Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 2024 review | First Ride

If, as we’re told, motorcycling is in danger of dying out with its traditional demographic, the industry has responded with a wave of accessible and fun to ride single-cylinder bikes aimed at a younger generation of riders for whom affordability and A2-licence compatibility are key. The likes of the KTM Duke 390 and Yamaha MT-03 prove you can have modern attitude and style in a compact package, Husqvarna putting its own twist on the former with its modern-retro Svartpilen 401. Triumph has also got in on the act, its impressive Speed 400 using the scale of its Indian production to nail an incredibly competitive price point without any apparent compromise in quality or finish.

Enter Royal Enfield, content until now to plough its own furrow with its charming if underpowered single-cylinder retros, but now raising its ambitions with this roadster spin-off of the new-school Himalyan 450, called the Guerrilla 450. A big step up from its existing singles like the Hunter 350, the Guerrilla is a thoroughly modern bike with the performance and handling to mix it with the Triumph and others, while still undercutting them all on price.  

The Guerrilla 450 treads a fine line between modern and classic in its attempt to attract people who might previously have considered Royal Enfield a bit old-fashioned, without scaring off those for whom that was the whole point. You get that in the looks, conventional forks and dual purpose CEAT tyres apparently a deliberately retro aesthetic choice, while the stance, linkage-driven monoshock rear end, and some of the colour options are definitely more contemporary. That the Guerrilla looks good in both these and more trad plain silver or the rather smart red/gold combo stands testament to the quality of the design.

Built around the same Sherpa 450 engine as the new Himalayan, the basics of the frame are also shared, the Guerrilla getting a slightly shorter swingarm and repositioned headstock to account for the different wheel sizes, but the two bikes very much developed alongside each other. Expect more where this came from as well, the bolt-on rear subframe meaning Royal Enfield and owners alike will be able to play around with the foundations and spin further variations on the theme in due course. Other carry-overs from the Himalayan include the circular Tripper instrument panel, this neatly representing Royal Enfield’s wish to honour its traditional image while moving with the times for younger folk for whom connectivity is key.

While Royal Enfield’s simple, classic looking bikes live on, the Guerrilla is a huge step up in performance and capability. That new 452cc single (the brand’s first liquid-cooled motor) doubles the output of the Hunter 350 to deliver 40PS (29kW) and 40Nm (29lb ft) to compete with modern rivals like the Triumph and others in the class. True, the Guerrilla’s all-steel frame and swingarm are a little burlier – the 184kg kerbweight seemingly about 14kg more in total than the Speed 400 depending on how exactly you cut it – but the engine feels impressively muscular for its size, has a satisfyingly raw combination of exhaust and induction noise, and enough single-cylinder fizz to entertain without it getting uncomfortable.

In its element in the range of speeds you can actually enjoy on the road – which is to say up to 70mph or so – the Guerrilla has enough pace to entertain experienced riders without scaring those new to it all. The handling is similarly considered, the Showa-supplied forks thankfully a lot more supportive under braking than the similar looking ones on the Interceptor 650 and Continental GT, while the decent travel on the monoshock rear end was seemingly capable on the few bumps and speed humps we encountered on our Spanish test route. A powerful rear brake makes up for a certain lack of bite from the front one, this balance familiar from other Royal Enfields and requiring a degree of adaptation to your riding style.

On the advice of one of the racers chaperoning us on the route, a smidge of trailed rear brake into the corners helps settle the bike beautifully, though too much was enough to have the back wheel on the cusp of locking up, even within the ABS threshold. To summarise, the Guerrilla is a hoot on a twisty back road, this compact size and chuckability just as well suited to nipping through traffic in the city.

While undeniably a small bike, the Guerrilla still feels substantial enough to count as a proper one. The accessibility of its 780mm seat height and the skinny-waisted frame means that even shorter riders should be able to get their feet flat on the floor at a standstill. Which is obviously confidence inspiring for beginners, one advantage of the conventional forks over trendier upside-down ones being a tighter turning circle as well. An upright riding position and the naked configuration obviously limit ambitions for sustained high-speed running given the lack of protection from wind, rain, and anything else, but that’s not what you buy a bike of this size for.

Various seat configurations will be available as well, a taller and flatter bench option included with the Flat Track package apparently popular with taller members of the test riding team, though we didn’t get to try it ourselves. We’ll have to caveat impressions of the suspension against the fact we only got to ride the bike on super smooth Spanish roads but, even with that, it’s obviously a cut above the crude set-up on some of Royal Enfield’s more retro models and, like everything else on the bike, at least competitive with the likes of the Triumph and others it’s pitched against. Certainly, there’s enough travel to take the sting off the bumps and potholes you’ll encounter on British roads, so we’ll hope there’s the damping and support to match.

A ride-by-wire throttle and features like selectable rider modes are carried over from the related Himalayan but still feel like a novelty on a Royal Enfield, there seemingly being a bigger difference between the Eco and Performance settings even if it’s a little fussy about when you can swap from one to the other. Still, it’s nice to be able to have a more chilled response to the grip for town while knowing the grunt is still there if you twist a little harder, Performance mode just making this happen sooner.

The other tech centres on the circular Tripper display, which in its default mode shows a digital recreation of a traditional analogue speedo, but can also switch to maps or other info you then control with a slightly flimsy feeling joystick on the left grip. This is supported by a Google powered app on your phone, which in theory means you can set your route on your handset and then tuck it away in your pocket or pack for the journey. Two issues with this: first, you have to leave your phone unlocked for it to work which then chews through both data and battery, and second being that it’s apparently happier with Android phones than Apple ones.

With a Shotgun 650 test bike back home, we’d been trying to get the app to work on an iPhone but with no luck, the error message when we tried to programme a route getting apologetic shrugs from the Guerrilla team on the event, but no apparent solution, even with the app updated on the spot to the latest version. The idea is a sound one and the hardware looks good, we’ll just have to hope wobbles in the software can be sorted out so iPhone users can benefit from the full range of functionality those on Android apparently enjoy already.

Both Himalayan and now Guerrilla 450 show serious ambition on Royal Enfield’s part to compete on equal terms with the best of big-name mainstream bikes, without abandoning the brand’s existing reputation for value, simplicity, and a certain rebellious spirit. With a starting price of less than five grand it certainly nails the accessibility goal, the fact it undercuts the already impressively affordable Triumph a matter of evident pride among the Royal Enfield team.

The Guerrilla can’t quite match the Speed 400 or others in terms of fit, finish, and perhaps the last degree of performance and handling, but it’s close enough for the money, is huge fun to ride at the speeds that really matter, and has bags of character into the bargain. Sure to be a huge hit in its Indian home market, we can only hope the accessibility and attitude of the Guerrilla and bikes like it help attract that new generation of riders motorcycling so desperately needs closer to home as well.