Triumph Bonneville 865

Triumph has now rolled out three variants of its 865cc twin, and there's more to come. So far we have two 360-degree crank versions: the Bonneville (with the upmarket T100 variant) and the slightly more powerful Thruxton; Plus a single 270-degree variant - the Scrambler.

As a breed they share relatively basic specification, deliberately designed to hark back to a more simple time when men weren't afraid to wear cloth caps and an E-type Jag was every petrol head's dream car.

While the 790 version of the Bonnie was perfectly adequate, particularly when given a more open set of mufflers to free up some extra horses, the addition of the extra cubes is welcome. It's just enough to make the bike noticeably more lively and rounds out what was already a competent package.

Detail changes include black finish for the engine with lacquered covers and an adjustable clutch lever.

If the Bonneville has a hallmark characteristic, it's being ridiculously easy to ride, given its substantial engine capacity. Low to the ground with wide handlebars, it's easy to throw into corners and has enough power to make a set of corners entertaining.

Braking has decent feel and sufficient power, though the bike does have its limits. Holding it all together is a twin loop steel frame, with reasonably conservative geometry, tied to 41mm forks up front and twin shocks, with preload adjustment only, on the rear.

Like the whole range, it can be ridden to the point where the suspension gets overwhelmed and the frame starts to flex. There's plenty of warning and the levels it happens at are quite high, but the range is clearly no handling match for something like the Sprint ST that was also along for the ride.

They're pitched to the market as a modern classic and provide a lot of fun when ridden at anything vaguely resembling reasonable speeds.

The performance stats are a give-away to the machine's character, with the Bonneville engine claiming 67 horses from the 360-degree crank version of the engine and 90 per cent of its 71Nm of max torque from just 2500rpm. In other words swapping the five cogs in the reasonably slick gearbox is kept to a minimum.

In some ways the range can spoil you for choice. On one end of the scale is the Thruxton café racer, with its low bars, rangy look and semi-racer seating position. I reckon it's the best looker in the range.

Climbing aboard, you soon discover how compact the machine is and, unfortunately it's not a great fit for my 190cm frame. However other folk on the launch, who were closer to the five-eleven or six foot mark (around 180cm) were clearly much happier.

It is however the most powerful of the range, claiming 69 horses from the 360-degree powerplant.

For the taller folk, the Scrambler is the choice. Loads of room, along with an upright seating position, fairly high saddle and big handlebars. This thing won my heart when it was first released last year, and nothing other than cosmetics has really changed in that time. It's a big user-friendly take on the standard package.

The only achilles heel is the Scrambler claims just 57 horses from the 270 degree crank - a full 10 down on the Bonneville, though the difference doesn't feel that substantial on the road. That may be because it develops peak torque earlier, at 4500rpm compared to 6000rpm for a standard Bonnie.

If that lot isn't enough choice, you can go for the T100, which is essentially an upmarket version of the standard, or go to town with the sixty8 range of add-ons. If you're wondering about the year, the 1969 model was widely regarded as the iconic Meriden Bonneville in Australia - and 1968 is its home market year designation.

On the list you'll find some unusual cosmetic gear, such as a raised Perspex tank badge plate, or a see-through front sprocket cover. There's also more practical (if still a little quirky items such as a leather pannier for a laptop and an iPod holder.

But wait there's more... At the time of writing the local distributor was about to release big-engine versions of the America and Speedmaster cruisers - so the factory could hardly be accused of wasting its opportunities with this engine.

If you were in the market for an easy-going middleweight bike, with a strong brand plastered to its tank, you could do a lot worse than cast an eye over this lot.