The Star Reborn

We finally got our hands on the new BSA Gold Star 650 and took it for a long spin. Here is our first impression

- Charan Karthik

A MANUFACTURER LAUNCHING a new bike is always a special moment, one that the people in the country and the company themselves will remember for a long time. That specific moment will go down in history as an even cooler one when the said brand is BSA Motorcycles.

The excitement I felt as I laid my eyes on the new BSA Gold Star 650, one that is now produced by Mahindra-owned Classic Legends in India, was unmatched. Legacy, classic, and timeless are the words most of us would utter when we lay our eyes on the new BSA. It is a great looking bike and it is guaranteed to crane necks as you filter through the city. The designers have done incredible work, retaining some of the original styling cues from the OG Gold Star of the early 1960s.

Things that catch your eyes immediately are the shiny chrome on the fuel-tank, the fuel-tank cap that has the brand's establishment year engraved on it, and the chrome struts that hold up the mud-guard at the front, all gleaming under the sun. A small Union Jack was stitched on to the side of the seat, neatly tucked in, and the grey painted engine casing also had the original "BSA" logo on it where three rifles are kept together. A lot of attention to detail indeed.

The Gold Star is powered by a 652-cc, liquid-cooled, single-cylinder that produces 45 hp at 6,500 rpm and 55 Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm. The engine alone will give a huge bragging right on the weekend group ride as this motor is one of the biggest single-cylinders currently in production in the world. Thumbing the starter will immediately take you on a nostalgic trip to times when big bad single-cylinders ruled the world, much before the arrival of the Japanese and European rivalry. The motor and cooling fan are both noticeably loud and there is a whistling noise that also occurs alongside.