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60,000 km review of Interceptor 650

☩TomTom☩

☩TomTom☩

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Location
Luxembourg
Hi all. A video was posted on YouTube of a French man reviewing his Interceptor after 60,000 km. Link Below. Here is a quick summary:

Problems:
  • (Parts of the ?) calipers were replaced under a recall when there were some issues with rust. His did not seem to have issues but were, of course, still replaced.
  • The speedo cable was replaced once. The previous one caused the needle to indicate inaccurate speeds, but this didn't prevent the bike from riding just fine.
Thats it. No more issues. He claims the bike never failed to start in the 60,000 kilometers, and "runs like a clock". He rarely washes it, unless it is really dirty or salty. It doesn't burn any oil, nor makes any strange sounds. He has mounted short Baak exhaust tubes.
He changes the oil and the spark plugs every 10,000km and only rode it to 130km/h once.

That is quite a pleasant report ro hear, giving confidence in our machines.

You can find the video here, if you speak French:
 
60,000 kms (36,000 miles) is not particularly far. I have owned nine motorcycles that went farther than that, including three that went over 100,000 miles (160,000 kms). I would be surprised (and more than a little disappointed) if the 650 motor didn't go at least 100,000 miles without needing a tear-down, as that was considered the average lifespan of an air-cooled motor from Japan, Europe or the USA a good twenty years ago.
 
vectinterceptor said:
Ding, dong, what is going on with all the bells? He has done a lot of other things, including lowering the front end, repositioning the ignition switch, and changing the bars, silencers, and downpipes. 130 KPH is just over 80 MPH, so it's not that fast.
Click to expand...
Yup, that's what he said. He rides it in a relaxed way, without pushing it. I should have said that he only brought it once to 130km/h. He doesn't constantly use it on the highway, which can impact the engine's lifespan.
Regarding the bells, he says he just likes them :-) I would hate having bells on my bike, but I have to say it fits his character haha
 
Scott Free said:
60,000 kms (36,000 miles) is not particularly far. I have owned nine motorcycles that went farther than that, including three that went over 100,000 miles (160,000 kms). I would be surprised (and more than a little disappointed) if the 650 motor didn't go at least 100,000 miles without needing a tear-down, as that was considered the average lifespan of an air-cooled motor from Japan, Europe or the USA a good twenty years ago.
Click to expand...
It's not so much, indeed, but he claims his bike is still in excellent mechanical condition at that stage. Still, many things can go wrong after 60k km. it can be enough to notice the quality of the metals chosen, the precision of the parts' adjustments, the design of the lubrication system, and so much more. I would be interested in checking review of REs with more miles on them, but they're not so easy to find.
 
It all depends on the miles collected. You have a guy here in the states that has a GW or touring Beemer, and does nothing but freeway tour, hell yah you can rack up tons of miles. I do not ride hard anymore but my miles are far more arduous than that on my bikes. Heck, even my old Japanese bikes. If i got 10k out of them before rings or valve jobs, great! Oil leaks? Come on....ALL of my older Japanese bikes leaked, usually at under 5-6000 miles. My Honda 350 leaked horribly. My two strokes? Let's not even start....:cool:
 
vectinterceptor said:
Ding, dong, what is going on with all the bells? He has done a lot of other things, including lowering the front end, repositioning the ignition switch, and changing the bars, silencers, and downpipes. 130 KPH is just over 80 MPH, so it's not that fast.
Click to expand...

I speak french. One of the first things he says is that he just wants to make a "quick" video. It's over a half hour long and includes segues about his Chihuahua
😂 and selling his Honda touring bike.

About the bells: The tiny ones are Gremlin Bells. (or Guardian Bells, or Spirit Bells) Supposed to be good luck in terms of preventing breakdowns.
But AFAIK, only one is required per bike. I think he just likes bells! Real men like bells, amirite? :)

He replaced the front fender with a radiator rock shortie, the rear shocks, the instruments, the headlight, the turn indicators, the handlebar controls, throttle cables and a custom seat.
Installed at the front is a nineteen forties style ribbed front street tire with a knobby tire at the rear. Clearly road traction is not a high priority for this guy.
How do you know a Frenchman owns this bike? Hanging from the passenger backrest are a bottle opener AND a corkscrew!
He would be fun at a party, but I would take his claim of it running like a "swiss watch" for 60K kms with a large grain of salt. I mean, I hope it's true, but...you know what they say about videos being "for entertainment purposes only"?
 
My 2004 350cc kick start only Royal Enfield Thunderbird uses a nineteen forties style ribbed front street tyre. I have a new spare tyre exactly the same to replace it, when it wears out.

My 2021 Royal Enfield Continental GT650 uses a CEAT Zoom Cruz front street tyre.

All these tyres are made in India. In India, wear is more important than grip. The CEAT tyres on my Royal Enfield Continental GT650 lose grip on longitudinal cracks in the bitumen, but they wear well.
 
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