California dealer will sell Royal Enfields

Royal Enfield motorcycles are on display in California at last. An Internet savy Royal Enfield dealer in North Hollywood, Calif. is spreading the news.

Mike Frankovich, owner of NoHo Scooters, announced on Facebook, Twitter, and CraigsList that his store is now also Royal Enfield Of Los Angeles.

Located at 5144 Vineland Ave., the dealership is decorated in a Hollywood movie theme, complete with King Kong climbing the Empire State Building.

It's showtime for Royal Enfield, too, now that the motorcycles will be legal for sale new in California. The "new fuel efficient, environmentally friendly fuel-injected motor means that new Enfields will finally be available in the Golden State," the dealership notes in its ad on CraigsList.

"The bikes are not CARB legal yet. They are in the middle of testing. We expect to be able to sell them in April. Right now we are just taking deposits," Frankovich said.

"My first experience with Royal Enfield was back in the late '90s," Frankovich remembers. "I met the then West Coast rep for Cosmopolitan Motors, who was the distributor at the time. I told him that they would sell in California, but they had no plans to get them through CARB.

"Since opening the shop in 2002 I have contacted the distributor every time I heard a rumor that they were getting into California.

"The retro motorcycle scene is huge in California right now. It's definitely an appeal. There is a limited supply of vintage motorcycles, and they are not getting any newer. People want the old style bike without the headache, and we can offer it with EFI, a disc brake, and a factory warranty.

"I can see customers coming from all over Los Angeles. Most of our scooter sales are from the Hollywood, Silverlake, Echo Park, and Los Feliz areas. I can see this being the case with the Royal Enfield sales.

"We actually have some scooter customers that are interested in a Royal Enfield. Most scooters we sell are retro style, so the mentality is the same.

"Plus like scooterists, Royal Enfield riders are interested in getting there at their own pace with some style. These are not testosterone fueled sport bikes."

Frankovich has a wide collection of motorcycles himself. "In 2000 I bought a new Kawasaki W650, which was California legal. I do own some classic Japanese motorcycles, like a 1985 RZ350, a 1973 CL350, a 1975 CB400F, and a 1965 Trail 90... We do have a 1998 Enfield with 29 miles in the shop."

If you're in the area, stop by and see the new Royal Enfields, but wait until after noon on Sundays — I visited before they were really open and so only got a few pictures. Telephone at the dealership is (818) 761-3647.