5 Retro-Modern Bikes You Can Buy In India

The Triumph Bonneville Bobber is the newest entrant to the world of retro-modern motorcycles. These bikes feature old-school design while sporting all the bells and whistles that modern day motorcycles come equipped with. The Indian market is also warming up to this trend with manufacturers coming up with quite a few bikes in this segment. We have listed 5 motorcycles in the retro-modern category. 

Ducati Scrambler –

Price- Rs 8.18 lakh (ex-Delhi)

The Scrambler is Ducati's answer to the retro modern segment. The Scrambler is a small, fun-to-ride motorcycle aimed towards younger customers. The Scrambler gets minimalistic bodywork with a simplistic design. It gets a round headlamp with glass lens and LED DRL, LED tail lamp, a single-pod LCD instrumentation cluster, under-seat storage with a USB charging socket and dual sports tyres. The Scrambler is offered in four variants – Icon, Classic, Urban Enduro and Full Throttle. Braking is courtesy of a single 330mm disc with 4-piston callipers at the front and 245mm disc with a single-piston calliper at the rear. ABS is standard. For suspension, it gets 41mm upside down front forks and a rear monoshock adjustable for pre-load and rebound damping. 

The Scrambler is powered by an 803cc L-Twin engine which produces 76PS and 68Nm of torque. It gets a 13.5 litres fuel tank, 790mm seat that can be lowered or raised by 20mm (optional accessory) and weighs 186kg. The Scrambler makes sense if you want a lightweight retro-modern bike. 

Triumph Bonneville Bobber

Price- Rs 9.09 lakh (ex-Delhi)

The Bonneville Bobber is the newest entrant in this segment. The Bobber look comes courtesy a floating aluminium single-seat, wide handlebars, and a hardtail look with a stripped down, signature bobber look. The Bonneville Bobber also gets twin slash-cut exhaust pipes and shorter front forks, bubble tank, discrete taillights, custom battery box and a tucked-in headlamp. The motorcycle gets 9.1 litres of fuel tank capacity and is available in four colour options - Modello Red, Jet Black, Competition Green and Frozen Silver. 

The Bonneville Bobber comes with an all-new chassis and revised suspension geometry. It gets 41mm KYB telescopic front forks with 90mm of travel and a hidden KYB monoshock at the rear with 76.9mm of travel. Braking is courtesy a single 310mm disc with Nissin twin-piston floating callipers upfront and a 255mm disc with Nissin single piston calliper at the rear. ABS is a standard feature. The Bobber is powered by a 1200cc liquid-cooled parallel twin motor tuned for more torque. It makes 77PS and 106Nm of torque. Additional features include two riding modes - road and rain, switchable traction control, a torque-assist clutch and engine immobiliser. You can choose from over 150 customisable accessories for the Bonneville Bobber. Or you could choose from two kits - old school Bobber or Quarter mile kit, both of which will set you back by Rs 1.5 lakh. 

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Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight –

Priced- Rs 9.65 lakh (ex-Delhi). 

The Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight is the oldest bike here and is one of the first retro-modern bikes to come to India. It follows a simple and clean design language and features a low-slung profile. The Forty-Eight comes with 70’s inspired graphics, peanut fuel tank, custom paint, low set handlebars and instrument console, cast aluminium wheels, fatter front tyre and a low-slung seat. Braking is via a single 292mm front disc with two-piston callipers and a 260mm rear disc with two-piston callipers at the rear. The bike gets thick front forks and twin rear dampers.

The Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight is powered by a 1200cc V-twin which delivers 96Nm of torque. It gets a tiny 7-litres fuel tank which limits capacity severely. Seat height is very low at 710mm though the bike, 247kg, is a heavyweight bike. If you need a style statement with rides limited to the city-run, then the Forty-Eight makes a lot of sense.

Triumph Thruxton R – 

Price- Rs 10.9 lakh (ex-Delhi)

If Cafe Racers are more up your alley, then the Thruxton R is for you. Possibly the most beautiful bike here, the Thruxton R looks the part with its minimalist looks, Monza styled fuel cap, rear seat cowl and twin upswept exhausts. It boasts of high-spec suspension kit and trick Pirelli Diablo Rosso tyres that allows it to handle as well as other superbikes out there. it is available in two colour options – Diablo Red and Silver Ice. Triumph also offers 160 customisable accessories for the Thruxton R. 

Braking is via twin 310mm discs with Brembo 4-piston radial monobloc callipers at the front and a single 220mm disc rotor with Nissin 2-piston callipers at the rear. ABS is standard. The Thruxton R comes with 43mm Showa upside-down fully-adjustable front forks with 120mm travel and twin Ohlins rear shock absorbers with piggy back reservoir and 120mm of travel at the rear. 

The Triumph Thruxton R is powered by a 1200cc liquid-cooled parallel twin which produces 97PS and a peak torque of 112Nm. The Thruxton R gets ride-by-wire, three riding modes – road, rain and sport, traction control, a torque assist clutch, LED DRL headlamp and taillamp, engine immobiliser and a USB charging socket. The Thruxton R gets a 14.5-litre fuel tank and a is 810mm seat height. It weighs 203kg. Café-Racers are motorcycles optimised for speed and handling rather than comfort, and also for quick rides over short distances so the Thruxton R might not be as comfortable as others but when it comes to the thrill of riding, the Thruxton R is head and shoulders above all.

Moto Guzzi V9 Bobber –

Price- Rs 13.60 lakh (ex-Delhi).

Moto Guzzi is an Italian exotic bike maker that offers a unique flavour to motorcycling through its transversely-mounted V-twin motorcycles. The V9 Bobber gets matt grey detailing over the side panels and fuel tank cowl with matt yellow or red graphic details. It is available in two colour options with a matt finish – Nero Massiccio with Yellow chequered graphics and Grigio sport with a red chequered flag graphics. The rear mudguard has been shortened and reduced in size which lends a minimalistic look when viewed from the rear. The gets a flat drag-style handlebar and aluminium foot pegs. It is ideally a single seater motorcycle but comes with space to mount a pillion seat and footpegs.

The Moto Guzzi V9 Bobber is powered by an 850cc, transverse V-Twin which puts out 56PS and 62Nm of torque. Power and torque are available at lower rpm similar to the Triumph Bonneville Bobber. The V9 Bobber gets two-stage traction control, a USB-charging socket and engine immobiliser. 

Braking is via a single 320mm disc with Brembo 4-piston callipers upfront and a 260mm disc rotor with 2-piston callipers at the rear. ABS is standard. The v9 Bobber gets 40mm telescopic front forks and twin shock absorbers at the rear. Fuel tank capacity is 15 litres and saddle height low at 785mm. The Bobber weighs 199kg which is quite low compared to other bikes in the segment.