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/661756
2016 TRIUMPH THRUXTON /THRUXTON R FIRST RIDE P50 there's a USB charging socket fit- ted as standard on the headstock for ready access. FRAMED The Thruxton duo share the same tubular steel main frame with the T120, but with a differ- ent welded-on sub-frame and a 1.2-inch shorter wheelbase thanks to their aluminum swingarm. With the 17-inch front wheel you get better feedback from the front tire than you do via the T120's 18-inch front end, which in turn inspires confidence, especially in terms of keeping up turn speed. With a massive 21kg weight saving over the T120, the Thruxton R scaling a claimed 447 pounds dry feels beautifully balanced—riding it in town is anyway easy because of the light-action clutch, but it feels extremely maneuverable at low speeds in traffic. Yet this was a bike built to hit the highways and byways at speed, where the handling is really exceptional over most bumps, which the Italo-Jap- anese suspension package just shrugs off. The steering is light and agile, and the Brembo brakes work brilliantly well—again, there's loads of feel, yet a very effective degree of stopping power, with good modulation via the adjust- able lever if all you want to do is lose a little excess speed entering a fast sweeping turn. Nice. Triumph has developed a range of more than 160 official accesso- ries in total for the Thruxton duo, up to and including a range of Vance & Hines exhausts. Slightly strangely, both bikes come only as single-seaters with no option to take a passenger unless you buy the dual seat and passenger footrests that are only available as an accessory package. The BMW R nineT comes standard with pil- lion footpegs and passenger seat, so it'll be interesting to see which company has a better understand- ing of what retrobike riders prefer to do when it comes to carrying a passenger on their bike. Triumph has also developed a trio of so- called "inspiration kits" packaging several of the accessories togeth- er, including one called the Track Racer, which features an abbrevi- ated café-racer-style half-fairing selling for 1620 pounds (around $2300) with all the trimmings, the unfaired Café Racer kit, and for the first time there's a Thruxton R performance Race Kit for the bike that isn't road legal (in the UK). AND? The new Thruxton R is a retro- styled café racer with modern performance, employing current technology in pursuit of today's performance and handling, coupled with the allure of yester- year. It's a modern classic in every sense of the term, and I doubt very much that Triumph will be able to keep up with orders for it—especially once they start at- tracting conquest customers from other brands, some of them own- ers of modern sport bikes who are in for a surprise if they take a Triumph Thruxton R for a test ride. What a nice problem to have. CN 2 0 1 6 T R I U M P H T H R U X T O N / T H R U X T O N R ENGINE: ...... Liquid-cooled, 8-valve, SOHC, 270° parallel twin DISPLACEMENT: ......................................... 1200cc BORE X STROKE:.............................. 97.6 x 80mm COMPRESSION RATIO: ...................................11.0:1 MAX POWER: ........... 96 hp (72 kW) @ 6750 rpm MAX TORQUE: .. 112 Nm (82.6 lb-ft) @ 4950 rpm FUEL SYSTEM: .................... Multipoint sequential electronic fuel injection EXHAUST: ............ Chromed, 2-2 exhaust system w/twin chrome silencers FINAL DRIVE: .......................................X-ring chain CLUTCH: ................ Wet, multi-plate assist clutch TRANSMISSION: ........................................6-speed EMISSIONS: ................................................. Euro 4 FUEL CONSUMPTION: .................................61 mpg FRAME: .................................. Tubular steel cradle SWINGARM: ..........Twin-sided, aluminum / clear anodized FRONT WHEEL: .....................32-spoke, 17x3.5 in. REAR WHEEL: ........................... 32-spoke, 17x5 in. FRONT TIRE: .............. 120/70 ZR-17 Pirelli Angel GT / Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa FRONT SUSPENSION: ....Kayaba 41mm cartridge fork / Showa 43mm USD, fully adj. fork REAR SUSPENSION: ...................................Kayaba twin shocks w/adj. preload / Ohlins twin shock w/piggyback reservoir FRONT WHEEL TRAVEL: ................................ 4.7 in. REAR WHEEL TRAVEL: .................................. 4.7 in. FRONT BRAKE: .................................. Twin 310mm discs, Nissin 2-piston axial floating calipers, ABS / Brembo twin 310mm floating discs, Brembo 4-piston radial Monobloc calipers, ABS REAR BRAKE: ............Single 220mm disc, Nissin 2-piston axial floating caliper, ABS SEAT HEIGHT: ............................ 31.7 in. / 31.8 in. WHEELBASE: ...............................................55.7 in. RAKE: .................................................22.7° / 22.8° TRAIL: ........................................ 3.57 in. / 3.62 in. CLAIMED DRY WEIGHT: .......454.2 lbs. / 447.8 lbs. FUEL CAPACITY: .........................................3.3 gal. S P E C I F I C A T I O N S