Bristol Bobber 650

When it comes to scoring second glances, the Bristol Bobber 650 is one sure-shot winner. This authentic bobber-style motorcycle has a great road presence, thanks to its beautiful old-school design. It stays true to the ethos of a traditional bobber motorcycle, the chief highlights of which include a single-seat setup, lowered stance and round-themed design.

The front profile of the Bristol Bobber 650 has round-shaped headlamps and turn indicators. While the headlamp is a halogen unit encased in a blacked housing, the turn indicators are LED units that are positioned on the sides of the rubber gaiters of the front forks. The Bristol Bobber 650 has a chopped-themed front fender, which goes well with the rest of the minimalist and simple front end of the motorcycle.

The Bristol Bobber 650 will impress you the most when it is viewed from the side profile. Sitting closer to the ground with a lowered stance, the Bristol Bobber 650 gets an authentic single-seat setup as standard. This large seat is well-curved and well-cushioned to keep the rider comfortable even on longer rides. This seat is placed above a silver-coloured sub-frame, which is mounted above the side body cowls.

The fuel tank of the Bristol Bobber 650 is an old-school rounded and curved unit, which comes with rubber paddings on either side for a good grip on the knees. To accentuate its authentic appeal even more, Bristol motorcycles has painted the spoke wheels, exhaust pipe, engine and all the other cycle parts in a shade of black.

Just like the front profile, the rear profile of the Bristol Bobber 650 has been kept simple with a classy looking round-shaped tail lamp mounted on the top of the long and swooping curved rear fender. This tail lamp gets rounded LED turn indicators on its sides.

The instrument console of the Bristol Bobber 650 is a simple affair, with the minimalist and small unit getting an analogue speedometer and a small LCD panel. Details like odometer, fuel gauge and trip meters are shown in that small LCD panel. The rider gets a good view of the road ahead of him, thanks to an uncluttered look with an almost flat handlebar and bar-end mounted rearview mirrors.

There is nothing fancy about the chassis setup of the Bristol Bobber 650. It gets a suspension setup of KYB telescopic forks at the front and dual-sided hydraulic coil springs at the rear. With a 120/80-16 front tyre and 150/80-15 rear tyre, the Bristol Bobber 650 gets one of the smallest pairs of tyres for a middleweight motorcycle. The motorcycle is equipped with a 345mm disc at the front and a 280mm disc at the rear for braking duties.

Powering the Bristol Bobber 650 is a four-stroke, 8-valve, liquid-cooled, parallel-twin, 649cc engine, which is coupled to a 6-speed gearbox. The engine produces a maximum power output of 69 bhp, while the peak torque output is rated at 62 Nm. For a middleweight motorcycle, the engine feels lively and impresses with its linear power delivery and torque in the mid-range. However, what’s pathetic about this engine is its low fuel efficiency of a claimed 16 kmpl.

The Bristol Bobber 650 severely lacks modern safety features and gets only a dual-channel ABS as a grave saving measure. We would have loved to see more modern safety aids, considering that it is a modern-day middleweight motorcycle.

The Bristol Bobber 650 scores high on visual appeal with its authentic old-school traditional bobber-like design, which is a sure-shot way to garner second glances. The engine impresses with its smooth and powerful performance, but at the same time, it disappoints with its low fuel economy.