Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 Rally Bike Inches Closer To Being Dakar-ready

Back in November 2023, Royal Enfield teased the production-spec Himalayan 450, and the rider who showed us a glimpse of the bike’s capability was none other than CS Santosh. He has had a major role in the development of the road-going version of the adventure motorcycle which one can buy today. A few months later, Royal Enfield officially announced their partnership with CS Santosh as their official rider for the Dakar Rally. After a hiatus of 3 years due to a major crash, CS Santosh was spotted at the Cuenca Rallye in October 2024, astride what looked like a very early prototype of the Himalayan 450 Rally. 

The collaboration with CS Santosh makes it very clear that Royal Enfield is dead set on taking over the international rally stage. CS Santosh was recently seen riding the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 Rally at the 2025 Oasis Rally held in Tunisia, and it’s evident that the motorcycle is inching closer to being in its final race-ready form. 

Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 Rally

The Dakar Rally is one of the hardest and most challenging endurance races in the world. With extreme temperatures, rocky mountains, sandy dunes and a distance covered of over 7,000km in a span of a few days. It is a race which challenges both the rider and the motorcycle. Royal Enfield plans to enter this race with none other than the Himalayan 450. 

The rally version of it has undergone some serious changes to be fit for Dakar as well as other rallies leading up to it. Though it continues with the same engine, chassis, headlight and the fuel tank, the rally version gets a serious suspension upgrade, a rally tower, a single-piece seat, a different race-space exhaust, knobby tyres and much more. The recent sightings show that the bike gets the addition of a bashplate, and a clear front cowl, which is essential in rally bikes to increase the aerodynamic efficiency. We believe the engine might be tuned differently for the rally, while other aspects of the motorcycle seem unchanged when compared to the bike spotted in October 2024.

The Journey Ahead

While the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 rally takes a step closer to being in its final form, it is still a prototype. With the manufacturer’s plan to compete in the 2026 Dakar Rally, the bike will undergo some more changes as a traditional 450cc Dakar bike gets three fuel tanks, a full fairing and a much more heavily tuned engine compared to the one found on the street-legal Himalayan 450.  While the stock Himalayan 450 makes 40PS and 40Nm, expect the Dakar-spec one to easily cross over 60PS.

Taking a street-legal road bike’s platform to the Dakar Rally is a feat no other Indian manufacturer has done so far, so Royal Enfield’s entry into the famed competition will be a feat to behold.