Clash of the compact cruisers! Honda Rebel vs Kawasaki Vulcan 650 vs Royal Enfield Super Meteor

McDonalds, Coca-Cola, Hershey’s bars – we do love a US import over here but by the time it reaches our shores, sometimes a small reduction in size is required to fit our less indulgent tastes.

Seriously, have you seen the size of a large Coke in American fast food outlets? You could swim in it! This size reduction can apply to cruisers, too.

Over the pond, big is most certainly viewed as better but in the UK our more nadgery road network sees middleweight cruisers proving remarkably popular. And not just to those on restricted licences, but to all kinds of ages and both male and female riders are happy to take the plunge.

With this in mind, we charged MCN’s News Editor, Dan Sutherland, with the task of testing three A2-legal (or restrictable) middleweight cruisers.

“As a shorter rider (of five-feet six-inches), I can certainly see the appeal of these bikes,” says Dan, “and at ten stone I’m also quite light so I can sympathise with those who find big-capacity cruisers a bit of a heavy handful. I’m intrigued to live with these three mini-cruisers as my commute, which is basically flat and mainly straight-line riding in open roads from Coningsby to Peterborough, is ideal cruiser country. And I even pass New York on the route – New York, Lincolnshire, that is.”

Using his 50-mile ride into the office as a test route, would Dan fall for the charms of these mini American dreams?

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