Top five features of the Royal Enfield Continental GT

Royal Enfield today launched the much-awaited Continental GT in India at Rs 2.05 lakh on-road Delhi.

The first prototype was displayed at the 2010 Auto Expo in Delhi, and it immediately got bikers talking. After all, the last time Royal Enfield built a café racer was back in the 60s.

Through this photo gallery, we take a look at five key features that make this Royal Enfield unlike any of its siblings.

This Royal Enfield looks like no other. Clip-on bars, single seat with a bump stop, minimalist fenders, no unnecessary bodywork - it pays homage to the café racer that the company made over half a century ago. Put them side to side, and this looks like a true spiritual successor.

Powered by a 535cc, air-cooled single, which is a bored out version of the Classic 500's 499cc Unit Construction Engine, it comes with a re-mapped ECU and a lighter flywheel which makes it rev quicker. It makes 29 PS of maximum power and 44 Nm of peak torque.

When it was launched at the Ace Café in London earlier this year, many motorcyclist journalists easily saw 145 kmph on the speedo, making it the fastest motorcycle from the Royal Enfield stable.

The Continental GT is a quick motorcycle, and the single down-tube frame that the other REs come with, would just not have done for handling to match.

Enter UK's famed Harris Engineering, which have designed a double down-tube, cradle design frame for superior rigidity - a necessity for the Continental GT's razor-sharp handling.

The new frame, along with less use of metal than its siblings, helps keep the weight relatively low. Fueled 90 per cent, it weighs just 184 kilos, which is about 15 kilos lighter than the Thunderbird.

Brembo full-floating disc brake up front, ByBre disc at the rear; sticky Pirelli tyres and Paioli shocks at the rear. Canyon roads, watch out!