Triumph Speed Triple 1200 RS
Has Triumph gone too lairy with its new Speed Triple 1200 RS?
Is the new one too hardcore?
TRIUMPH’S SPEED TRIPLE has come a long way in its life. Initially starting out as a stripped-back Daytona in 1994, by the time the 1050 version came out in 2005, the firm’s sportsbike had been killed off and the Speed Triple was designed purely as a naked. As the supernaked class grew throughout the 2010s, the 1050 evolved but with its competition basing their bikes around existing sportsbike chassis, the Triumph (even in RS guise) was always the more road-orientated option as the firm lacked a suitable donor bike. For 2021 this has changed as Triumph have gone full-on with the all-new Speed Triple 1200 RS - and it’s got tech and power in abundance.
The Speed Triple 1200 RS has an all-new triple motor at its heart. A big-bore/ short-stroke design, it has not only grown in capacity, it is also far more powerful and faster-revving than the old 1050. Packing a claimed 178bhp, it is up nearly 30bhp on the old motor yet it also gains 6lb·ft of torque — and the power curves shown demonstate the gains are more focussed at the top-end of the rev-range.
A huge part of the charm of the old Speed Triple came from its motor, which was beautiful to use on the road thanks to its relaxed and torque-laden power delivery. The new engine is a different kettle of fish and while it is blisteringly fast, it demands respect and concentration.
There is still the same amount of torque low down but where the old bike would pick up speed with fluidity, the new engine pulls extremely hard once you cross the midrange point, as nearly 180bhp is unleashed. It’s undeniably thrilling, and the gearbox, with its up/down quickshifter, is sublime but on a naked road bike, it’s at the limit of usable performance.
Again, Triumph has made a very definite decision to chase the performance market with the new RS and you get a full-on electronics package with a six-axis IMU to go with a more-agile chassis, Öhlins suspension and Brembo brakes. But it doesn’t gel as well on the road as it could.
The RS feels unforgiving and hard work on anything other than brain-out blasts along a smooth section of tarmac. As standard, the suspension has little give, making it feel unresponsive in low-speed corners and delivering a wrist-bashing ride
over bumps, while the Brembo brakes are very all-or-nothing until you adjust the ratio on the master cylinder (it has three possible settings).
But there is more to come — I’m hoping a session adjusting the suspension to make better use of the travel and setting the bike up can allow more give and help unearth its true potential. It needs to be more compliant and friendly, but we think the potential is definitely there.
It’ll need that to be as convincing as the machine it replaces. For many riders, a huge part of the appeal of the old Speed Triple was its ease of use on the road. It was relaxed, easy-going and fun to ride at normal speeds but the new RS is a full-on supernaked with sportsbike handling and all the associated traits that this brings with not all of them are good for road riding.
We reckon it just needs to be reined in a bit and would love to experience a more chilled-out S version of the Speed Triple with softer suspension and a more easy-going, real-world power delivery.
If you liked the old relaxed but sporty Speed Triple, you might struggle with the new RS. Uncompromising, it feels like it is designed for smooth roads or tracks, not bumpy B-roads. We’re looking forward to trying to set one up to work better on British roads, because we reckon there is more to come.