

[srini1785]

AFAIK, big singles have, due to their long strokes, better lower end torques and you can cruise at 30 in the 3rd gear. At higher rpms they are nut rockers. I mean both men and machine nuts. So we need to see how this pans out. The styling, I'm pretty sure, is going to find buyers.

[Captain Slow]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Big singles don't vibrate and definitely don't buzz. They thump.

Cheers, Doc

Have you Ridden the Himalayan 450 yet? You will surely change your mind after riding this bike.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Captain Slow

Have you Ridden the Himalayan 450 yet? You will surely change your mind after riding this bike.

No. Don't plan to. Don't want to. What does it do special that other thumpers do not? Buzz? I don't think it revs near as much as the KTMs that I ride. And I also ride a Bullet 500, at the other end of the rev spectrum. Which means the Himalayan is somewhere in between. As all other big singles would be. Coz I do not think any other modern big single tops out at lower than 5.5k and higher than 11k.

Cheers, Doc

[AulusGabinius]

Originally Posted by ebonho

No. Don't plan to. Don't want to. What does it do special that other thumpers do not? Buzz? I don't think it revs near as much as the KTMs that I ride. And I also ride a Bullet 500, at the other end of the rev spectrum. Which means the Himalayan is somewhere in between. As all other big singles would be. Coz I do not think any other modern big single tops out at lower than 5.5k and higher than 11k.

Cheers, Doc

Agreed 100% on this one. The closest is the HD (Hero) x440 that gives the best feeling at 4k or so and tops out at 6k.

[SAE40 in veins]

Originally Posted by shortbread

The odd/rigid engine & gearbox choice makes me wonder if this is simply an off the shelf unit. The old discontinued Rotax/BMW 650 unit comes to mind, similarly power mated to a 5 speed box, used till about 2006-07 by BMW. Readily available off the shelf, albeit devoid of any real character. A nice smooth reliable single with a decent torque spread.

.

While it is true that this engine reminded many of us of the BMW Funduro 650 which was briefly sold in the Indian market, the very nature of the engine makes us think otherwise. The iconic Gold Star is a 'Thumper' meaning it is a long stroke engine whereas the Dakar Champion F series 650 has a Bore X Stroke of 100mm X 83mm. So are we getting a free revving Gold Star here ? OR alternatively if M&M has extensively reworked the Bore X Stroke to suit thumper characteristics, then for all practical reasons it can be considered a new engine.

[navin_v8]

The all new BSA Goldstar mimics the old one very well. Loved the chrome model. I sincerely hope that M&M doesn't mess up this brand like they did to Jawa Yezdi.

There was another model called the BSA Golden Flash A10 650, which had a 650cc parallel twin cylinder engine. Pitting the all new BSA Goldstar 650 against RE Interceptor will be a tough sell, at least in India. Pound for Pound a twin cylinder was always trump a single cylinder motorcycle. Also remember the original old BSA Goldstar 650 had a pushrod engine while the new one has OHC, so the feel and old world charm won't be felt as much.

Currently there is no big capacity single cylinder (500cc and upwards) motorcycle in India although not sure about abroad. The BSA Goldstar may become a niche motorcycle to fill big capacity retro classic single cylinder gap in India. As a 500cc big single owner I am looking forward to this motorcycle. Pricing and after sales is what will decide its fate.

[royalan9321]

While I personally love this bike, I don't think it will find much success here in India. Most people here prioritize value over feel.

[Hispaniola]

And why so? This one seems to be better built than Int 650 if we go by all international reviews. Performance is almost identical. As retro as it can get. Someone looking for an exclusive retro would definitely shortlist this model as well.

Even if priced similarly, Goldstar seems to be a better bike than Int 650, atleast for me. Parallel vs single should be the only deciding factor for other. Oh! This one is also most sorted and niggle free example from Classic Legends.

[EasyRider Suraj]

Originally Posted by Hispaniola

And why so? This one seems to be better built than Int 650 if we go by all international reviews. Performance is almost identical. As retro as it can get. Someone looking for an exclusive retro would definitely shortlist this model as well.

Even if priced similarly, Goldstar seems to be a better bike than Int 650, atleast for me. Parallel vs single should be the only deciding factor for other. Oh! This one is also most sorted and niggle free example from Classic Legends.

I watched all of its major reviews and NONE of them called it to be better bike than Interceptor in ANY regards in fact most leaned towards Enfield by the end.
Since then Enfield has added has aluminium switch cubes, led headlamp and optional alloys which further increases the value, practicality and fit & finish quotient while BSA has remained same with no news on a platform siblings since sales haven't been good.

This BSA is as much of retro bike as a Triumph Speed 400 while Enfield's 650 are the true blue retro. The retroness is just skin deep similar to their jawa/yezdi which are rebadged Mojo bike. Its rotax engine was officially sold in India through BMW Funduro in 90s.

The BSA has flopped overseas while Interceptor has become best seller in Europe with every 3rd bike being sold in UK an Enfield.

I firmly believe that Classic Legends will close their business in next 7-8 yrs since ALL of their 3 brands have failed to capture any meaningful market share. Mahindra has track record of failed 2 wheelers with their scooters and their Mojo bike. Mahindra recently invested 100s of crores but I believe it will be their last investment as they wont be able recover it.

Some more reasons to avoid the bike over Enfield 650s:
-poor aftermarket support
-poor spares support
-poor resale value
-poor service network
-expensive maintenance
-Wont be serviceable by local mechanic unlike Enfield
-Unproven platform unlike Enfield
-Forgettable big single unlike UCE 500
-It will be flop especially in India due to no brand awareness, high pricing, single cylinder and all of the regular jawa/yezdi sales problems. I will be surprised if it touches 3 digit sales/month

[PreethamNag]

Just wondering if this 650 big single is used in a potent lightweight adventure frame would make a great adventure bike. Loads of low end torque would be fun I imagine. Would be a great alternative to the Himalayan 450 if done right.