Royal Enfield (India)
2014 redesign of Royal Enfield logo
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| Industry | Automotive |
| Predecessor | Royal Enfield (UK) |
| Founded | 1955 as Enfield India |
| Headquarters | Chennai, India |
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Key people
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| Products | List of Royal Enfield motorcycles |
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Production output
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| Parent | Eicher Motors |
| Website | Royal Enfield |
450,000 units (2016)Royal Enfield is an Indian motorcycle manufacturing company with factories in Chennai, India. Originally a British motorcycle company, Royal Enfield and indigenous Madras Motors, it is now a subsidiary of Eicher Motors Limited, an Indian automaker. The company makes the Royal Enfield Bullet, and other single-cylinder motorcycles. Established in 1893, Royal Enfield is the oldest motorcycle brand in the world still in production, with the Bullet model enjoying the longest motorcycle production run of all time
The Indian government looked for a suitable motorcycle for its police and army, for patrolling the country's border. The Royal Enfield Bullet was chosen as the most suitable bike for the job. The Indian government ordered 800 350 cc model Bullets. In 1955, the Redditch company partnered with Madras Motors in India to form 'Enfield India' to assemble, under licence, the 350 cc Royal Enfield Bullet motorcycle in Madras (now called Chennai). The tooling was sold to Enfield India so that they could manufacture components. By 1962, all components were made in India. The Indian Enfield uses the 1960 engine (with metric bearing sizes), Royal Enfield still makes an essentially similar bike in the 350 cc and 500 cc models, along with several different models for different market segments.
Royal Enfield was a brand of the Enfield Cycle Company, a British manufacturing firm. It started in India for the Indian Army 350 cc bikes were imported in kits from the UK and assembled in Chennai. After a few years, the company started producing the 500 cc Bullet.
In 1990, Royal Enfield collaborated with the Eicher Group, an automotive company in India, and merged with it in 1994. Apart from bikes, Eicher Group is involved in the production and sales of tractors, commercial vehicles, and automotive gears. Although Royal Enfield experienced difficulties in the 1990s, and ceased motorcycle production at their Jaipur factory in 2002, by 2013 the company opened a new primary factory in the Chennai suburb of Oragadam on the strength of increased demand for its motorcycles. The original factory at Tiruvottiyur became secondary, and continues to produce engines and some motorcycle models. In 2014 Royal Enfield appointed Pierre Terblanche as the head of new product design.
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