Cycle News

VOL. 53 ISSUE 2 JANUARY 19, 2016 P87 sion, where Triumph's chassis development guru David Lopez has done a superb job in team- ing with Kayaba's technicians to produce a twin-shock motorcy- cle with non-adjustable suspen- sion damping front and rear, which has a level of compliance that's worthy of a much more expensive and sophisticated variable-rate monoshock bike. Riding through the streets of Valencia at the start of our day's ride, I went looking for manhole covers to test the damping, and was so impressed by the way the Triumph ate up the bumps I thought I must have just assumed I was riding a twin- shock neo-retro model, and that Triumph had monoshocked the bike—well, it was very early in the morning and I had been hitting the Rioja reds with some enthusiasm the night before! But yes, it's still a twin-shocker. Wait until you ride it and tell me you're not impressed with the settings he's chosen for the suspension, which by definition will be the ones that customers are delivered with thanks to the non-adjustability of the forks and shocks (well, except for preload on the latter). For countless years horse- power has ruled as the be-all- and-end-all of two-wheeled satisfaction – but the times they are a-changing. For with sport- bike sales slumping globally for all sorts of reasons, replaced in motorcyclists' affection by naked-as-nature rides, torquey twins like the new family of Tri- umph Bonnevilles are becoming increasingly mainstream models appealing to a different kind of rider who arguably now rep- resents a motorcycle dealer's core customer. He or she will want to personalize the bike via Triumph's 150-strong list of dealer accessories, or custom- ize it beyond that in a way that individualizes it. The Street Twin's stripped-back styling, distinctive sound, and dynamic riding experience enhanced by the addition of electronic riding aids including switchable ABS and traction control plus a ride- by-wire throttle, makes it a suc- cessful modern reinterpretation of Triumph's most iconic model on the sixtieth birthday of the feat which led to its creation. Sixty years on from Johnny Allen's September 1956 feat of setting a new two-wheeled World Land Speed record at 214.40 mph on the Bonnev- ille Salt Flats, in a streamliner powered by an unsupercharged twin-cylinder 650cc Triumph motor built by Texan tuner Jack Wilson, Triumph has given the bike which commemorates that achievement an emphatic and welcome new lease of life. Job well done, chaps. CN For a chat with the Bonn- eville's chief designer, Stuart Wood CLICK HERE ENGINE: .. Liquid cooled, 8 valve, SOHC, 270° crank angle parallel twin DISPLACEMENT: ............................. 900cc BORE X STROKE: ................84.6 x 80mm HORSEPOWER: ........... 54hp @ 5900 rpm TORQUE: ................59 ft-lbs @ 3230 rpm COMPRESSION RATIO: .................. 10.55:1 TRANSMISSION: ......................Five-speed CHASSIS: ................ Tubular steel cradle FRONT SUSPENSION: ........41mm Kayaba Fork with spring preload adjustability, 4.7 inches travel REAR SUSPENSION: ............Kayaba twin- shocks, spring preload adjustability, 4.7 inches travel FRONT BRAKE: ............ Single twin-piston caliper with 310mm disc, ABS REAR BRAKE: .......... Single-piston caliper with 255mm disc, ABS FRONT TIRE: ........................... 100/90R18 REAR TIRE: ...............................150/70R18 RAKE: ..................................................25.1° TRAIL: ............................................ 4.03 in. WHEELBASE: ..................................58.7 in. SEAT HEIGHT: ............................... 29.5 in. OVERALL HEIGHT: ......................... 43.8 in. OVERALL WIDTH: .......................... 30.9 in. OVERALL LENGTH: ........................ 82.8 in. FUEL CAPACITY: ............................ 3.1 gal. WEIGHT: .......... 436.5 lbs. (dry, claimed) COLOR: .................... Jet Black, Phantom Black, Matte Black, Aluminum Silver, Cranberry Red MSRP: ..............................................$8950 S P E C I F I C A T I O N S

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