The Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 is the brand’s most advanced motorcycle, currently the only one in the portfolio with a liquid-cooled motor and a comprehensive digital instrument console with several functions, including navigation, music, phone calls, riding modes and several read-outs. One key feature is updating the software or firmware through over-the-air (OTA) updates when connected to the Royal Enfield app on a compatible phone.
Recently, Royal Enfield released a firmware update for the Himalayan 450, as a DIY (do-it-yourself) process. As a Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 owner, I got a notification from the company along with a tutorial video on how to update the firmware on the Himalayan 450. So far, so good. Having owned a few other Royal Enfield bikes earlier and being used to getting my hands greasy doing things the old-school way with spanners and screwdrivers, I never imagined I would be now just standing next to the bike while my phone and the bike communicated with each other. So, did the update go smoothly? No.
Also read: Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 review: A new mountain G.O.A.T
The Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 comes with what the company calls a “Tripper Dash”, which is an evolution of the tripper display available with the Meteor and Himalayan 411. The Tripper Dash shows you everything and more on the console – speed, rpm, fuel gauge, outside temperature, time, odometer, trip meters, average fuel consumption, distance to empty, battery voltage, engine temperature, and service due reminders. It also displays riding modes (Eco, Performance) along with ABS on/off settings, music, navigation, messages and phone calls. The display itself can be either analogue or digital as per the rider’s choice. It connects with the rider’s phone via Wifi.
The Himalayan 450 firmware update
Over the weekend, I downloaded the update following the instructions in the tutorial video. It’s fairly simple. One needs to go to the three-dot menu next to the connected bike code on the app, and click on firmware update (See video).
Once downloaded, start the bike and connect the phone to the Tripper Dash via Wifi. The update takes about 10 minutes to complete, during which stay close to the bike and don’t switch off the bike or close the app. I did as instructed and got the “firmware updated” message on the console and the phone. Interestingly, there is no communication from Royal Enfield about what the firmware update is supposed to fix, but any update is supposed to make the overall experience better.
The console went blank for about 30 seconds (as it was rebooting) and then came back on with the tell-tale needle sweep. That’s when I noticed the engine check light remained on, even with the bike running. I switched off the Himalayan and restarted it. The light was still there. I went for a 30-km ride – no change in riding behaviour thankfully, but the light remained. That’s when I went online to see that across multiple forums and Whatsapp rider groups, several Himalayan 450 owners have had this issue with the latest firmware update (May 2024).
The possible solution
Some owners have reported that after riding the bike for more than 50 km the engine-check light had turned off. A few others said that the issue went away by itself after 24 hours of not using the bike. A few others said that by turning the ignition on and off a few times, the engine-check light reset itself. The most plausible solution? Visit the Royal Enfield service station and let the technicians plug in the OBD diagnostics tool and reset the light. While this is the solution, why did Royal Enfield not test the downloadable update thoroughly before releasing it to customers? Could this not have just been a quick job at the service centre instead? While I admire the company’s zeal for DIY given that many RE customers love working on their bikes themselves, this one could have been a lot better.
Update: The bike was started after remaining parked for 3 days, and I found that the engine-check light went out on its own. Self-healing bike? Go figure. We’ll never know unless one visits the service centre.
