Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128636
to a b ea ut ifu l 6" X 17" t hree- spoke a lu m inum r im . The ridi ng position is u p ri g ht an d forw a rd - the tall motocross ba rs m a k e th e S peed Triple almost feel like a motocross bike. o fferi n g to n s of leve rage a t the ba r s . T h e seat is n't really pa dded tha t well. bu t i s sha ped pe rfectly to offer a com fortable ride. W e love the street-smart b r a sh n e s s of t h e Tr iump h . T h e S p e e d T r i p le shou ld be called the Speed in g Ticke t , it's a shock w h e n you get so me w he re and rea li ze yo u didn ' t get o ne. No o ne did. b ut I' m sure we all d e s e r v ed one - it m a k e s you sc rew aro u n d a ll the ti me , p ull in g wheelies and acti ng li k e a t h ug : p a s s i n g ca rs for no o t he r r e a s o n t ha n to fe el t he t o rqu e. Lik e we sa id b e f o r e , t he br i gh t -p i nk p a int jo b isn' t for eve ryone , bu t eve ryone h er e l ov e s t he styli ng of th e T riumph . fun k y h eadl ights and a l l. T he m o t o r in the S p e ed T ri ple is aweso me. Th e torque cu r ve i s a s good as any b i k e w e 've ri d d e n, it feels like you 're voluntarily at the controls of a runaway freigh t t ra i n . Th e r e is no need to do wn shift t o make a pass on the T r i u m p h , just gas it and y o u' r e there - it almost feels like the bike is t u r b o ch a rg ed . The fuel i n j e c t i o n is flawless , i t starts easily and performs in all con ditions. Th e biggest surprise , though , is the handling - the b ike rails. The leverage of the wide b a rs , combined with th e e xce lle n t f eel of the front end, make s the Tr iumph yawn its way th ro ugh tight. twis ty roa ds. The front tire just se ems to dig in to the road , and gives t he rider unl imited co n fi d ence . To top it all off, it ha s fJ@@ '[] fiJfl!iJf!ll ill '[] '[]@@ill Clutch : Fuel Capacity : Wheelbase: Rake/Tra il : Seat Height: Front Tire: Rear TIre: Front -Wheel Travel: Rear-Wheel Travel: Front Brake: Rear Brake: Final Drive : Claimed Dry Weight: Ust Price: Displacement: Engine Type: $ 10,400/$11,900 (w/ ABS) 1085cc Air /Oil-cooled. horizontally opposed twin. four-stroke, four valv es per cylinder Bore & Stroke: 99 X X 70.5mm Compression Ratio: 10.3: I Carburetion: EFI Ignition: Electronic Transmissio n: Five-speed Clutch : Dry. single plate Fuel Capacity: 5.5 Gallons Wheelbase: 57.99" Rake/T rail: 25.5 Degrees/!20mm Seat Height: 29.9/30.7/31.5" Front Tire: 120/70ZR 17 Rear Tire: 160/60ZR18 Front -Wheel Travel: .4.7" Rear-Wheel Travel: .5.3" Front Brake: Twin 304 .8mm discs w/4-piston calipers. (optional ABS) Rear Brake: Single 276 .86mm disc w/twln-piston calipe r Final Drive: Shaft Claimed Dry Weight : .482 Ibs. Ust Price: Displacement: Engine Type: $7,399 I I 57cc Air-cooled , inline-four , four-stroke , DOHC. four valves per cyli nder Bore & Stroke : 79 .0 X X 59.0mm Compress ion Ratio: 9.5 :I Carburetio n: (4) 36 mm Mikun i Ignition : Digita l Electron ic Transmissio n: Five -speed Clutch : Wet mu lti-plate Fuel Capacity: 5.28 Gallons Wheelbase: 56.3" Rake/Trall: 25.3 Degrees/! 04mm Seat Height: 31.I in. Front Tire : 120/70ZRI 7 Rear Tire: 180/5 5ZR J 7 Front -Wheel Trav el: 5.2" Rear-Wheel Trav el: .5.0" Front Brake: Twin 31Omm discs w/slx -plston calipers Rear Brake: .Sinqle 240mm disc w/twin-piston caliper Final Drive : Chain Claimed Dry Weight; 484 Ibs. k ick- a ss brak es. The only real com pla ints w er e a tou ch of transm iss ion notch, and th e clut ch lev er , which cou ld u se an ad juster for the span t o t he b a r and a l ittl e li ghte r pu l l. CONCLUSION When we de c id ed wh ich b ik es w er e g oing to be in the com p arison, we th ou ght we 'd c r e a t e d a freakshow - to a cert a i n degree we d id . But who 's to sa y that a freak-show is always a bad thing? You still watch, don 't yo u? All of the b i kes in this co m p a ris o n do someth ing rea lly well, but a couple of them d o it all. When price is c o n sid e red t h e Suzu k i takes the t itle based on bang -forthe -buck . If image were everything, $ J0,599 1203cc Air -cooled . 45 -degree. V-twin , four -stroke , . two valves per cy linder Bore & Stroke : 88.8 X 96.8mm Compression Ratio: 10:I Carburetion: Dynamic Digital Fuel Injection Ignition: Electron ic Transm ission: Five-speed Clutch : Wet multi-plate Fuel Capacity: .4.6 Gallons Wheelbase: .55 .0" Rake/Trall: 23 Degrees/89mm Seat Height: 29 .5 in . Front TIre: 120/70ZRI7 Dunlop D207 F Rear Tire: 170/60ZR 17 Dunlop 0207 Front -Wheel Travel: .4.7" Rear-Wheel Travel: 4.6" Front Brake: Single 340mm disc w/six -piston caliper Rear Brake: Single 230mm disc w/single-piston caliper Final Drive: Kevlar belt Claimed Dry Weight : .440 Ibs. Ust Price: Displacement: Engine Type: t he D uc a t i would be in t h e spotlight. But the one bike that eve ryo ne o n the staff agreed t hey w oul d love to ow n is the T r iu m ph Speed Trip le. It w ins b y a una ni m o u s dec ision . H a n dling, power, and cha racter all ro lled i nt o a uniqu e package. T he Tr iumph's hard t o beat, regardless of what you p u t it up against. Naked without sha me. eN Dry multiplate .4.2 Gallons 57 .2" 29 Degrees/l04mm 30 .8 in. 120/70- 17 170/60- 17 4.8" 5.8" Dual disc Disc Chain 407 Ibs. List Price: . , , $ 10,495 Displacem ent: , 904cc Engine Type: Air /Oil -cooled , 90 ·degree V-twi n, four-stroke Bore & Stroke: ,.., 92x6 8mm Compressio n Ratio: , , , 9.2: 1 Carburetion: Marelli Electronic Injection CPU 1.5 Ignition: Electro nic Transmission: Six -speed List Price: " , , $10 ,299 Displacement; 955cc Engine Type : ..Uquid-cooled, inline -three-cylinder, four-stroke Bore & Stroke : 79X65mm Compression Ratio: , , J 1.2: 1 Carburetio n: Multi point sequential EFI Ignition: Digital Transmission: , .Six-speed Clutch: , . .Wet, mul ti- plate Fuel Capaci ty: ,.., , .4.8 Gallons Wheelbase: , , .56.7" Rake/Trail: " 24 Degrees/86mm Seat Height : ", .31.5 in. Front Ti re: , .. , 120/ 70ZR17 Rear Tire: , ,190 / 50ZR17 Front -Wheel Travel: N/ A Rear-Wheel Trave l: , N/A Front Brake: Dual 320mm discs w/fou r-p iston caliper s Rear Brake : Single 220mm disc w/ twin-pisto n calipe r Final Drive: Chain Claim ed Dry Weight : .432 Ibs. cue I e n e _ S • OCTOBER 25, 2000 41