Hitchcocks Forum

Hi,

I was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction. I've got a 2007 Royal Enfield Bullet Electra X 500cc that I bought a few months ago. I'm very happy with my bike but the obvious problem is that it's lacking power to deal with the UK Motorways in a comfortable way (in my opinion anyway).

I have been reading about an official UK Highway Kit that can be fitted but I can't find much information and my local dealer hadn't even heard of it.

Has anyone here had one of these fitted and if so, how much extra speed is it possible to get out of the bike? Are there any other tips and tricks to get it to perform a bit better?

See our host's catalogue for details of their upgrades all of which i've fitted to improve the standard Electra X :exhaust,silencer,Amal carb kit,remove PAV,TCI etc.....

"The Highway Kit" was provided by Watsonian-Squire and consisted of a free-flow K&N air filter, "sports" silencer and a Dell'Orto PHF32 carburettor.
I have been using one since 2005 on my Electra with the exception of exhaust header which was provided by Hitchcock's (quite corroded by now!).
In my opinion a Dell'Orto is a better carburettor than a Concentric.
Whatever you fit bear in mind it will not be just "plug and play". Some adjustments will almost certainly be required but it will be worth the effort.

If it's motorway use you are after a big benefit, if not already done, would be to change the gearbox sprocket for a 19 tooth. The engine will be more relaxed at 60mph, enough to at least keep up with the lorries. It also seems to move the peak power up the speed range a bit and giving a useful surge where its needed for overtaking.

All,

Thank you for your replies. I will copy this and bring it to my local Enfield dealer. The issue I had after riding the bike for a couple of months was that it doesn't quite do the job as a bike a could use for a relatively short commute. But it's almost there, I just need a bit more power and it looks like that is possible. The other option for me was to change it for a bigger bike (like the Bonneville T100) but I really like the Enfield so I would rather upgrade it slightly than buy a different bike.

Ramchr, as Jojje suggests, to get the best from a Watsonian Squire Highway Kit you need a Hitchcocks free flow exhaust downpipe as well because the original downpipe has an inner pipe that restricts the gas flow significantly. My Electra X, with a standard 18 tooth sprocket, would easily keep up with other traffic on motorways, and overtaking at an indicated 80 - 85 mph was no problem. The bike was also much smoother at 70 - 75 mph than below 70mph. The Del Orto carb works very well, but it should be noted that the Highway Kit also included a modified airbox with a K&N filter inside it.

I assume all these modifications are "official" ones so that it doesn't invalidate insurance etc? It might be a stupid question but worth asking anyway.
It's very good to hear that my Electra X can perform considerably better by installing a few kits and accessories since this means that I can keep the bike. Maybe it's just me but I find the bike quite challenging to drive when I get much above 60mph at the moment. It can shake quite a lot and it sounds like the engine is putting in a bit too much work for the relatively low speed it's doing.

Ramchr
These are not really good enough for the driving you are talking about, before spending the money trying to get that extra couple of mph, think seriously about the Bonnie.

Norm: I am still seriously considering the Bonnie, that will happen sooner or later. The Enfield was just a temporary bike in the first place but I just really like the ride and if it could be just a little bit quicker that will help. I will not be doing any serious commuting, it will just be 50-75 miles, possibly once or twice a week.

Ramchr,
Dullets are great to ride around on but highway stuff takes a lot of the pleasure out of them, I also have an Interceptor and it is just that much better on freeways because you never feel hastled because you can easily run in the traffic.Electras are close but still just short even with the kit. Then there is also the W800 to consider