TRIUMPH DAYTONA 675R Triple the fun
T his was one bike I was absolutely gagging to have a blast on. Way back in 2007, when TVs were black and white and everyone went to church on Sunday, I raced the original 675 in the Triumph Triple Challenge series and learned first-hand just how brilliant the Trumpets were.
Fast forward to 2012, and the Hinckley-based manufacturer got the pimp stick out and introduced this version here; the Daytona 675R. It’s very similar to the standard model, although it benefits from goodies like Öhlins suspension, Brembo brakes, a red sub-frame (that’s got to be worth a few tenths) and a few other flowery extras. However, the output was consistent with the inaugural version, producing a healthy claim of 120ish-ponies at the crank, which in reality translates to around 118bhp at the rear wheel on a dyno.
It’s a plentiful amount of oomph, but the thing that’s more important than that peak figure is the way in which this bike makes its power. Triples are considered to possess the perfect compromise of top-end goodness and bottom end grunt, which is exactly what the 675R has to offer. There is usable pull from 7,000rpm that slowly increases in ferocity until you hit the 13,000rpm limiter, with no vigorous yanks or soft spots along the way. It’s a very linear delivery, and on a track as technical as Cadwell, that extra low down grunt quite often mitigates the age-old problem of a corner that’s ‘between gears’, as the Triumph will drive out of most bends in a gear higher than you might think. But if you need to go slinging another gear into the mix, you can rest assured that the stock ’box is a slick operator that’ll put up a fight akin to a puppy on Tramadol. It’s an effortless process, as I was pleasantly reminded while getting my groove on around Lincolnshire’s finest race track.
In the handling department, there’s also plenty to rejoice about. Firstly you should note that the lack of a fourth cylinder narrows the whole bike up dramatically, giving the Triumph a sporty, focused, push-bike feel, with loads of ground clearance on tap and a riding position that’s sufficiently roomy. When I raced the standard 675 in 2007 I had a mega tank-slapper problem that I could only seem to remedy by whacking the steering damper right up. This made the bike a bit of a pig to change direction but the front and rear Öhlins-shod ‘R’ suffers no such ailments. This Trumpet proved embarrassingly nimble, super stable and generally a doddle to ride, craving high corner speeds and being very obliging on the brakes as I went balls-deep trail braking into many an apex. I was also really impressed by the suspension’s high level of feel, which gave me endless confidence and made me want to push harder with every lap. And I would’ve carried on in that vein if Broderick’s ugly mug hadn’t been watching from the sidelines, but I just didn’t have the heart to hand him his bike back in a dozen pieces. In all I must have clocked 30 laps on the Daytona, which was more than enough to fall head over heels back in love with this classdestroying supersport steed.
There are plenty of other middleweight options on the market, but few (if any) can hold a candle to the British built bullet. Especially one of this bike’s spec, which included neat additions such as rear sets, clip-ons, a full race system and double screen. The engine had
also been fettled by tuning supremos BSD, meaning its stock output had been bolstered to 127bhp (after having some light work done to the cylinder head). It might not seem a massive hike of oomph over standard, but the additional power gave this bike the legs to keep litre bikes honest down most straights, and slaughter them in the corners.
Admittedly it’s not the most exciting of bikes to ride, despite the raucous exhaust note from its underslung can, but its ease of use is its biggest virtue. You only need to consider the 675’s racing successes the world over to note how credible a package this is. And they retain their value better than most of their rivals too. Unfortunately, they’re less good at retaining their engine oil, as they do have a tendency to burn a good volume of it when ridden hard, so my parting advice would be to consider the 675R as a perfect track weapon, but be prepared to maintain it properly.