Lots of people are excited about the new parallel-twin-powered bikes from Royal Enfield, but back in the company’s heyday the p-twin of record was the Super Meteor. It was introduced in the early 50s because the US market wanted bigger engines – RE responded with a 692cc OHV twin that was basically two Bullet 350 pistons in a stretched 500cc twin case.
The Super Meteor pushed 40 horsepower through a 4-speed transmission, good for a top speed of 100 mph. In 1962, the model was replaced by the 736cc Interceptor. The Super Meteor is an interesting footnote in motorcycling history as it was one of the earliest bikes to have ABS…as a test. In 1958, the Transport Research Laboratory (at the time, a government lab) tested Dunlop’s Maxaret ABS system (the world’s first commonly used system) and it was shown to improve braking distances, particularly on bad road surfaces. Duh. Despite that, RE’s Technical Director at the time wasn’t impressed enough to implement it in his bikes.
This example is claimed to be in “excellent running and driving condition,” but the seller is letting go of this bike due to health issues. Find this Super Meteor for sale in Syracuse, New York for $5,200 here on Craigslist.