triumph street triple r

[wheelen disco]

I know there are some motorcycle guys on here, does anyone have any experience with this bike. I'm getting rid of my km 990 superduke its been a great bike, nothing but maintenance in the last 40,000 miles. The triumph is on the top of my list now. But any other suggestions are welcome.

 

[garrett]

My friend in town has one. He loves it and was a regular commuter for him for a few years, but since he picked up his Ducati 1198s he rarely rides it any more. I am sure there are lots of folks on Adventure Rider with plenty of experience with them.

 

[knewsom]

I've heard nothing but good things about the new Triumphs, I'm sure this bike is just more awesomeness.

As for me, I don't ride sport bikes because I don't think I could contain myself and would probably die.

 

[wheelen disco]

I'm sure there will come a time when I don't have the desire to ride a sport bike. I've been downsizing power wise. I went from a 04 Yamaha r1 to my ktm 990 superduke, and now I'm thinking of the little triumph. Doing wheelies down the freeway are a thing of the past for me.

 

[emmodg]

I rode an older S Triple back in the day when shopping for a sport bike and/or standard. (It was a new '96 I believe...) Nice bikes but I'm done with carbs on multi-cylinder stuff - I'd take an ooooold-something with carbs but not something I was gonna ride a lot or as a DD. The Triple I rode torquey as hell and a hoot! If you want some fun get yourself a CRF450X and throw some 18" wheels on it. You'll embarrass guys on sport bikes when you're braking twice as late and carrying crazy corner speed!

Was your Duke an LC4? What kinds of issues where you having with it? LC4s' always seemed pretty stout....

 

[wheelen disco]

No its a lc8, 990 v twin. Its been problem free. I've got 40,000 miles on it now and I'm just looking for something that's not as brutal power wise, and gets better fuel economy. The super duke is lucky to get 30mpg, if I'm riding for fun it's low 20's.

 

[Some Dude]

I can't sing the praises of a Honda VFR highly enough. I've only done routine maintenance and people regularly get 100k out of them without major hiccups.

New leftover 2010s can be found in the 10s, and any of the 6th gen 800s are really getting down there in price. Ride one before you rule it out. I came close to trading mine in last week but decided I like it better than anything else I've ridden (short of a new 990 Adventure). Just ordered tires yesterday, so it'll be sticking around for at least one more season.

 

[garrett]

Last night I was having drinks with my buddy with the Triple. His current one is a 2000, but he had a 1995 many years ago and preferred it over the latter one. I believe they went from the carb to FI motors the same years as the Tiger, which was 1999. Of course it's essentially the same motor, but he felt it had more torque on the low end and pulled better. But who knows. I think the early (carbed) Triples are way better looking - same with the Tigers - fewer curves and less plastic on the old ones. Early Triples were not made in big numbers, but can be found for around $3K. But I don't know if you were looking for new or used.

 

[Andrew Homan]

I had a Daytona 955 i and loved it. No problems. I have heard great things about the speed triples and have been on a few.

Don't hesitate getting a Triumph.

 

[emmodg]

You want something "different" - get a Triumph, KTM, 'Berg, or Aprillia. You want something reliable- get a Honda or BMW.

Find a Honda 919 if you can.

 

[Andrew Homan]

Rode a police BMW for half of my motors career and would hardly call it reliable , maybe compared to the Harleys we had. Had an Aprillia as a personal bike and it was bullet proof just like my Triumph. Who doesn't have a fucking Honda? every Squid wanabe has a CBR.

 

[Some Dude]

Agreed on BMW. All the guys I know that ride them spend more time with them blown apart in the garage than on the street. Maybe not because something is actually "wrong" but because owning a Beamer makes you develop some kind of OCD.

I've already got a "compulsory maintenance" vehicle. I'll stick with rock solid bikes.

 

[emmodg]

Like Hondas BMW's are more "forgiving" of the "lazy owner" - they'll put up with way more abuse and neglect than Ducs(compare the desmo valve train to a regular old shim and bucket or simple tappet) or Aprillia's or KTM's (I love KTM's don't get me wrong - the RFS and LC motors are nice just "delicate".) Squids don't have Africa Twins! That's the first time I've heard the term "Bulletproof Aprillia..".

I like the Euro bikes - the reason I have a Beemer and KTM. You're right - everybody has a Honda and those that don't are working on theirs.

 

[Andrew Homan]

My Caponord was bullet proof. So was my Triumph. I changed the oil and did the valve adjust per the schedule. Do Hondas never need their oil change? I know my Kawisaki Ninja needed the same service. No doubt they build good bike but so do other people. No Japenese bike looks as good as Ducati or MV Agusta imhop.

 

[SGaynor]

I happened to see a Triumph yesterday (Thruxton, I think). Nice looking bike.

 

[emmodg]

Unfortunately sport bikes Triumph, BMW, Duc, and yes even the newer MV's (Oro's, etc..) look more and more like a Jap sport bike... The last great design was the '96 916. Ducati wrote the book on making a twin look good and especially sound good! Like Audi and its car design every Asian and Euro bike manufacturer took cues from Ducati.

MV's are nice looking. Nothing special anymore though except for the ass end of it. (Sounds good!)

Out of curiosity why would you think Hondas' don't need their oil changed? An example of what I was getting at with Honda's reliability: The shop I help out at got an old Honda 4-wheeler (1995 I think), it had been sitting in the woods with 4 flat tires, no seat, key rusted in the ign., etc. We took it in, put a jump box on it and she fired up! It had been sitting for years in the woods! I can guarantee you a RFS, RXV, RSV, or desmo-based motor would not have fared so well in the woods for years! Not cutting on anyone's bike, I own a KTM AND a Land Rover - I'm a glutten for punishment as well! But you gotta call a spade a spade and admit - the Jap singles, twins, and in-lines are stupid reliable!

 

[knewsom]

Unfortunately sport bikes Triumph, BMW, Duc, and yes even the newer MV's (Oro's, etc..) look more and more like a Jap sport bike... The last great design was the '96 916. Ducati wrote the book on making a twin look good and especially sound good! Like Audi and its car design every Asian and Euro bike manufacturer took cues from Ducati.

MV's are nice looking. Nothing special anymore though except for the ass end of it. (Sounds good!)

Out of curiosity why would you think Hondas' don't need their oil changed? An example of what I was getting at with Honda's reliability: The shop I help out at got an old Honda 4-wheeler (1995 I think), it had been sitting in the woods with 4 flat tires, no seat, key rusted in the ign., etc. We took it in, put a jump box on it and she fired up! It had been sitting for years in the woods! I can guarantee you a RFS, RXV, RSV, or desmo-based motor would not have fared so well in the woods for years! Not cutting on anyone's bike, I own a KTM AND a Land Rover - I'm a glutten for punishment as well! But you gotta call a spade a spade and admit - the Jap singles, twins, and in-lines are stupid reliable!

As a '79 Yamaha XS1100 rider, I concur with your conclusion entirely about the reliability of Jap engines.

...I also agree that most sport bikes look the same. I have to look for a label usually to tell what the make is nowadays. That's one of the reasons I like to ride older bikes. More variety in look, easy customization, and they're just fun.

 

[Some Dude]

For what it's worth, I've got an Aprilia in the garage too. It's completely 100% bomb proof. It also happens to be a two stroke.

 

[emmodg]

Yeah - not a lot to 2-smokes. No valve train to clunk, no oil starvation problems, and stupid easy to rev! Although one of the reasons the Aprillia Cup went bust was the shear expense of keeping the damn things running! You watch a WERA Formula Gran Prix race and you didn't see a lot of "bomb proof" Italian 2 strokes.

Do you have an RS250 by chance? That's one of my favorite bikes ever! (That and an RD of some kind...)

Again, not trying to smear Euro bikes and there may be some Aprillias and Ducs and MV's around that were built on a good day at the factory (There's not a Bimota running that you could say that about though I don;t think) but you just can't compare reliability of Euro's to Jap bikes. Different design philosophies and goals. Hell, XR's and now CRF's rule Baja! You could run a XR650R in the Baja, change the oil, slap plates back on it and ride it to work the next day!

 

[thequickervicar]

Yeah - not a lot to 2-smokes. No valve train to clunk, no oil starvation problems, and stupid easy to rev! Although one of the reasons the Aprillia Cup went bust was the shear expense of keeping the damn things running! You watch a WERA Formula Gran Prix race and you didn't see a lot of "bomb proof" Italian 2 strokes.

Do you have an RS250 by chance? That's one of my favorite bikes ever! (That and an RD of some kind...)

Again, not trying to smear Euro bikes and there may be some Aprillias and Ducs and MV's around that were built on a good day at the factory (There's not a Bimota running that you could say that about though I don;t think) but you just can't compare reliability of Euro's to Jap bikes. Different design philosophies and goals. Hell, XR's and now CRF's rule Baja! You could run a XR650R in the Baja, change the oil, slap plates back on it and ride it to work the next day!

Those were Suzuki engines in the RS250s, btw.

The times of comparing Jap vs. Euro reliability are long gone. The Japanese are feeling the squeeze of the Yen. Even Honda is not what it once was. In fact, I will put a modern KTM up against just about anything out there. And plenty of troublesome Bimotas are powered by Suzuki & Yamaha powerplants, too.

Yes, my Aprilia is powered by a Rotax engine. Yes, they are known for being pretty much bomb-proof. As were those old XR600 Hondas. The new CRFs? Notsomuch.

Having said that, I've got an old high-school buddy with a Street Triple with a huge GIVI luggage box on the back. He rides it everywhere and has got A LOT of trouble-free miles on it. He used to be a Honda guy. No longer.