Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

indeed at one stage envisaged, a \a ryrie-riraling V-si,( was already a brdve move. To do so by creatin8 a motorc),cle with a bigger engine than rnost European cars was astoflish- irE. &Jt to endow the result wi$ a hvel of reai-world per- forrnance up to license-losio€ speeds that a one-litei' Superbike might struSgle to match - well, that wits comk- book stuff. Bafian livesl But now, as promised. Triumph has begun to roll out the different variants on fle Rocket lll theme foreseen from the start as a means of targeting v-drious niches of cus- toms an the motorcycle marketplace. And the firsit of these is now entering production, havirE made its debut at the Paris Show last September. And the Rocket lll Classic is a British blingbike, a Queen-and-Country answer to the H- D Elecua Glide which - even loaded with chrorne and a s€lection of accessories that Triumph has devdoped to let customers personalize the bike as they wish - nevertheless still manages to look rather - well... classy- It's more "Dynasty'' than "Desperate Housewives" - even if the vintage.looking switchbox bolted to dle left side of the handlebar that lets you switch on the arrq/ o[ spotlights, with space for the switch for the heated griPs I wished all week for, could have done with a facelift - a bit likeJoan Collins. Don't let the opticnal screen, lo er dellectors, lea$er panniers, fog lights, eid cap6, sisiy bar and assorted other bits of bling fitted to the test tike foolyou - at almo6t $750 rnore than the $21,600 b6se model Rocket lll, dre Chssic is already quite a difierent package than the draS-s$iP derfzen it! derived from - eAr'en before you start checking ofr orl Triumph's afternurket-option boxes. After throwing a leg over dte Cbssk's low 740mm seal, you'll dixover thx you're sitting on a considerabt plGher, sEt&ed touring throne rather dlan on the not exactty Spartan p<,\./er cruisei whose forward footpegs hare been rephced on the Classic by a pair of footboards that encoor- age your knees to snuggle in tighter to tle fuel bnk, whkh bears a tlvo-tone paint scheme, coachhled by hand in Triumph's own paint shop. This all resuhs in a superbly rehxing starrce dBt doesnt, howeve[ sacrifice any of d|e improboble degr€e of control- lability Bloor's bq/s have managed to dial inta such a massive motorq,cle, Like hs for€b€ar, tl|e Triumph is far from the daunting rnon6ter requiring skill to tame, which its +pear- ance and specification leads )o'J to e)(Pect. The liSht-action clutch, well-nupped en8ine response, and above all, *le id€al bolame of the wHe bike makes it nothir6 of the kind. ln spite of the Classic's imposing bulk iCs easy even for shorter rilers to get comfortable on such a massive piece of metal. That's mainly due to the more pulled-back handle bar and the fad dlat you can rEadily put both feet flat on fie ground. And the optional s.reen that most Classic cus- tomers will surety buy isnt excersiwy hrgh - a six-foot rider does look over it rather than through it, but it deflects enough air to make cruising 100 mph at 4000 rPm Perfect- ly fesible, and comfortable, Though it's very easy to ground out the long hero bolts fitted to their underside, those footboards, at a stroke, eliminate the one bi8 negtive of the original Rocket lll's riding position - namebr its footPegs bein8 mounted too far forward, in keeping wkh the expecta- tions ofthe North Ameriaan cruiser customer. Combined wifi the low seat, this means your ankhs are folded all the tirne on the original bike, so you need to stretch and waggle them about when you come to a straight line on a long ride- WIth tte footboards on 6e Classic thb is never a prouern. There is, however, an oth- erwise surprisirE lack of the attention to detail in the design of the heel-and-toe geanhiftei whi.h inevitabt €omes standard as part of the floorboard package. The leve. is set too low to altrlw tlle toe of one of a comt touring boot to slide between it and the floorboard for upshifu - therefore you are obliged o always perform with your heel- That's not in itself a problem - though personally, I prefer to have the choice, as on mo6t U .S. touring cruis- ers - but it does mean you end up having to try to find neutral wath your heel most of the time, which isn't always easy, especially on a Triumph whose neutral liSht often lies to you. Salling the Chssic occasionally at ffrc liShs w6 somethirE I got used to - and I also had cause to obiect to another piece of foolishness, which is the po6itioning of the ignition key. lt\ too far forward, in front of tie darh. It's not only a long reach from your laid-back riding sonce. but tlEre's Mrdly any room between the chrorne.backed instrumeds ard the screen to squeeze a gloved hand drrorgh to grasp ttre key - especially when it tEs a trian- gular Triumph fob (another cabloti item!) attached to it, which jams 4ainn the scr€en glass. No idea why Triumph didn t follow the Arnerican way and stick it on tlle side of the bike. \/vhile listing minor nigBles, it was a surprire not to lind a forefinSer-friendy headlight flasher on the left instru- ment console, ard the absence of a clock as sundard is inexcusable on a bike like this. Okay, so it's F another option - but it shouldn t be. lnstead, the digital LCD panel and the analog speed on *le left displays iust two trip6 (better than iust one, so well done, 8u)6) and mihage - nothing more, not even a tem- p€fature galJge for the water-cooled motor The mach- ing Edrometer, meanwhile, has an aray of waming liShts, including one for fu€l that proved quite pessimistic. Considering $e hct that most Classic owners are like- ty to cover rerious mil€s on ddr purchase, the ahsence of a fuel gauge is also regrettable. ThouSh on the plus side, dle round dlromebacked mirrors look good and work well - tl|ey're spread out well enough to give yolj a Sood view behind, and don't vibrate in the slightest evei tank- ing along at 100 mph. And both clutch and brake levers are adiustable, ttte riglt-hand one as the key to outstand- ing stopf,ing power from the 320mm floating front discs and drdr four-pot calipers. still, in best cruiser s!y'e, it's the nEaty 3 l5mm rEar brake wi$ its tlvin-piston gripper that re3ly does the work for you when you step on the fl oorboard-mounted pedal. The frort ard rear brakes aren't linked, by the way, and the Triumph stops all the befter for it, because you're in cha€e ofthe relative balance between the two, not the bike. lf *le Rocket lll Classic is slightly unrefined fi'om an eBonomic standpoint, it's highv satisryinS d/rEmkally, and as a functional satement, too. lt's happy iust to round around town or trail along in traft< at as low as 1000 rpm widDut trarrsmission srEtch, before comirE over all mus- cular and trahsformirE itsdf into the uhimate two- wheeled power missile when yos gas it up hard, The Rocket lll motor deli\ers aweinspiring perform- ahce at the twist of a wrist, no matter what gear or how many revs you cafe to rhrow at ir. lt will pull off idle on part-tfirotde, with a completey lineir build of power all dre waI to tle 7200-rpm limitEr that you ha/e no busi- rEss ever hiftin8 in real-wodd riding. That massive 240/50 l&rear tire bnt tEre ont for appearances - even drough Triumph has a hard time dery- ing its effectiveness as a desi8! staternent. For althouSh it was one of their design parameteE for the Rodet lll range to appeal to the mine's-wider-as-well-as-bigger custorn crowd, the fat rear l'leeeler frtted to fie test bike proved to be a vitai ingredient in hamessirE the l'10 hP and 147 ft.Jb. oI torque which the Rocket lll's twin-cam motor chuftE out. Thumb the bunon to send the big triple purring into life, and it catches immediatet with a whirr of gears and a whisde of valves, but a didnctly disappdntinS note from cYcLE NEWS . MAY 24,2Q06 27 He, where's the .lo

• Cover