Bonneville Scrambler

The nature of my motorcycle garage means that I spend a lot of time on big multis of one sort or another: Honda Valkyrie Interstate, Triumph Daytona 1200 and a much-modded Suzuki Hayabusa, with horsepower ranging from 100 to well over 200. And so it becomes really easy to lose sight of just how much fun a relatively straight-forward motorcycle with modest power can actually be.

Triumph's Bonneville-based 865cc Scrambler wasted no time in reminding me. Within a few hours we were swinging through a tasty set of curves on a tight and narrow road, the footpegs occasionally kissing the tar, and having an absolute ball. Far more fun than the basic stats might suggest: after all, a combo of 54 horses and a substantial 205 kilo dry weight is not exactly race pace. But who cares, if you're having fun.

The basis for this toy is the company's parallel twin, in slightly meatier 865 guise (it was originally a 790), with a frame that's been jacked up off the ground by a substantial amount when compared to the Bonnie, and had a variety of niceties added such as the Bridgestone Trailwing rubber, classic hefty metal 'eyebrow' tank badges, big wide handlebars, meaty grips and a flat seat with white piping around the top edge. Oh, and let's not forget the high-mount scrambler-style pipes on the right - the opposite side to the original models of the 1960s.

You can watch blokes who remember the machines of 40 years ago get all misty-eyed when they see the new chap. But it was the response of younger folk, who would never have clapped eyes on the original, that really got me. Twice now I've been told by teenagers that it looks like huge fun, and been asked if it goes as well as it looks.

It's not every day the same bike will cross generations in that way.

 If you're medium height to tall, you'll probably like this a lot more than the stock Bonnie - it's a great fit for six footers.

On the handling front, the steering is about medium speed and quite effortless thanks in part to the wide bars. The stock tyres hang on reasonably well in the dry, are okay in the wet, and produce a fair bit of road noise. I'd be tempted to risk spoiling the look a little and fit road rubber.

There is a stack of cornering clearance - the footpegs touch first, but which time you're a long way over.

Suspension is surprisingly firm - it may have some scrambles or off-road pretensions in the looks, but this department is definitely tar-oriented. So too is the lack of bashplate, plus the underslung rear brake caliper. It's really set up with scrambler looks and more road-oriented settings.

Braking is two-piston caliper up front working a large solidly-mounted disc, with a basic disc on the rear. It's not cutting edge, but has good power and feel.

Performance is more or less what you'd expect. It's not arm-wrenching, but there's plenty of urge to make life interesting and a nice fat midrange band to minimize the need for cog swapping.

Instrumentation is very basic - a single dial (speedo) with a few warning lamps, which is in keeping with the style of the machine. The nature of the engine tuning, which is not big on top-end, means you don't miss a tacho all that much.

 Seating is on the firm side, so a sheepskin cover might be useful for long hauls. The pillions rated it as quite good, though they needed a grab rail - which is probably in the accessories catalogue.

Our example had the competition mufflers, which have a fairly sharp bark to them.

As a package on a sports road, this is one of those bikes which adds up to more than the sum of its parts. It's very easy to ride quick and provides plenty of feedback.

Scramblers were never really that big in Australia, but were huge in the USA, and this one is a nice combo of retaining the looks of the original but applying some modern technology. I have a sneaking suspicion it might join the first-generation Speed Triple as one of the more collectable in the modern range.

Price is $13,990, which makes it easily the cheapest of the current crop of retro bikes and pretty good value.