Triumph Speed Triple

In its new guise, the Speed Triple still remains one of the most distinctive looking bikes on the road - and especially the Nuclear Red version.

Its no one-dimensional being though, and two days blasting around NSW's scenic South Coast was enough to say to me that this is an excellent all-round roadbike - and serious fun.

The Triumph factory claims changes to the chassis, styling and engine have taken the street fighter concept to new levels, and I've got to say I agree.

NUDE DAYTONA

The Speed Triple first surfaced in 1994 as part of Triumph's modular approach to manufacturing, and was essentially a nude Daytona - back then with a steel spine frame.

Eight years later the new model is more of the same, sharing many parts with the current Daytona - including a re-tuned version of the 955i engine and the Daytona's aluminium tube frame.

Revisions include a revised chassis, the changes directed at increased agility through quicker steering and lighter weight, as well as styling changes looking for a leaner, meaner Speed Triple.

The new bike is 2.5kg lighter than its predecessor, with the revised engine running a new cylinder-head which sports new valve sizes (1mm larger inlet, 1mm smaller exhaust) and redesigned inlet and exhaust ports.

The compression ratio has been bumped to 12:1 from 11.2:1, and the fuel injection mapping has been altered to improve mid-range torque.

The fiddling sees Triumph claiming 120ps at 9100rpm, somewhat less than the Daytona's impressive 133.1ps at the rear wheel, which AMCN achieved on the PTR dyno. Having said that, the seat-of-the-pants feeling is that the revisions aimed at mid-range mumbo have done the job.

Riding lazy is easy enough. Rolling south in the rain on the Princes Highway the first day, I cruised in top (sixth), rolling the throttle on and off, the fuel injection responding cleanly at these speeds and the meaty torque grunting the bike along with ease.

When things 'warmed up' the next day, in more ways than one, the Triple pulled eagerly to redline, before returning to lazy mode for the short freeway commute back to Sydney.

SWAPPING COGS

The gearbox is an improvement on previous Triumph 'boxes, though still has a relatively long throw to shift cogs. The clutch is a good weight, and smooth to operate, though the non-adjustable lever span will trouble those with little hands. An adjustable lever would fix that.

While the fuel injection can misbehave a little rolling on and off the throttle at really low speeds, the engine is incredibly versatile - an excellent engine for a roadbike.

And this versatility expands to more than just the Speed Triple's engine. The seating position is a beauty. The wide, high bars and decent legroom means touring the Speed T is not out of the question - though a soft seat cover would be on my wish list.

The wide bars also make levering the bike from side-to-side a joyous task, no doubt aided by the new-for-2002 chassis dimensions. Wheelbase is reduced by 11mm to 1429mm, as well as steeper rake and shorter trail figures at 23.5 degrees and 84mm respectively (from 24 degrees and 86mm). The rear ride height has also been increased. Combined with a claimed dry weight of 189kg, 7kg lighter than the 2001 model, the new Speed Trip hustles through the curves with the best of them.

There is now a hint of front-end 'nervousness' on rough surfaces and/or on the gas, but I suffered no tank slappers or anything worse than a bit of a shimmy. The Bridgestone 010 tyres helped here - their 'solid' feel helping tame any nerves.

Any rider overly stressed about this new-found flightiness could just fit a steering dampener, but to be honest I enjoyed the feeling - it never felt unsafe. Seriously fun, though.

VERY CHIC

The front brakes are typically Triumph - strong, precise and feel-a-plenty, the twin 320mm discs and four-pot Triumph-stamped Nissin calipers easily coping with my demands.

The rear anchor on my testbike was spongy and lacking in power, but after riding other bikes at the launch mine proved it to be the exception - the others worked fine.

Don't be put off by the Naked bike tag either - the bike is quite comfortable at speed, with customer versions coming with a colour co-coordinated 'fly screen' as standard fitment.

Speaking of colour co-ordination, the three colours on offer all look trick, but the Nuclear Red version was the hands-down favourite of the assembled journos. It stuck out like the proverbials.

TRIPPED UP

The new styling shares many of the same features of the new Daytona - the tank, tailpiece and digital instruments, which replace the more traditional needle and clock items.

At first I wasn't enamoured with the new clocks style-wise, but they grew on me. As it is, the standard screen will fit snugly around them anyway.

The instruments are easy to read, and include the same features shared with the other Triumphs which use the same panel - engine temp, odometer and clock. There are also two trip meters.

The Trumpy averaged 12.5 km/lt in somewhat spirited use, which yields a range of around 260km from the 21-litre tank before you're a pedestrian - not too shabby.

So, is the new bike better? Yep, I reckon. The $15,995 Speed Triple impressed me as an up-to-the-minute naked bike, capable of not only performing a number of roles with easy confidence, but making them fun as well.

My early impressions are that it will stack up very well against the likes of the Yamaha FZ1 ($15,799) and Ducati Monster S4 ($17,995). Finding out is going to be seriously fun...