My Himalayan 440 upgrade wishlist (with prices)

It’s Puja season. I couldn’t go home this time, so I’m in Guwahati, and I’m not one for pandal crowds. So I took Himalati out for a short ride across the city and talked through the changes I have in mind. Some are done, most are a wishlist, none are sponsored.

The short version

Upgrade	Product	Rough price	Status
Handlebar	Art of Motorcycles Himalayan 411 handlebar	≈ ₹2,000	Done
Brake pads	Vesrah ceramic pads	≈ ₹1,000–2,000 (stock ≈ ₹300–400)	On hold
Seat	RE Black Touring Rider Seat (1990208)	≈ ₹3,000	Planned
Headlight	Vaishnu LED touring headlight	≈ ₹10,000–17,000	Wishlist
Mirrors	RE Black Tapered Mirrors (KXA00276) or DoubleTake Adventure kit	≈ ₹5,000, or ≈ ₹14,000–15,000	Planned
Chain and sprocket	RK Takasago brass chain kit	≈ ₹5,000	Planned
Crash guard	RE Black Compact Engine Guards (1990204)	≈ ₹1,500	Wishlist
Rims	Himalayan 450 aluminium rims, made tubeless	–	Planned
Suspension	YSS fork kit + rear shock	≈ ₹50,000+	Wishlist

Rough prices as of October 2026, not quotes. They change, so check before you buy.

What I took off

You might notice the bike looks a bit different. I’m running an experiment: the knuckle guards, the rear luggage rack, the saree guard and the windshield are off. The saree guard is useless anyway, and I don’t need the rack with no long rides planned right now. I haven’t decided what stays off yet. Once I do, I’ll let you know.

Nothing below is a must. It’s a checklist I keep in mind: if possible I’ll do it, otherwise I’ll leave it.

Handlebar: done

On my very first ride the handlebar felt too far away; I had to stretch my arms too much. So the handlebar was the first thing I changed. This is an Art of Motorcycles bar, ordered from their website. It arrived in four or five days and a nearby garage fitted it.

The difference was drastic. For my height and build it fits 100%. Ride quality and confidence went up straight away, and because it’s wide, the bike is easy to control and manoeuvre.

The bar: Art of Motorcycles “Royal Enfield Himalayan 411 Handlebar”, roughly ₹2,000.

Brakes: on hold

I’m not that impressed with the braking. I mostly use the front brake, and its bite isn’t strong. It’s progressive, so it takes some distance to slow down and stop, and instant feedback is hard to get.

Many riders switch pads. Vesrah pads are a bit better than stock but cost about ₹1,000 to 1,500, against about ₹300 to 400 for the stock ones. I’ll give it time first. Once I’m used to the brakes, I might find them enough.

The pads: Vesrah ceramic pads for the Himalayan / Scram 411 (e.g. SD-953 for the rear), made in Japan.

Seat: planned

With the stock seat you start feeling the metal base after about 50 km. It’s too soft and sinks on long rides. Custom seats exist, but I don’t know many seat shops in Guwahati. From the reviews, Royal Enfield’s touring seat for the Himalayan 411 does the job, so that’s on my to-do list.

The seat: RE Black Touring Rider Seat, part 1990208, roughly ₹3,000. RE lists it for the Himalayan 440; it uses 3D net padding to spread the weight and fits in about 10 minutes.

Headlight: wishlist

The headlight is practically useless at night. In the city you can manage, but on the highway visibility drops a lot. Many riders add fog lights. I don’t like them: they stick out on the sides and aren’t allowed in many places.

Vaishnu Lights makes replacement headlights, both stock-looking and fancy ones, and reviews say the light throw is good. If I change the headlight, I’ll skip fog lights and fit one of these. They’re a bit costly at around ₹9,000 to 10,000, so either I do that or I keep it stock.

The headlight: Vaishnu LED touring headlights for the Himalayan and Scram 411 (e.g. Style B with a warm-white DRL), roughly ₹10,000–17,000 depending on the model.

Mirrors: planned

Rear visibility is poor, with way too many blind spots. Royal Enfield has touring mirrors, and recently a new, more triangular shape (the Black Tapered Mirrors). If money were no object, a lot of riders use DoubleTake mirrors, but those cost around ₹14,000 to 15,000. I’ll get it done sometime.

The mirrors: RE Black Tapered Mirrors, part KXA00276, aluminium stems, 3-year warranty, roughly ₹5,000. The DoubleTake option is their Adventure Mirror Kit, which has to come from abroad.

Chain and sprocket: planned

One change that really improves performance: an RK chain and sprocket kit (RK Takasago, from Japan). It’s lighter than stock, and when a moving part gets lighter, ride quality improves a lot. Maybe at my next service.

The kit: RK Takasago brass chain and sprocket kit for the Himalayan, roughly ₹5,000.

Crash guard: wishlist

The bike has the stock crash guard, the slightly larger version. There’s also a compact Royal Enfield guard that only protects the engine. I don’t like the huge aftermarket guards: the bike is already heavy, and with one of those on top, it’s over. The compact one keeps the bike lighter and protects what needs protecting.

The guard: RE Black Compact Engine Guards, part 1990204, 22 mm steel tube, black powder coat, 3-year warranty, roughly ₹1,500.

Himalayan 450 rims: planned

Now the big, costly ones, which might not be practical for me.

The Himalayan 450’s aluminium rim is lighter than mine. The 450 comes with two options: the standard tube-type rim and a cross-spoke tubeless rim. The cross-spoke one weighs the same as my current rim, so it would make the bike tubeless but miss my real goal: a lighter moving part for better ride quality.

So my plan is the tube-type aluminium rim, made tubeless with a Way2Speed kit the same way my current rims were. Light and tubeless.

It’s not simple. From what I found online, you take only the outer rim from the 450, without its spokes and hub, and lace it to my hub with custom spokes. Swapping the whole hub might mean changing the brakes too. And I doubt many workshops in Guwahati can do this job. Still, I really want to do it: from the reviews, the bike feels much lighter.

YSS suspension: wishlist

The stock suspension dives under braking. It’s soft, which has pros and cons. On bumpy city roads it’s very comfortable. On the highway, at 100+, the bike feels a bit unstable under braking, and if you hit a pothole it takes a while to settle.

Stiffer suspension like YSS fixes that. It feels a bit firm in the city but performs well on the highway. The catch is the price: more than ₹50,000 for front and rear, and you have to do both so they work together.

The parts: the YSS fork upgrade kit for the 411 Himalayan plus the YSS rear shock. I found them at a UK shop, so shipping and import duty come on top.

Weight saving

I want to make the bike as light as I can. I took the windshield off to see if the tank cage could come off too, but it can’t be done at home: the headlight and the meter are mounted on it. Removing it would need another solution, so it stays for now. If I do something about it, I’ll make a video.

Riding gear comes first

None of these mods are mandatory. They’ll happen slowly, to my taste. What is mandatory is riding gear.

There’s a saying in Assamese:

I bought the elephant, but the chain is hard to buy.

The elephant is the bike. The chain is the riding gear: gloves, helmet, boots, jacket, pants. Without the chain you can’t control the elephant. I can’t buy the whole chain at once, so I’m buying one ring at a time: gloves, then a helmet, then boots.

My gloves are Rynox, bought about two years before the bike, and still going. I bought the helmet before the bike arrived, then the boots, one by one, month by month. I’ll talk brands and specs in another video. What’s left: a riding jacket and riding pants. Only after those will I spend on modifications.

The elephant has arrived. The chain will follow. How to decorate the elephant can wait.

Next video: riding gear. Watch the short version of the elephant story: Bought the Elephant, Now the Chain.

See every mod on the bike: Explore Himalati →