The triumph of the update rate, especially the “S” basic model, this year has impressed us a great time when it completed the second invincible Aprilia Tuono factory on our small six-bike comparo hiking in the California coast of August. You can say a victory in victory, really, because Tuono’s $ 17k price really outweighs the $ 13,200 victory in a different category (despite the triple speed also coming out of the Ducati Monster 12009 on $ 16,395).
Last week, Triumph impressed us tremendously once again when it forked over the keys to a brand new “R” model Speed Triple for another little naked-bike comparo that’s currently rattling around in Tom Roderick’s head, where it again takes on the mighty Aprilia (this time the downmarket RR instead of the Factory), also the EBR 1190 SX and Yamaha FZ-10.
Adding the R onto the Speed Triple ratchets the price up $1700 over the S to $14,900, but gets you lovely Öhlins suspension – a gold-encrusted full-adjust 43mm NIX30 fork in front and a TTX36 twin-tube monoshock at the rear. What little bodywork there is is carbon fiber on the R, complemented by a red subframe, red-striped wheels, and red stitching on the very comfy seat. But wait, there’s more! Billet machined handlebar clamps, risers, swingarm pivot covers and rear wheel cover.
Aside from those things, the song remains the same between S and R; both got a highly revised 1050cc Triple for 2016, and it’s a pip. I’ll go ahead and quote myself from earlier in the year when I wrote about the S.
“Triumph tells us there are 104 new components in the (still) 1050cc Triple, including new pistons and crank, squeezing mixture into new combustion chambers via higher-flowing intake ports, exiting via that pair of undertail exhausts said to flow 70% more efficiently (and wail even more movingly). Undertail exhausts are passe, but on this bike they still work (except when it’s time to bungee on soft bags). So what, the S3 still encourages you to carry a toothbrush in your jacket pocket and not change underwear.
There is a new ride-by-wire traction control system with adjustable riding modes and variables. In addition to the usual sports, rain and road modes, there is also a tracking mode and a customizable. We used the Sport and Road Model 700 miles to whip the card circuit to victory, extremely sorted and perfect. Surfing in the torque is almost effortlessly S3’s wave, and its revised 6-speed gearbox is also the same as butter. There are new slippers clutch. If you do not like the buzz, S3 is your bike, a little high, and the 6000 rpm beautiful large analog tachometer gives you 96 miles to express. “
The S produced 124 horses at 8900 rpm on our MotoGP Werks dyno, which isn’t going to win you any drag-racing trophies anymore, but that doesn’t mean it’s not more than any 478-pound (fully fuelled) street motorcycle needs (maybe the R is only 476 with that carbon fiber, but Triumph says they weigh the same).
Most of the time and especially on tight little roads, the bike’s 76 lb-ft of torque at 6900 keeps it right up with the other bikes, mostly because it’s already above 70 lb-ft at only 4000 rpm. Also because its newly ride-by-wire fueling is without peer, which encourages you to open the throttle early and often.
Gearbox, slippers clutch, is also an absolutely the best business, and its Brembo brakes are strong like cattle, but also have the skills and feel. Since 1994 evenly mixed, let salted, triple wind speed is greater than the sum of the various parts, through refinement and well-designed system integration. From this and some other victories recently piped down, feeling that the factory may be the best cadre of “product testers.” They do not have time to sell wine before.
Which brings us to the crux of the matter: The Showa suspenders on the bargain-bin S model were so well dialled-in that that bike ranked second, behind only the Öhlins-equipped Tuono Factory, in last summer’s six-bike comparison. So do you really need to spend the extra money for the Öhlins equipment on the Speed Triple R? The answer is, of course you do. If you have it, anyway.
Our heaviest rider, 250-pounds plus, felt the S was a bit soft when the going got rough, but the rest of us were fine with it. The R model just adds to the impression that the ST is one of the most comfortable naked bikes you can buy, suavely rounding off the corners of every bump and adding even more chassis control as you flog the bike through tight mountain switchbacks you’d think weren’t really part of its design brief, given how Rolls-Royce stately it is around town. A super-short trail figure of just 3.6 inches, and the steeply raked 22.9-degree fork angle mean it can turn quickly, and the Pirelli Supercorsas have plenty of grip.
Even if it is not absolutely the fastest rural road tearer-upper, damn intimacy, and everything, your child in school, dragging through the city to rob the bank, pick up a box of wine Piggly-Wiggly – speed three leaves more outward The competitors in the dusty … so the smooth operation, so delicate and comfortable. Once again, the new Yamaha FZ-10 cruise control system. Stay tuned for Striple R fares. And EBR 1190 SX. And Aprilia Tuono RR! We got everything to work.
| 2016 Triumph Speed Triple R | |
+ Highs
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– Sighs
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| 2016 Triumph Speed Triple R Specifications | |
|---|---|
| MSRP as tested | $14,900 |
| Engine Type | DOHC liquid-cooled inline 3-cylinder; 4v/cyl. |
| Displacement | 1050cc |
| Bore x Stroke | 79.0 x 71.4mm |
| Compression Ratio | 12.25:1 |
| Horsepower | 124.2 hp @ 8900 rpm |
| Torque | 76.1 lb-ft @ 7900 rpm |
| lb/hp | 3.85 lb/hp |
| lb/lb-ft | 6.28 lb/lb-ft |
| Fuel System | Multipoint sequential fuel injection |
| Transmission | 6-speed |
| Final Drive | Chain |
| Front Suspension | Öhlins NIX30 43mm inverted fork; 4.72 in. travel, adjustable spring preload, rebound and compression damping |
| Rear Suspension | Single Öhlins TTX36 shock; 5.1 in. wheel travel, adjustable spring preload, rebound and compression damping |
| Front Brakes | Dual 320mm discs, 4-piston Brembo calipers, switchable ABS |
| Rear Brakes | 255mm disc, Nissin 2-piston slide-type caliper, switchable ABS |
| Front Tire | 120/70-17 |
| Rear Tire | 190/55-17 |
| Seat Height | 32.5 in. |
| Wheelbase | 56.5 in. (1435mm) |
| Rake/Trail | 22.9°/ 3.6 in. (91.3mm) |
| Curb Weight, MO scales | 478 lb. (maybe a lb or 2 less due to carbon-fiber bodywork?) |
| Fuel Capacity | 4.1 US gal. |
| MPG | 40 mpg |
