What to look out for...

Owners and mechanics highlight the weak spots

1 ENGINE/TRANSMISSION Usually reliable but they don’t like being thrashed from cold and can end up smokey, rattly and use oil. Make sure you see a bike started from cold — a bit of smoke is ok but should clear.

Camchain noise is very common. Early ones had a mechanical ratchet adjuster and they can sometimes be noisy when cold if between clicks on the adjuster. You can sometimes fix it by accelerating hard in second and then throttling off just as hard - this puts all the slack in the camchain in one place, so the tensioner can sometimes take up the slack by picking up the next notch in the ratchet.

Beware other ‘advice’ from the internet though, says marque specialist Clive Wood: “One thing I’ve seen on the forums which scares me is people recommending loosening the CCT fixing bolts, letting the ratchet take up the play then tightening again. That means the ratchet’s jumped four or five teeth and the chain will be far too tight.” Later ones are part-hydraulic and should quieten down after a few seconds.

The gearbox isn’t the slickest but it shouldn’t jump out of gear or hit false neutrals. Over-tightening the drive chain makes the shifting worse — make sure there’s 30mm of slack in the chain. 2 TUNING/FUELLING Lots of owners complained about a flat spot/hesitation when grabbing a handful of throttle. This can be worse with an aftermarket exhaust which causes the engine to run even leaner. On early bikes it’s possible to tweak fuelling using TUNEECU software and a laptop (from 2013 it’s tamperproof), but unless you know what you’re doing, you might make it worse. Before you do anything, though, make sure the throttle bodies are perfectly balanced and the throttle free play is set correctly — makes a big difference.

3 ELECTRICS Nothing hugely troubling, but a lot of owners had switchgear faults caused by water ingress — the clutch lever switch seems particularly prone to this. There were reports of the wiring at the back of the ignition switch failing, as well as with the plastic insulation on the main wiring loom degrading — easily cured with cloth loom tape. Several owners also had the bike cut out when the main battery earth connector had come off the cable — worth checking.

Regulator/rectifier failure was common on earlier models — later models have a better version. It’s easy to retrofit.

4 OVERHEATING Overheating after a service is not uncommon, as you have to bleed the coolant system carefully to get rid of all air, otherwise you get an air lock and the system boils. Best is to take the rad cap off, run the engine and rev it up while tilting the bike from side to side until no more bubbles appear. Don’t overfill or it’ll spit the excess out through the overflow when hot. Check the whole system for leaks too.

5 USEFUL TWEAKS Lots of owners recommend Triumph’s gel ‘comfort’ seat — the standard seat is a bit minimalist. If you want to carry a pillion, invest in some grab handles — not fitted as standard. A chain oiler’s a good idea too, unless you’re prepared to obsessively clean and lube the chain manually. Neglect it and you’ll be replacing chain and sprockets by 10k miles. Some base model owners recommend a Daytona rear shock but others say the spring’s too hard and it spoils the ride. A Honda CBR600RR shock is apparently a better

compromise and fits straight in. Windblast is an issue as standard — the genuine Triumph accessory flyscreen is surprisingly effective. Most owners fit crash bungs/sliders, with Evotech and R+G being the most popular options. Evotech also makes a neat radiator guard — the standard rad is vulnerable to stone damage. A mudguard extender is worthwhile too, as is a hugger.

6 LOWERING Lowering kits are popular but according to Clive Wood, they’re not the way to go: “I see a lot of bikes and people have bought a kit from ebay, lowered it 40mm and ruined the handling. You don’t need to change the dog bones, it’s easy to lower the bike enough for most people. With the wheels on the floor, loosen all the bolts in the rear suspension linkages. There’ll be a ‘clunk’ as all the joints settle. Then take a couple of rings of preload off the rear spring. That’ll lower the rear by about 25mm. Now move the forks up through the yokes by about 15mm to restore the balance.” And it’s free!

7 RECALLS Several official VOSA recalls for the Street Triple. Very early (2007 build dates - VIN numbers from 316225 to 343763) models had a potential rear shock seal failure, and were recalled to have an upgraded shock fitted.

Bikes built in late 2011 were fitted with a bad batch of wheel bearings (like most Triumph models) which could fail early.

All models up to early 2013 had flimsy indicator stalks which could disintegrate - the wrong material used at the factory.

Bikes built from mid-2012 to mid-2013 were recalled for a faulty neutral light indicator switch and detent spring which could mean the clocks would show neutral when the bike was in gear.

8 GENERAL CONDITION/DAMAGE Owners reckoned the finish was either excellent or rubbish. If you look after it (and many owners do), you can keep it looking good, but it won’t tolerate neglect. Engine paint, nuts and bolts and exhaust headers all look tatty quickly if ignored in bad weather. It’s worth removing, greasing and refitting as many minor fittings as possible — they can seize remarkably quickly. One important check is to look carefully at the headstock-to-frame welded joints — these are prone to cracking in frontend impacts, so look for cracked paint and if in any doubt at all, walk away.

“If you look after it, you can keep it looking good”