Royal Enfield Of Albany Gears Up

SCHENECTADY, NY – Precision Volvo Sales & Service, which sells and repairs used Volvos at 99 Cordell Road here, is expanding beyond cars into motorcycles. It has quietly become a dealer of Royal Enfield motorcycles. “We haven’t even really officially opened,” co-owner Sean Nava said this afternoon.

While six new motorcycles have been received from Royal Enfield, signage isn’t expected to arrive until Dec. 27.

Nava is co-owner with Dave Mooney of what is being called Royal Enfield of Albany. It’s one of two Royal Enfield dealers in the state. The other is Kustom Workz near Buffalo. The only Royal Enfield dealer in New England is Mark’s Motorsports in Enfield, CT.

Nava reported that everyone at Precision rides, except for Mooney, which made adding motorcycles logical. He explained that when a friend of his partner had to go to Pennsylvania to find a Royal Enfield, it prompted the idea of becoming a dealer. Said Nava, “There wasn’t a dealer in Albany, so we said, “Why not?”

Photos courtesy of Royal Enfield of Albany

Nava said that many of Precision’s customers ride, mostly Triumphs and BMWs, and that Royal Enfield of Albany hopes to sell around a hundred bikes a year. He said Precision began small in 2003 with 50 customers and now has a customer base of 6,000.

Nava currently doesn’t own a motorcycle, having sold a Triumph in August. “I’ve had multiple bikes but I’m a big Triumph guy,” said Nava, who no doubt will be riding a Royal Enfield next year.

Royal Enfield of Albany is still gearing up with existing space being adapted for Royal Enfield sales and service. A Facebook page is operational, but the dealership’s website only has a landing page with single picture and a “New Website Coming Soon!” announcement. The website is expected to go live in a week.

Up until 2016, distribution of Royal Enfield motorcycles in North America was handled by an independent agent. Having brought distribution in-house under a company subsidiary, India-based Royal Enfield now has 70-plus dealers in the U.S. and Canada and is adding two to three a month, according to Rod Copes, Royal Enfield’s North American president.

About admin

Since 2010, RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland has been reporting about motorcycling in New England and portions of New York.