TRIUMPH SPEED TRIPLE 1200RS 6TH
It seems really harsh ranking the Speed Triple 1200RS in second to last position, but the truth is we are over the moon that there is a Triumph in the test at all. By designing a brand new Speed Triple from the ground up, with much more power and much less weight than the outgoing 1050 Speed Triple, Triumph has got itself an invitation to the party that it otherwise wouldn’t have got.
We’re not talking small numbers, either. To make the jump from naked to supernaked, the already brilliant 1050 Speed Triple had to shed 10kg and gain 29bhp to improve its power-to-weight ratio by a massive 26% – and what a difference it has made to one of Triumph’s longest-serving models.
Relative to the previous 1050, the 1200 is a giant step forward... but relative to the rest of the bikes in the class, it’s still got some way to go, especially in terms of technology. Having said that, at the time of writing this, Triumph has released a series of teasers for a Speed Triple 1200RR which may well address that particular issue – we shall see. The Triumph is one of only two bikes in the class to have been designed bespoke as a naked bike; the other is the KTM which, coincidentally, is also the only other bike in the test to not have electronic suspension. All the other bikes in the class have been derived from a sportsbike sibling and have suspension that can be manually adjusted with the press of a button, can actively adjust itself on the move, and also dial in pre-set settings depending on the riding mode selected. The Triumph has none of that, and while it does have an IMU reading the bike’s pitch, yaw and roll, there is no independent anti-wheelie control – although strictly speaking, some anti-wheelie is present via the unadjustable traction control. The traction control can be disabled via the rider
mode, and that’s about it. All the functions are pre-set and can’t be tweaked.
I’d gladly swap the connectivity (I can’t imagine anything worse than having my phone connected to me via the bike), the keyless ignition which I loathe with a passion on all motorbikes and cars, the cruise control and the dozens of different screen configurations (none of which I really liked) for the ability to switch the antiwheelie off and dial down the traction control to a much lower level than is pre-set. I find it amazing that someone somewhere has made the decision to fit an IMU to the Speed Triple and only use a tiny fraction of what it can do.
I’d also like to be able to adjust the engine braking as I feel there just isn’t quite enough – as though it’s being electronically managed, but I can’t. Shutting the throttle on a 1200cc three-cylinder engine shouldn’t feel much the same as it does on something with half the engine capacity, yet it does on the Speed Triple. I’d really like to feel the engine working harder on a shut throttle.
The Speed Triple 1200RS is by far the most basic supernaked with the least number of features and tech, which is the main reason it has ended up being ranked so low. However, it’s not all bad news for Triumph, far from it.
What the Speed Triple lacks in toys and tech, it makes up for with that magnificent 1160cc three-cylinder short stroke engine, a compact chassis, top-spec Öhlins suspension and equally posh Brembo Stylema brakes, making the whole experience of riding it a lot of fun. The Speed Triple is absolutely not wanting for more power or better handling – take note MV, the Triumph “only” makes a claimed 177bhp to your claimed 205bhp yet is much, much faster from point A to point B and it does much better wheelies. Sometimes less is more, and the Speed Triple certainly subscribes to that approach.
The riding position of the Triumph is quite tall and narrow at the seat and wide at the handlebars, which really lets you get hold of it and throw it about and lean on the superb Öhlins suspension. The engine, brakes and suspension are absolutely the stars of the show and really work well together to deliver a very refined and complete package that
manages the balance of agility and stability really well. It’s got the same wheelbase as the 1050, but thanks to the more compact engine it has a 74mm longer swingarm that’s mounted 10mm higher – which, in terms of chassis geometry, is a huge change in layout aimed squarely at better stability, especially under power, while the Öhlins TTX36 rear shock and 43mm NIX30 forks deal with the bumps and weight transfer.
In terms of the Speed Triple’s hardware package, there is very little to complain about
– it all works a treat. The whole appearance of the bike is bang on the brief for a supernaked. There’s lots of the frame, engine and exhaust headers on show, unlike some other bikes on the test that, if we’re being honest, do have a bit too much bodywork to really be called naked –
The Speed Triple is exactly what it is: despite being a totally new bike, it is an evolution of the 1050 Speed Triple. It has carried over the 1050’s manners, composure and ease of use, which is absolutely a good thing, but in my book a supernaked has to have an element of awe and even a little bit of intimidation that the Triumph is missing. It’s got itself into the party but didn’t get the message that it’s a lairy house party and not a dinner with the neighbours.
The Speed Triple 1200RS is a genuinely brilliant bike, and it is entirely possible that due to sheer bad luck with the timing of when I’ve sat down to write this test that Triumph has already got all the things we’ve marked the Speed Triple down for covered with the soon-to-be-announced Speed Triple RR. But on this day in history, when we finally got to bring a Triumph along to our annual supernakeds test for the first time, it came up short in a few areas in a class that’s grown rapidly in recent years and which
manufacturers are consequently throwing the kitchen sink at in terms of power, tech and style. The supernaked class is now packed with fully-loaded bikes that are mind-blowing to ride and offer a similar level of rush that a superbike can.
In a lot of ways, it is too refined and too well behaved for its own good. It may seem odd that we’re marking down a bike for being too nice, and I suppose that is what we’re doing.
The Triumph is one of the best handling bikes here and has one of the easiest engines to get along with – another way of saying it’s the easiest to do massive wheelies on and it is a lot of fun, so in real terms there really isn’t
anything to complain about. But it does shine a light on just how better equipped the other bikes are and how they are just that bit more edgy; it’s the lack of equipment that’s the Triumph’s biggest weakness in this company.
That said, there is no getting away from the fact that the new Speed Triple 1200RS is a seriously fast motorbike loaded with very high-quality components that combine to be one of, if not the most powerful and sophisticated Triumphs ever made. The naked bike class is where things are moving in the market today, and it’s no coincidence that manufacturers are increasingly looking to expand their naked bike offerings.
Instead of dwelling on the fact that it’s finished so low in the rankings, more than anything we are mostly just grateful that this year the class has a new member and that Triumph has taken the plunge to join in with the fun.