Adventure touring bike checks all the boxes
Supremely comfortable, worth the cost
BORMIO, ITALY • Let’s describe the perfect motorcycle shall we? Or at least the perfect motorcycle for your typical fifty-something — OK, sixty-something — long-term biker who has fond memories of strafing back roads and hitting the road for 10 hours straight, for whom typical sport bikes (too crouched over) and/or touring bikes (too heavy) no longer appeal.
The perfect bike, then, would have more than a modicum of power — 120 horsepower would be nice; 140 even nicer — but retain compliant suspension. It would be able to carve a corner, but also have a riding position rational enough to eat up miles. It would also have to be relatively light, yet have all the luggage-carrying capacity of a Gold Wing (actually more, because the latest Honda is cargo-challenged). In other words, the perfect motorcycle is probably an adventure tourer.
More specifically, Triumph’s latest Tiger 1200 XCa might have a shout in at this perfection thing. First of all the engine: Though Triumph makes no claims for increased power (officially, the 1,215-cc triple is still rated at 139 horses and 90 poundfeet of torque) the power certainly feels more usable. Perhaps it’s the new triple’s lighter flywheel which encourages more forceful tugs at the ride-by-wire throttle. Maybe it’s the superior fuelling that makes throttle response, even at low rpm, feel so linear. Whatever the case, the big triple felt like a giant electric motor, so easily did it move the Tiger’s 242 kilograms up even the steepest mountain passes in Europe.
Haring after KTMs and Ducatis through the switchbacks, the Tiger proved fairly fearless as well. Put the topof-the-line XCa version — there are also road-oriented XR variants — in Sport mode, crank up the electronically adjustable TSAS semi-active WP suspension to its firmest setting and the big 1200 tracks through switchbacks with precision. It takes a little work, what with the 242 kg and slowsteering 19-inch front tire, but you really can hustle the big Triumph along. As long as you’re solo.
When fully loaded, you’ll start feeling the Tiger’s weight. Or, more accurately, it’s relatively high centre of gravity. That brilliant triple is a tall engine and the Tiger’s passenger perch is also one of the tallest in the biz and the two make the 1200 a little tippy at low speeds. It would have helped if I could have jacked up the rear shock’s preload to tighten the rake, but that semi-active suspension has an automatic load-levelling function which always keeps the Tiger on an even keel. That’s brilliant in ordinary circumstances — no fiddling with manual rear preload adjusters or even digital adjustments — but a pain when you’re facing the Stelvio Pass’s 48 hairpins and really would like quicker steering.
That said, the 2018 1200 handles better than the previous big Tiger, the XCa — thanks to that lighter flywheel, lighter exhaust system and a few other technical tidbits — having lost about 10 kg. And, truth be told, its slowness of steering on tight switchbacks won’t matter to 99 per cent of North American riders. On equally curvaceous but not quite as constricted roads the Tiger handles a treat.
Much more important, however, is that the new Tiger is even more comfortable than its already accommodating predecessor. Part of that is the easily adjusted suspension damping which can range from a full soft, if a little wallowy, to a seriously stiff Sport setting. The seat, thanks to a new crown shape and different density foam, is even more comfy and the handlebar rise allows an ideal riding position. And the seat, both rider and passenger portions, are heated on the XCa, as are the handlebar grips.
But the biggest difference from the first generation is the new windshield. The new XCa’s windshield is a little larger than on the base XR and XCs and besides being aerodynamically efficient, it is also electronically adjustable. This is the first adventure tourer’s windscreen I wouldn’t immediately replace with an aftermarket item.
The adjustability is not, as is common with most such systems, through a handlebar-mounted button but accessed through Triumph’s new electronic interface. Yes, that sounds like a pain, but the Tiger’s interface is an absolute doddle to use. It finds and adjusts the semi-active suspension, ride modes and even things like odometer settings. Well done, Triumph, for making digital access so simple.
Another big bonus is the Tiger’s available aluminum hardcases. Sourced from Givi, the cases offer 37 litres of cargo capacity while the rear top case swallows 42 L. Besides being rugged, they offer a truly ingenious and simple-to-use single locking and latching mechanism. One key — built into the electronic key fob — serves both locking and unlatching. The bags’ only fault is they are water-resistant rather than waterproof; one monsoonlike downpour did see some seepage, but regular rainfall was totally contained.
All these creature comforts and that great lump of an engine make the new Tiger 1200 an excellent adventure tourer — big emphasis on the touring part — for those who like to rack up mileage in complete comfort. Indeed, there are only two things I’d change. The first would be an override for the automatic, load-levelling rear-spring preload adjuster, something that would allow a rider to calibrate the system for their desired ride height rather than Triumph’s prescribed setting. The other would be making the threecylinder engine more compact, specifically shorter so it might have less effect on the bike’s centre of gravity.
I suppose I could wish for a slightly lower price tag. The top-of-the-range XCa starts at $23,750. Factor in another $2,310 for the powder-coated aluminum bags and another $340 for the (well worth it) tire pressure monitoring kit, and there’ll not be much change from 27 large.
That said, the Tiger 1200 XCa is the most comfortable adventure tourer I’ve tested and worth every penny Triumph Canada is asking.