New Himalayan Owner 2021 E5

[Chicken]

New Himalayan Owner 2021 E5

Early days but im very impressed so far

 

[ymfb]

There’s a few of us on here, not heard a bad thing said. Mine is an E4, engine has freed up at about 1,000 miles and goes much bette.

 

[Orinoco]

Even freer at 10,000 miles

 

[Chicken]

1,800 miles and refreshingly slow and relaxed

 

[fatbaldbob]

Holy Thread revival

So on a whim I have traded my faithful Monkey bike of 6 years for a 22 E5 411 Himmy. I hope I’ve not made a mistake.

First impressions, there is an annoying buzz from the cockpit area, so something loose or vibrating. Second issue, I am really struggling to reach the clutch lever, so they will need changed for something adjustable with a smaller span.

Brakes are better than expected as most reviews said they were pretty wooden, maybe previous owner upgraded the pads

Performance wise it’s pretty much as expected, it builds speed in a slow, predictable and progressive manner. But I knew it wasn’t a quick bike before I bought it, overtakes will certainly need planning if an opportunity presents. But you don’t buy one for speed so no surprises really.

Suspension feels a lot firmer than expected, so need to have a look if it’s stock or maybe turn down the preload a bit.

Insurance was a shock, swapped the bike on my existing Monkey policy, added two additional riders that weren’t on the Monkey policy and I got a refund of £26

Not been too far on it yet, weather still shit up here with icy and salt laden greasy roads, so looking forward to getting some miles in on it.

Need to sort some luggage, it came with the rear rack and pannier supports so a topbox will be the next item to source.

 

[Wapping]

If it’s the Royal Enfield standard rear rack, watch out for the weight of a fully loaded top box. I used a soft bag on mine. Side panniers? Again, I’d go for something soft and use waterproof inner bags, to save you taking the soft bags on and off.

I have relatively small hands (Rukka 10 or 11) but didn’t find the clutch a stretch.

Enjoy the bike for what it is. That’s the important thing.

 

[squid]

Holy Thread revival

So on a whim I have traded my faithful Monkey bike of 6 years for a 22 E5 411 Himmy. I hope I’ve not made a mistake.

First impressions, there is an annoying buzz from the cockpit area.

Brakes are better than expected as most reviews said they were pretty wooden, maybe previous owner upgraded the pads

There was a free brake upgrade but also better pads made a good difference. I found the brakes fine for the performance.

I recall putting a bit of foam behind the clocks to cure some noise. Might have been the bottom of the screen but can't recall exactly.

Clutch I don't recall an issue so I'd check the cable routing and adjustment.

Suspension you will find is soft not hard. It's probably bottoming out so up the Preload.

I fitted a yss which wasn't expensive but not essential, just better on rough stuff

Temp gauge will read wrong but extend the wires and repositioned it's fine

 

[Wapping]

One good thing to do (and it’s very cheap) is to change the relays to something from Bosch and upgrade the make of the spark plug, whilst you are at it. My bike had a very badly routed HT lead, which I addressed by taking the tank off. That’s a very easy job. Just find one of the very many DIY videos.

 

[fatbaldbob]

Here it is in the flesh:



Is there a way of telling if the relays have already been replaced? This seems a popular mod and as the bike is approaching 4yr old they could well have been changed already.

Ref temp gauge; definitely an issue was registering 10c when it was about 2c when last out.

 

[Posh Pete]

If they've been replaced, they'll be marked with Bosch or other trademark?

I wouldn't worry about the temp guage or the compass, just enjoy the bike. I'd have hung onto mine but my dimensions (at 6 foot and long in the leg) just could not be accommodated comfortably on the bike.

 

[AdrianS]

Holy Thread revival

So on a whim I have traded my faithful Monkey bike of 6 years for a 22 E5 411 Himmy. I hope I’ve not made a mistake.

First impressions, there is an annoying buzz from the cockpit area, so something loose or vibrating. Second issue, I am really struggling to reach the clutch lever, so they will need changed for something adjustable with a smaller span.

Brakes are better than expected as most reviews said they were pretty wooden, maybe previous owner upgraded the pads

Performance wise it’s pretty much as expected, it builds speed in a slow, predictable and progressive manner. But I knew it wasn’t a quick bike before I bought it, overtakes will certainly need planning if an opportunity presents. But you don’t buy one for speed so no surprises really.

Suspension feels a lot firmer than expected, so need to have a look if it’s stock or maybe turn down the preload a bit.

Insurance was a shock, swapped the bike on my existing Monkey policy, added two additional riders that weren’t on the Monkey policy and I got a refund of £26

Not been too far on it yet, weather still shit up here with icy and salt laden greasy roads, so looking forward to getting some miles in on it.

Need to sort some luggage, it came with the rear rack and pannier supports so a topbox will be the next item to source.

I bought some adjustable levers from Ali Express. Very cheap and did the job. Hitchcocks sell them - they look identical to mine but are a lot dearer.
Just make sure you buy the correct ones!

 

[Chicken]

High Screen For Winter

 

[fatbaldbob]

Just cleaning the bike is there something missing from here?

 

[fatbaldbob]

If they've been replaced, they'll be marked with Bosch or other trademark?

I wouldn't worry about the temp guage or the compass, just enjoy the bike. I'd have hung onto mine but my dimensions (at 6 foot and long in the leg) just could not be accommodated comfortably on the bike.

Not seeing any external markings but not wanting to go pulling them out just now so probably original.

Not bothered about temp or compass to be honest, it is what it is.

I’m 6’2 and 33” leg so may well suffer as you did. But it won’t be a long distance or touring bike, have others for that. Same reason I got rid of the GSA it was torture on the knees.

 

[Orinoco]

At 6' 2" you'd benefit from a taller seat, I've a 2" taller Seats Concept on mine, makes a lot of difference, 5 Euro-tours done of a couple of thousand miles each in comfort. The annoying buzz is probably the screen rattling on top of the headlamp, a piece of rubber/plastic sorts it. I don't think the relays were as much of an issue on the E5 bikes, YMMV, change to Bosch anyway. E5 rack is a *bit* more robust than the E4, but I can recommend the Hitchcocks rack, though it is pricey, well worth it and wish I'd done it from the start. Torrance's are nice when you come to change tyres and cheap enough compared to others with great handling.

Enjoy the journey, the destination is a bonus

Mine, posting it because I can...

 

[Clem]

Just cleaning the bike is there something missing from here?

View attachment 474218

Rubber bung in mine, covers than machining you can see.
Nothing special, just a plain bung!

 

[Clem]

Bought a '73 plate one late last year, I've only pottered around the Teesdale & Weardale roads so far but very much enjoyed it on those roads.

Fitted hand guards & a comfort seat and looking forward to the better weather!
Not planning on taking it huge distances (the V85TT is for that) so no luggage is required aside from maybe a tail pack for waterproofs etc.

 

[Posh Pete]

At 6' 2" you'd benefit from a taller seat, I've a 2" taller Seats Concept on mine, makes a lot of difference, 5 Euro-tours done of a couple of thousand miles each in comfort. The annoying buzz is probably the screen rattling on top of the headlamp, a piece of rubber/plastic sorts it. I don't think the relays were as much of an issue on the E5 bikes, YMMV, change to Bosch anyway. E5 rack is a *bit* more robust than the E4, but I can recommend the Hitchcocks rack, though it is pricey, well worth it and wish I'd done it from the start. Torrance's are nice when you come to change tyres and cheap enough compared to others with great handling.

Enjoy the journey, the destination is a bonus

Mine, posting it because I can...

View attachment 474300

For me, it wasn't so much the seat height. I re-modelled mine with some foam and a new vinyl cover. The issue was the length of the rider seat and that step up to the pillion seat. Other than that it was a very practical bike. A bit heavy for the power but the torque was what counted. I can see why it's so popular with green laners down south. If much off road riding was feasible up here, I'd have hung onto it.