RUST magazine: RUST#32

Triumph Street Scrambler & Ducati Desert Sled
STUFF ABOUT THE…
TRIUMPH STREET SCRAMBLER
Did you know the modern, retro Bonneville
has already enjoyed a longer model life
than the 1960s original that it apes? The
old Bonnie had a life of 15 years (1959-74 –
technically it was longer, but let’s ignore the
terrible decade of attempted but ultimately
futile resuscitations that followed the factory’s
closure). The new Bonnie meanwhile
has been with us already for 17 years. That’s
crazy stuff. Heck, even the Scrambler edition
has been with us since 2006, that’s 11
going on 12 years. So it’s no Johnny Come
Lately. Our point? No point; just an interesting
fact.
This is, though, a brand new Street
Scrambler. When Euro 4 took force in
2016 Triumph needed to implement a new
cleaner engine and so the ‘old’ 865cc unit
got pensioned off and now we have this new
(exactly) 900cc water-cooled eight valve,
fuel-injected lump in its place. Euro4 could
have killed it, strangled it in effect, but in fact
Triumph’s development of this high-torque
(+18% on the previous motor) T100 unit has
made it arguably their best Bonnie motor
yet. Given a 270º crank angle it has that veetwin
style rock ‘n’ roll feel that you’ll never
find in the original (1959) 360º lump and by
setting the power output low and the torque
high they’ve imbued it with a truckload of
charisma.
And this power really suits the Street
Scrambler application, for anyone who’s
ridden a BMW F800GS will know low-end
power delivery is what off-road bikes are all
about (because alas, the old 800GS doesn’t
have it!). Match that with a faultless fly-bywire
throttle, a lighter torque-assist clutch
and a clean-shifting five-speed gearbox and
it makes the Street Scrambler a delight to
ride, on back roads or on main highways for
that matter.
Triumph certainly like to build quality
into the bikes and you’ll see this everywhere
you look on the Street Scrambler – it’s a
joy to look at. And that’s also reflected in
their choice of Kayaba for the suspension.
However, being that this is a Street – not
a dirt or a desert – Scrambler, know that
this suspension is limited in its stroke to just
120mm front and rear. That is not very
much in off-road terms, and we found the
shocks to be a bit lacking in damping, creating
a choppy ride over rough roads, and
certainly this setup is not enough to make it
a credible off-roader. But if you choose your
trails carefully and slow the heck down when
the bumps get too big then it will cope well
enough. The option of the ‘bench’ seat (one
of 150 accessories Triumph make for the
Street Scrambler) would probably be a good
call for off-road, too.
The Scrambler styling criteria clearly have
made for a smaller fuel tank than you might
want for extended rides. Some 12-litres isn’t
that great and although we got a decent
58mpg from our mixed riding, that’s still
only allowing an absolute range of 150 miles.
So cue purchase of a rack and Rotopax clipon
fuel cans for the serious travel rider…
We do, though, very much like the instrumentation
on this bike. It’s a lovely speedo
dial and the digital information display
within sits unobtrusively. And when it comes
to scrolling through the various rider aids
settings (such as ABS and traction control)
this is quick and intuitive. The essence of a
simple bike is never disturbed.
w
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