‘Mile after mile and not a single problem’
“My Street Twin’s now done 12,500 miles and it is just three months to its first MoT. My brother owned a Bonneville, which I always liked the look of, so when the Street came out and I saw that it had similar styling to the Bonnie but with the added safety features of
ABS and traction control, it really appealed to me. I took a test ride and despite having not ridden for many years, it felt so planted and confidence-inspiring.
“So far so good, it hasn’t skipped a beat; mile after mile and not a single problem, not a cough nor a splutter. After lockdown and no riding for 10 weeks it started on the button first time – I don’t have a garage so I’ve no way to use a battery charger and it didn’t complain at all. The finish is still great – I keep the bike outside all-year round, as well as riding in all weathers, too. It’s stored under a cover and I regularly use ACF-50, but given the fact this is Triumph’s ‘budget’ bike the finish has held up really well; the shiny bits are still shiny and the paint looks good too.
“It is a lovely lazy twin-cylinder engine and a comfy bike to ride, although when you push the pace on down back roads the ride can get a bit bumpy and it just bounces you around too much, leading to some worrying moments; I should get better suspension but it can be a minefield. I mostly ride it on sweeping B-roads and it can lack the oomph required to do quick, safe overtakes when opportunities are few and space tight. The newer model has 10bhp more but I don’t see anyone saying it makes a big difference.
“I don’t see any reason to get rid of it or trade up. I took a test ride on the Speed Twin but didn’t see enough benefit to warrant the rather expensive upgrade. The
‘I don’t see any reason to get rid of it’
Street Twin is a ‘do everything’ bike; it’s comfy enough to do tours or long rides on, it has the performance to blast round the back lanes a bit. I love it because it is a jack of all trades, yes it isn’t the best handling bike, the most comfy or the fastest, but it doesn’t need to be.”