Triumph Street Triple

NOT SO MUCH
-- Digi speedo blues

How's it been going for you lately? No, I'm not talking about whether you're making a quid or how you're dealing with that boss that's got it in for you. And it's not about how you're scoring in the mating game. I'm talking about how it feels when you wheel your steed out of the shed and throw a leg over it and point it down the road. Is there a sameness to it? A predictability? Are you even feeling a bit jaded about your riding?

If you've answered yes to more than a couple of these questions it's time to take a tonic. It's time to take a Triumph Street Triple for a spin.

The 'Street Trip' is such a fun bike to ride that it's no real surprise to me to see that it was Triumph's best seller here last year and the top-seller across all makes in the 'naked' category.

Nakeds also allow you to sit up comfortably behind conventional bars, ideally positioned to spot the incoming threats and ready to use the good leverage of the bars to flick you and your bike from harm's way.

So nakeds are practical, easy to ride and you can see all their good bits. Is there more to the fun factor?

Streetfighters, like the Street Triple, are on the ragged edge of naked. That's already sounding like more fun isn't it? In essence they're sports bikes with all that muscle provocatively on show. The Street Triple is basically a Daytona 675 without the bodywork and the clip-ons. It's all there – the exposed aluminium sportsbike frame, ballsy-looking black engine, inverted forks, big brakes and fat back tyre.

Add a pair of big-brother Speed Triple's headlights and you've got the quintessential mid-sized streetfighter.

It's a muscular steed that provides the acceleration, nimbleness and braking of a sportsbike in a provocative 'in-ya-face' package. And in keeping with the 'in-ya-face' look the MT test bike came with a good lurid paint job – a high-intensity lime green. That's a fun formula. Job done!

The bike's ergonomics complement the engine's sound and feel, sitting the rider up in a rapid-launch posture.

The engine is a stunner. You don't need the Speed triple's 1050cc engine to get the adrenaline flowing. The 675 has heaps of performance and it's powering a package that only weighs 167kg dry. Of course it's docile if you're gentle with the throttle and toddling along at around 4000rpm. But when you gun the thing and spin it up its aggressive magic will bowl you over.

When you're accelerating hard it's for all the world like you're in charge of a chainsaw that's hacking rapidly and deeply into a big redgum log. You could glance in the mirrors and half expect to see a rooster-tail of wood chips flying skywards behind you. It's hard not to enjoy this stuff.

Three-cylinder four-stokes have always felt great but when they're modern triples with real attitude like the Triumph range, they deliver high-order pleasure indeed. 

The fuelling and engine management systems are a credit to the clever technology on offer in modern motorcycles. The 675 has a 12.65:1 compression ratio and runs happily on pump fuel. Ratios in that area are getting close to the figures that needed methanol in the old days of carbs and magneto ignition. This engine's throttle response and fuelling feels spot-on through its intended working range. There's a bit of fluffiness at very low engine speeds but that's not where it lives.

All controls work well. Clutch action is nice and gearchange action is right up there with the best of them. It's light and accurate. That old 'like a hot knife through butter' saying comes to mind.

The ride is firm thanks to suspension that's closer to sportsbike than commuter in its set up. The very light package weight and the responsive steering geometry make the bike easy to handle in general and very flickable – it's like a powered skateboard.

The riding position is great for comfort as well as control with the pegs set more forward than on a sportsbike. While we're talking comfort the test bike was fitted with the optional gel-seat that felt fine. So I can't vouch for the standard seat's ability to keep you content on long rides. But then I guess streetfighters aren't first choice for long-haul riding.

When you've got a bike with a short wheelbase, a torquey engine, a low 167kg dry weight and lowish gearing (the engine is spinning at about 5200rpm at 100km/h in top) it will be a very rapid machine out of the blocks and one that's not at all reluctant to have its front wheel pawing the air. More of that fun thing.

The bike's braking is strong with excellent feel. Its handling is very responsive and the suspension deals well with the bike's antics.

If you're chasing the ultimate handling and braking package the 'R' version of the Street Triple offers upgraded kit including fully-adjustable front suspension and Nissin radial-mount, four-piston calipers. Frankly, though, most riders in most riding situations will be more than happy with the performance of the basic package.

The bike's success in the market must be something of a two-edged sword for Triumph in that it throws out quite a challenge to the 1050 Speed Triple. The 675 is able to perform more or less the same shenanigans as the big feller. I'm a big fan of the 1050 but to be honest when I ask myself what it could do for me that the 675 couldn't, the answer is: not much in real world terms and it costs a shedload more. And there's another 30kg or so of it to manhandle when you're dragging it out of the shed. 

For the record, Motorcycle Trader's test bike came kitted out with a good selection of items from Triumph's great range of accessories that make it easy to personalise your Street Triple:

- Flyscreen kit            $305
- Flyscreen visor         $129 
- Seat cowl kit            $228
- Belly pan kit             $368
- Bar end mirrors        $152 
- Hugger kit                $100
- Gel seat, twin           $330
- Tank pad                 $76

During walking-pace manoeuvres the bike could use a few degrees more steering lock for ease of use. Obviously this goes away as soon as you're rolling.

This is such a willing donk. 107 horses are not to be sneezed at in a 167kg package. But it's the lovely music it makes all the way from idle to redline that makes it unique in its class and uniquely appealing.