2016 TRIUMPH STREET TWIN
FIRST RIDE
P84
rors give a good view and don't
vibe. This bike was obviously
developed and refined by people
who rode it a lot.
SMOOTH OPERATOR
Thumb the clever combined
kill switch and starter button to
send the liquid-cooled engine
into life, and relish the unexpect-
edly glorious note of the stock
Street Twin's exhaust. How
Bloor's boys got it through Euro
4 compliance complete with
this great sound of twin-cylinder
music is quite some achieve-
ment, but they did. Next, savor
the extremely light and ultra-
controllable lever action of the
cable-operated oil-bath slip/
assist clutch, which makes riding
in traffic or city streets complete-
ly untiring with no undue wear
and tear on your left hand owing
to an unreasonably stiff clutch
action, as on certain other twin-
cylinder models concocted else-
where than Britain. The gearbox
shift action is flawless - it's fully
up to Japanese quality, though
it's better to use the clutch at all
times since it's quite hard to con-
sistently change gear upwards
smoothly without the clutch. But
this light, precise clutch action
also makes it very easy to make
smart getaways from traffic lights
or stop signs, even if at peak
power of 54 horsepower deliv-
ered at 5900 rpm, the 900cc
Street Twin motor has just three-
quarters of the horsepower of
the outgoing 865cc Bonnie. If
you want more, Triumph will refer
you to the array of four 1200cc
models coming shortly to a
showroom near you.
This doubtless explains why
THOUGH DESIGNED
AND DEVELOPED
IN THE UK AT
TRIUMPH'S
HINCKLEY BASE,
THESE NEW
MODELS WILL ALL
BE MANUFACTURED
IN THAILAND AT THE
COMPANY'S THREE
FACTORIES SOUTH
OF BANGKOK.
