is conventional , and with low footrests and high ‘ bars , it was very comfortable . It ’ s not endurospec , mind , the classic fuel tank and the almost bucket seat mean you can ’ t move forward and rearward as freely as you ’ d like , but overall , it works . The Metzeler Karoo STRs gave acceptable service , a good fit for the model . The brakes indeed worked well on the gravel , and in selecting the off-road mode , you could neatly lock the rear ( like you do ). And so , despite its modest ‘ light off-road ’ pretensions , the Scrambler handled the gravel well , being physically small enough that you could confidently push the bike into the gravel corners , weighting the pegs dirt-bike style . The suspension is plush-soft so you ’ ll probably not be hammering it on that account . All things considered , for the model and positioning , it ’ s capable . One , sorry , two things I ’ ve not mentioned : the traction control and ABS . This is on account I never really felt either intervening . Maybe 40 horsepower isn ’ t enough to unstick a good Metzeler in anything other than truly slick conditions . And as for the ABS , again we had good roads and gentle brakes – maybe if there had been the odd scattering of gravel the ABS would have kicked in .
CHEAPER Stopping for fuel reminded us Triumph claims 80mpg for these 400s . Given a 13-litre tank ( don ’ t you just love mixed measures ?) that gives a range of just over 200 miles in the UK or 300km in NZ . That ’ s probably ridden considerately , not hooning the way we were . Equally , sensible people will appreciate the 10,000 mile ( 16,000km ) service intervals – here , Steve from Triumph explained the 400s are cheaper to run / service than any of their competitors .
BETTER There are some good middleweight engines and some not so good . KTM ’ s 390 motor is a peach . Feels best given ‘ full gas ’, boy it likes to hustle . BMW ’ s G310 is very underrated , being a surprisingly strong performer , happy to plug
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