Royal Enfield Scram 440

This is the Royal Enfield Scram 440, as the title says. But why does it exist at a time when Royal Enfield already has the hot-selling Himalayan 450? Moreover, the segment already has some notable competition in the form of the Harley-Davidson X440 and the Triumph Scrambler 400X.

Now, while the Scram did exist in the 411 form, sharing its platform with the Himalayan 411, the latter was discontinued. So, what exactly is Royal Enfield up to by upsizing the Scram to a 440cc format? And has it brought any significant changes? We have tried answering these and a few more questions in this road test of the new Royal Enfield Scram 440.

The newly launched Royal Enfield Scram 440 is virtually identical to its predecessor, while it does get new colours and a few changes, like the headlight cowl for the LED headlight and the tank extensions. For reference, you can purchase the Scram 440 in five colours - Force Teal, Force Grey, Force Blue, Trail Green, and Trail Blue. Not to mention, the hardware varies between the Force and Trail models. The Trail model gets spoke wheels whereas the Force model uses alloy wheels.

Royal Enfield has amped up the quality with the Scram 440. The paint layer not only feels premium but also has a quite upmarket finish. Further, the plastic quality and panel fitment are nice and have been well looked after. While the switchgear may not be extremely premium, it is decent, and the buttons feel tactile. However, there are a few areas where we feel the Scram 440 needs definite improvements. For instance, the welds on the swingarm as well as the footrest stay for the pillion. Apart from this, the Royal Enfield Scram 440’s fitments are as we expected.

The Scram 440's ergonomics are similar to those of the 411 model. You sit upright, with the handlebars easily within reach and the footpegs slightly rear-set. The bike feels slightly small and could do better with a wider handle. Moreover, its riding posture is commanding when on the saddle. But once you are standing, I feel the footpegs could have been a little more forward for better leverage and slightly improved control. The current setup makes you lean forward more than you’d expect.

The Scram 440 has a nicely cushioned seat with a grippy cover. It is a single-piece unit with the pillion seat notably higher. However, the rider’s seat portion is scooped more than needed, which makes it uncomfortable during hard braking, as you tend to slide forward due to inertia, but the grippy seat cover restricts your movement.

Royal Enfield has made major changes to the Scram’s engine. The displacement has gone up from 411cc to 443cc owing to the bump in its bore size by 3mm. That has resulted in a slight increment in power and torque output, which have gone up to 25.4bhp and 34Nm. And with a six-speed gearbox, it now has one gear extra, presumably for a more relaxed highway riding experience and better fuel efficiency. Royal Enfield has also made changes to its SOHC valvetrain system to reduce engine noise.

To accommodate the revised motor, Royal Enfield has strengthened the sub-frame, and the bike can now carry a top box too. The weight has gone up by 2kg, and it tips the scales at 196kg, the same as the Himalayan 450. As for the brakes, while the disc sizes have remained unchanged at both ends, Royal Enfield has used bigger pistons for the callipers to enhance braking performance.

Now that we have talked about the specifications on paper, let's address the Scram 440’s real-world performance. The engine character and feel of the updated motor are almost the same as before. There’s good low-end torque along with a punchy mid-range, which makes riding the Scram 440 in the city almost effortless. It’s tractable, and riding at 40-45kmph in fifth gear is doable, with the engine accelerating cleanly from there without the need for a downshift. The engine, however, doesn’t like to be redlined and starts losing steam as you approach the rev ceiling. What adds to the effortless city riding experience is the clutch, which is perhaps the lightest unit I’ve come across on a Royal Enfield. The gearbox, although not outright slick, shifts with an assuring mechanical clunk. In case you’re wondering, it hasn’t lost the thump, and you continue to hear the long-stroke beat almost all the time.

The benefit of the increased displacement and the addition of a sixth gear becomes evident on the highway. Sit at 100kmph in sixth gear, and the bike feels almost free of vibrations. Although the difference in performance at high speeds isn’t substantial and overtaking requires you to downshift, the engine now feels more relaxed. Even at 110 or 120kmph, there is a minor buzz to be felt on the footpegs.

The ride quality of the Scram 440 is one of its strongest traits, and the bike offers a comfortable ride in almost every scenario. At slow speeds, minor undulations like bridge joints or rumblers are ironed out cleanly. It also crosses larger speed bumps or deeper potholes without sending a nasty jolt to the rider. It’s only while riding over wavy cemented highways at higher speeds that the rear feels a bit busy, but things never reach obnoxious levels.

While the Scram is not a sharp handler, it’s not lazy either. It responds to your inputs with decent agility, and cutting your way swiftly through traffic is fun and involving. Switching lanes at high speeds on the highway requires you to muscle the bike a little, but it’s something you get used to in no time. The Scram, however, could do with a better braking setup. The bite from the front disc is decently strong and progressive, but the lever lacks feel big time, and you need to squeeze it hard to come to a quick stop.

Along with the LED headlight, the Royal Enfield Scram 440 also gets a semi-digital console. Its safety net features dual-channel ABS. Not to mention, the brand has also added a top-box mounted with a payload capacity of 5kg.

In our mileage test, the Scram 440 returned 29.5kmpl, which translates to a range of around 442km with its 15-litre fuel tank. This test was done under city conditions, through low to moderate traffic. While touring on the highway, this number might see a marginal increment.

After riding the Scram 440 for a good few hundred kilometres, it is clear that Royal Enfield’s effort towards the bike’s evolution has been a success. With the additional engine capacity, an extra gear, and many internal tweaks, the Royal Enfield Scram 440 does, and aces, the area where it was meant to. The bike can easily cruise at triple-digit speeds and should make for a nice tourer as well. Its suspension setup further cements the same, and now with the added luggage rack at the rear, you can even mount a small top-box if needed. The rider triangle is comfortable enough and should make commuting and long-distance riding quite easy on the Scram 440.

However, it is not perfect and has flaws like the finishing in certain areas, the braking, and a relatively dull list of features. However, none of these are deal breakers and wouldn’t make you second-guess your decision to purchase the Royal Enfield Scram 440. So, do we recommend spending Rs. 2.08 lakh on this motorcycle? Yes, we do.

Images by Kapil Angane