But is it a classic? I think so, yes.
Why? FEEL. It has brilliant FEEL
the bike, especially round town. And
that’s where this bike fits its function
like cheese on a cracker, or head on
a beer. It is fantastically nimble.
Let me just repeat that, in case you
didn’t get it. It is fantastically nimble.
I found myself throwing it around like
my former 20-year-old self on my old
flatmate’s ‘74 Yamaha 175 Enduro. This is
a biff-on-your-helmet-and-go kinda bike.
The new 900cc water-cooled High
Torque engine from Hinckley is a
darling, even if first impressions
were a bit ho-hum because it
seemed a bit, well… perfect.
56 KIWI RIDER
But getting out and twisting the right
wrist a couple of times, I discovered the
needle in the licence zone very quickly
indeed. And it certainly encourages swift
transitions from point-to-point on the
map. The engine upgrade offers higher
performance with more peak power,
a significant 18% increase in power
delivery. This new lighter Bonneville
engine also has an increase in torque
and the rev range has increased by a
further 500 – to 7500rpm. So whereas a
couple of years back I felt the 900 was
just a fraction light on steam for long
term ownership, now it’s exactly what I
thought it should be then. A Triumph.