2017 TRIUMPH STREET CUP
FIRST RIDE
P82
Thruxtons over the years, this
new engine is a night-and-day
improvement.
The 900cc Bonneville motor
is velvety smooth—if lacking in
overall power. Triumph has fitted
it with twin counter-balancers to
expel almost all the engine vibra-
tions, and the result is a simply
marvelous example of custard-
smooth parallel twin riding. The
new motor runs the 270° crank
as opposed to the old Bonnies
that used a traditional 360° unit,
and that serves to give the motor
a bit more grunt down low with-
out the want of revs that came
with Bonnies of old.
But in the Street Cup, I'd have
liked a little more grunt to match
the racer lurking somewhere in
this bike. The smoothness is an
absolute plus for this motor, but
more grunt (somewhere in the
60-horsepower range), would be
a welcome feature. But the fuel-
injection is excellently mapped,
so early throttle openings on the
side of the tire are not met with
the thud you'd get from previ-
