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/1542337
iTEEI 2006 Triumph Scrombler traiY I 500mm wheelbase. This means it comes complete with the 27o-degree crank throw oriSinally aimed at replicating a 90-degree V-twin sound and sensation ,or the street custom market, back then represented the '60s equivalent of a modern all-purpose street rod such as the TDM850 or Multistrada, dot the great- looking, but ather unexciting plonker, that its latter-day successor turns out to be, lf a Scrambler owner's use for his bike is restricted to misty-eyed trips down memory lane, cruising gently around country lanes at 50 mph, with the occa- sional off-road foray onto loose, hard- packed surfaces such as green lanes or fire roads, there'll indeed be sufficient Per- formance wrapped up in the Scrambler package, But to anyone looking {or even slightly more sporting tarmac manners than that, the Scrambler will seem, frankly, underpowered and rather bland, with no trace of the "rorty" performance its predecessor delivered (and yes, I have ridden a period TR6C, and that was ultra- rorty!), and which its superb retro looks lead you to exPect. Okay, I hear you say, "That's because this is Triumph's twin-cylinder retro entry into the off-road arena-" No. it isn't - not with those tires and that suspension. Thqugh it's quite happy on gravel roads, even if the suspension's too hard and shoft-traveling to cope with any serious bumps or potholes; this not ont isn't a bike with any real reserves of tamnac Per- formance by 850 twin standards, but nei- on other members of the Bonneville family to give notjonal oIf-road compliance; the smaller round headlamp topped only by a round speedometer flanked by four warn- ing lights by way oI instrumentdion; the spacious, but .orrectly, flat dual seat with cream piping; the hiSh enduro bars, pulled back iust enough to deliver an upriSht stance dEt's not overly extreme in wery. day street use; the 4.3-gllon two-tone luel tank, available in either bludwhite or red/white combos, with very period screw-top filler cap, (which is, however, quite hard to grab sufficient hold of to remove - it's too flat and close to the tank); and the chromed wire wheels - the front a tall, skinny, l9 x 2.50 incher, matched to a 17 x 3-50 inch rear, shod with what appears to be reasonably knobby Bridgestone rubber (100/90 up front and a I 30/80 rear) . All these and numerous other detail touches such as the chrome taillight, pre- tend toolbox (which is really the air-lllter housing), rubber knee 8riPs, and period- style Triumph badge, denote a bike which is - visually at least - an entirely accurate trip down memory lane for those of us old enor]gh to remember the way it was. lt's also an authentic recreation of all our yes- terdays for those young 'uns who weren't there the first time around to enioy in the context of today. Spending a few weeks riding the Scrambler around the Warwickhire high- ways and country lanes where, as a kid, I used to encounter Triumph test-rider Percy Tait roaring pas( me on a Succession of factory prototypes. Okay, I know win- ter in Warwickhire is a far cry ,rom Christmas in California, and snow is the wrong color to masquerade as sand, but iust looking at the Scrambler as you open the Sarage doors after scraping away the ice gives you a warm So Cal feelinS. Judging by the plentiful admiration the bike's appearance fielded from fans of all ages du.ing the time I went street scrambling with one of the flrst bikes off the Hinckley assembly lines, this is a bike whose stylish retro looks Bive it genuine presence in today's street environment which, however limited its off-road capabilities - and we'll come to that in a moment - deliver undeniable chic appeal. The Scrambler is a model where convenience and cool are arguably more important to potential cus- tomers than actual performance. Just as well, in that case, since the zestful snap of the original McQueen-era TR6C dirt sled. as manifested in "The Great Escape," has been rePlaced by a more laid-back, look-at-me boulevard brio that's, on the contrary more redolent of the Bonneville used by Warren Beatty's hairdresser chamcter to zap around L.A. from one conquest customer to anothe( a decade later in the movie "Shampoo." That's because, for whatever reason, in creating the Scrambler, Triumph has curi- ously decrded to install the 865cc Speedmast€r version of their air/oil-cooled DOHC eight-valve five-speed parallel-twin motor (with a 4mm overbore over the 790cc base-level Bonnie, for resultant 90 x 68mm dimensions), retaininS the Eonneville's twin-loop tubular steelframe - shod here with lonSer suspension at either end and embracing modified geometry delivering a 27.8-degree rake/l05mm rather than the tlvo-up 360-degree format of the base-model Bonnie, as well as every single classic-era Triumph made up to the Bloor takeover - including of course the TR5C. Moreover, this is the lowest-spec version of Triumph's parallel-twin motor that's available, producing 54 hp at 7000 rpm compared even to the smaller 790cc 360-degree Bonneville's 5l hp, though torque is up from 60 Nm to 59Nm (44.25 lb/ft to 50.89 lb/ft), delivered at 5000 revs. That's a rather stingy crankshalt output, especially considering the period TR6C'S push-rod motor gave 42 hp at the chain 30 years ago, in a much lighter 360-pound bike (with lighting set) compared to today's 451-pound Scrambler is; and which ther has it any serious off-road potential, as delivered. The Bridgestone tires are way more street than enduro, and are easily defeated by mud and loose sand, yet, are also irritat- ingly noisy (and slightly vibratory) when riding the bike in town or in slow trafli< - especially wearing an open-face helmet, as most Scrambler owners will surely do. The Scrambler motor's 275-degree crank spins up easiry into life at the thumb ofa button, though you must remember to pull out the choke knob on the 36mm Mikuni carbs when starting from cold (it'll be interesting to see if Triumph has a fuel- iniected version in the pipeline tor 2007, to cope with the more restrictive Euro 3 28 JANUARY 25,2N6 . CYCLE NEWS l i{ {be. . 3J I JT,- ,- {fr. ,'' r=l a a ';-l -l n 't ./ tl\ I 1?l r- T (Lefrl A 275-de9.ee porcllel nrin powers the 5crombler, (Bclow) A Gleon-looking speedo is iusr thor I q rpeedometer ond not much more. I a {g a L rl o : o o ft ,* -