Royal Enfield Sells The Most Bikes

If you ask the average rider which company sells the most motorcycles, the probable answer would be “Harley-Davidson.”

It was just a week ago that Harley-Davidson reported worldwide sales of 267,999 motorcycles in 2014, a 2.7 percent increase over 2013.

However,  “The Times of India” now reports that Royal Enfield surged past Harley-Davidson last year by selling 302,591 units, up from 178,121 in 2013.

Granted, they’re mostly smaller, less expensive bikes compared to Harley-Davidson’s heavyweight models but Royal Enfield can now claim the throne as selling the most bikes.

“Ten years ago, RE was just a fringe player in the domestic motorcycle market plagued by its 50-year-old unreliable iron cast engine while newer and more reliable models from its Japanese rivals swamped the biking scene,” the newspaper reported.

“But since then, after modernizing its portfolio and rolling out a slew of contemporary models … it has had a strong run.”

Indeed, Royal Enfield’s sales increased 70 percent in 2014.

– By Bud Wilkinson