Ex-Ed Jon Bentman attended the world launch of the new Triumph 400s for KR . After batting the pair mercilessly around the hills above Valenicia ( Spain ), and trying to stay alive in the cut-and-thrust of the downtown traffic , he came away impressed …
Ex-Ed Jon Bentman attended the world launch of the new Triumph 400s for KR . After batting the pair mercilessly around the hills above Valenicia ( Spain ), and trying to stay alive in the cut-and-thrust of the downtown traffic , he came away impressed …
Triumph has come into the 400s market , in a very Triumph – and very not-Triumph – way . These brand new ‘ modern classic ’ Speed and the Scrambler 400s bring the marque ’ s signature style and quality into this small ( er ) -capacity segment , only with an almost uncharacteristic budget-conscious price point . So , not only is Triumph challenging BMW ’ s and KTM ’ s offerings , but they ’ ll be unseating Royal Enfield and the Chinese participants too . The 400s – with engine code ‘ TR ’ ( a heritage reference ) – are a new , lower-cost access point to the brand . Both are feeders to existing ranges , the Speed 400 joins Triumph ’ s Speed Twins and Speed Triples , the Scrambler 400 X joins the Scrambler 900s and Scrambler 1200s . You can see the familial DNA in both . It ’ s all very neat .
It ’ s also all very smart , and while these are the smallest modern Triumphs we ’ ve yet seen ( okay , aside from the soon-to-arrive 250cc motocross bike ), they ’ re not small bikes , both have nearenough full-size chassis , and to the casual observer will pass for their bigger-capacity siblings . Triumph used that IT word ‘ authentic ’ a number of times in their introduction , and yes , these are bona fide Triumph motorcycles . The styling , the attention to detail , very much the quality , is typical high-end Triumph . It ’ s only here and there in certain components , like the non-adjustability in the forks , simple preloadonly adjustment on the shock , the cable clutch , the not-exactly premium Bybre brakes , that you can see how Triumph managed to keep a lid on the costs and hence price . All said , though , these are beautiful creatures ,