2020 Triumph Tiger 900 .................. Boothy went on a Moroccan adventure to see just how good Triumph’s new 900cc adventure bikes are.
Ready to swap your leathers for textiles and see the world from a slightly different angle? Adventure bikes are the new black and Triumph’s new Tiger 900 range has got all the bases covered.
It doesn’t seem like two seconds ago that Triumph were launching their last new Tiger range – that’s because it wasn’t two seconds ago, it was two years ago – and I remember being impressed back then not only by the comfort and ease of use of the whole Tiger family on the road, but also their capabilities off-road, too. Particularly the Tiger 800, which with me on board, a very average off-road rider, managed to do things that I reckon plenty would struggle with on a proper enduro bike. Scaling steep climbs, bouncing over logs and railing motocross berms were all par for the course on the Tiger 800, so when an invite landed on the doormat of Fast Bikes Towers for the launch of its successor, the 2020 Tiger 900, I made sure I got my name down for it before Dangerous or Frodo could get chance!
I’ve almost lost count of how many versions of the new Tiger 900 there are, but bear with me and I’ll try and remember them all. Let’s start at the beginning, with the basic model – it’s £9,500, has two riding modes (Road and Rain) and that’s about it for techy stuff. Then there is the 900 GT for £11,100, which also comes in a low seat version for the same price; that’s your mid-spec tourer, but if you’re are serious about getting the miles in then the 900 GT Pro might be right up your street. Its £12,800 and comes with a big 7-inch TFT dash, heated grips, heated seat, cruise control, a ’shifter and My Triumph connectivity system so you can connect your music, satnav, phone and even your GoPro. The standard bike, the GT and
GT Pro all come with Marzocchi suspension.
The other two models in the range are the Rally and the Rally Pro, £11,700 and £13,100 respectively. As the name might suggest, these are the more off-road based options (if the name doesn’t give that away, the wire spoked wheels and crash bars will), with the Rally Pro being the highest spec model, having just about all the tech the GT Pro has, plus an Off-Road Pro riding mode. The Rally and Rally Pro both come with Showa suspension with an extra 60mm of travel at the front and rear.
The six different versions of this bike might all be unique, but they all share the same engine. It’s a new 900cc triple with 10% more torque than the 800 which it replaces as well as 9% more power in the mid-range. But they haven’t just given the bike an extra few cc, they have adopted a 1,3,2 firing order to give the bike a feel (and sound) closer to that of a twin, with a new crankshaft, pistons, con-rods and a whole new lubrication system which uses less oil, helping to shed 2.5kg over the weight of the old 800 motor.
The chassis is lighter too, by 5kg, thanks to a new lightweight modular frame, with each of the different model’s chassis being
THE BIKE DRIFTED GRACEFULLY ACROSS THE SAND, FULLY BROADSIDE UNTIL I RAN OUT OF SPACE – IT WAS BRILLIANT
tweaked slightly to suit the way Triumph expect you to ride them. All the models come with a new 20-litre fuel tank and Brembo’s all-singing, all-dancing Stylema brake callipers. Are you still with me? I hope so, because I’ll be asking questions at the end.
The launch event was in Morocco, where Triumph had a bunch of GT Pros and a bunch of Rally Pros lined up for us to try. The plan was to spend a day on the road on the GT Pro, followed by a day off-road on the Rally Pro. I couldn’t wait to get stuck in.
On the road again
The first thing to smack me in the face (metaphorically) when I threw a leg over the GT Pro was the new dash. Not only is the new screen bigger, it has been bonded to the glass in an attempt to give it a clearer image – and it has worked, even in bright Moroccan sunlight, it was a doddle to see.
Thankfully, despite the GT Pro being one of the top spec Tigers, you still get an actual key to operate the ignition so I slotted it in and fired it up, but the typical Triumph three cylinder whine that I had been expecting didn’t materialise. Instead, thanks to the new 1,3,2 firing order, the engine note was low and thumpy; in fact, if I didn’t know about firing orders and t-shaped cranks, I’d have sworn it was a twin cylinder engine.
It didn’t take much shuffling around on the bike before I’d got myself more than comfortable. You might think that having a 20-litre fuel tank between your legs would cause somewhat of a nuisance, but it didn’t really feel any chunkier than the last one to wrap your legs around.
After a quick scroll through the menus to re-acquaint myself with how the menus and modes work on the Triumph, I slotted her into gear and away I went. Up to this point everything had felt reasonably plush – comfortable, easy and light. It was a bike that I could see myself doing serious mileage on, quite happily.
I’d set off in Road mode with both TC and ABS working which, when riding normally, didn’t cause a problem, but the second you overstepped the mark you knew about it. The slightest wheelie or wheelspin, deliberate or not, caused the TC to quell the power quickly and, particularly in the lower gears, violently, and it would take far too long for the bike’s brain to reinstate the power that it took away. The GT Pro had an Off-Road mode which lessened the interference of the TC and ABS, but not enough to pull mining wheelies and stoppies. TC could be turned off manually, in the Rider Mode, but ABS was mandatory on the GT Pro. If I’m being brutally honest, all the modes and electronic settings did seem like a bit too much of a faff at first, although it’s not so bad once you get used to it.
NO TC MEANT WHEELIES WERE HAPPILY CATERED FOR AND NO ABS MEANT STOPPIES WERE, TOO.
Saddle Time
Once I ectronics exactly where I wan ed them, I started to rea y en my time in th saddle. Should the temperature have been low, I could have turned on th heated seat and grips, but it wasn’t, so I didn’t. For a bit of extra wind protection th screen can be adjusted really easily by sim ly grabbing it, pushing it and pulling it eith r up or down, which certainly helped when ver we found ourselves doing any motorwa miles. Whilst rolling along a long straight rode, I decided to have a play with the different dashboard screen options. There are fou different options, none of which I fell in love with, but they all made sense. I also had a play with the electronic shock, which the GT Pro comes with (but not electronic forks). The preload adjustment is really simple it gives you four options – rider, rider p us luggage, rider plus pillion and rider plu luggage plus pillion – in the name of inve tigatory journalism I tried each and every on of the modes, but I’d be lying if I said I cou d tell a real difference between any of them – I like the thought of being able to simply set the bike up for what it is carrying, though. The damping adjustment on the shock was on a sliding scale from ‘comfort’ to ‘sport’, which when altered was a lot more discernible; there seemed to be a lot more support on hard acceleration with the shock set all the way to the sportiest setting, albeit a little bumpier.
The new 900cc motor is probably the jewel in the new Tiger’s crown. Not only did it sound like a twin, it had quite a few twin-cylinder-like characteristics too. Compared to the 800, lowdown grunt and midrange power were noticeably stronger, but it didn’t seem to the detriment of top end, or smoothness. It wasn’t like an old twin, which would chug away clunkily at the bottom of the rev rage and then run out of puff when you made it rev, it was as smooth as you would expect a Triumph to be. And it might not have had stacks of power (94bhp), but there was enough to get the thing up on its hind legs if you gave it enough of a handful. If you couldn’t tell already, I was a fan.
One small niggle I had with the Tiger was the indicator switch, which is situated right above the ‘switchcube’ (the toggle switch for the rider modes and stuff) – the problem being that both these items feel pretty similar to your thumb. It was a 50/50 chance of getting the right one and I found myself opening up all sorts of menus on the dash, rather than making other road users aware of my intentions. As it happens, nobody in Morocco really cares about indicators anyway so it didn’t really matter, but it would have to be something that I’d have to get used to if I was to ride one in a country with a Highway Code.
Before long we found some saucy little mountain roads with twists and turns galore, which gave me a chance to test out the Tiger’s road-holding capabilities. Now, I know the 900 is the smaller of Tigers, but it is not a small bike, nor is it a sportsbike, but with the suspension set to the sportiest mode, you’d be surprised just what the thing can do. The Brembo Stylema callipers got everything hauled up quick smart and even though it’s a tall bike, you could rail round most corners with your knee down, if you so wished, and the grunty engine always seemed to have enough to pull you out of the turns with purpose.
After a reasonably long day in the saddle, I jumped off the bike with no real aches and pains at all, such were the comfort levels on offer. If I’m being super critical, I did have a slight tingling in my little fingers, presumably from the vibration of the bars, but I only noticed it when I dismounted, and it only lasted a minute or so after I stopped riding so I’m not going to deduct any points for that – I could still hold a pint, after all.
Down and Dirty
Day two of our Moroccan Tiger adventure was spent on the new Rally Pro. To me the rally looks the more aggressive bike and the one that, on looks alone, I’d be keener to see parked up in my garage. Particularly in the Matt Khaki green get-up. The long suspension gave the Rally Pro a tall, imposing stance that the crash bars and wire spoked wheels only added to. And as soon as I jumped on the thing, it seemed to suit my tallish (six foot eleven and three quarters) frame even better that the GT had on the previous day, probably thanks to the 50mm higher seat height.
Electronics-wise everything was pretty familiar, but with the option of Off-Road Pro mode, which I selected for our day of off-road riding. Triumph say this is their most extreme off-road riding set up for an advanced off-road adventure, with ABS and traction control turned off and an off-road throttle map. That’s more like it!
Instantly the extra travel on the suspension was very noticeable. Before we got to our off-road ride, there was a bit of road riding where I was able to get a feel for the bike, and the forks and shock were very soft – for a road ride, you’d definitely want to stiffen things up.
No TC meant wheelies were happily catered for and no ABS meant stoppies were, too. Even before we got off-road, I was having a blast! Before long we were on a long sandy road that led down to beach. Even over some really rough ground the suspension did a cracking job of smoothing the ride out, which gave me loads of confidence to go faster and faster. And then we got to the beach. The tide was right out and the damp sand was billiard table smooth. I could have stayed there all day, powersliding my way round big wide loops and figures of eight. The bike drifted gracefully across the sand, fully broadside, until I ran out of space – it was brilliant, and I quickly forgot that I was on a big 900cc adventure bike. I felt like I could have quite easily been on a motocross bike, or even a speedway bike, come to think of it.
For the most part, our off-road ride wasn’t very extreme – it was mainly gravel roads
and not anything that you couldn’t have taken a car down; it wasn’t really enough to see what the bike was truly capable of, but it was certainly enough to give us a feel of the poise that this bike has when you’re giving it the berries on dirt or gravel roads. The soft suspension and smooth power worked in harmony, allowing you to throw the bike about, over the rocks and bumps, and then drive meaningfully out of any turns. Yes, you do get a bit of wheel-spin, but it was rarely enough to cause a problem, most of the time is just makes you grin. There was the odd occasion when I overdid it, with excessive power; that’s when you remember you are sat on a big old bike and when it goes, you have got to be ready to get your foot on the ground to save it – but that only really happens when you are showing off!
The adventure bike market is a fiercely fought sector in the motorcycling industry and there are some very capable machines. If you are thinking of going down the adventure bike route, then the first question you need to ask yourself is, do you get a big one or a small one (I’m putting the ‘900’ in the ‘small’ adventure bike category – it’s small compared to a 1200)? I know the temptation for a lot of us is to ‘go big’, but if you ask me, a 900 is probably big enough, and if you are planning on doing some off-road adventuring then you can easily find yourself on a bike that is too big. The 2020 Triumph Tiger 900 definitely has a place in the market – the new engine is a peach and the chassis does everything it says on the tin. The top spec Rally Pro might not be the cheapest option in the market, but with six options to choose from, there is a Tiger 900 to suit almost any budget. If I was planning an adventure (and I could afford it), out of the new Tiger models I think I’d have to go for the Rally Pro, but realistically, any of these new 900s would be capable of doing 99% of what most people want. And they’d do it well, too.
Verdict 7/10
Each of these models would be capable of doing almost anything that you’re likely to throw at them, and the top spec models have got some serious tech too – almost too much, though.
LOADS OF OPTIONS
A BIT BUZZY