The 2019 Triumph Speed Twin has been officially unveiled, with less weight than the existing Thruxton cafe racer, although making the same power from the T120-series parallel twin engine.
Eighty years after the original Speed Twin was revealed in 1938, the new machine won’t be setting the same sort of benchmarks, as it’s a retro-styled roadster at this point, not a high performance bike like the original. Even the Speed Triple, a foundation of the Triumph Line when it was introduced in the 1990s, was a very aggressive machine, but the Speed Twin will not be aimed at a buyer’s emotional response, not their adrenaline gland.
That’s not to say the machine won’t be fun to ride, as it puts out a claimed 96 hp at 6,750 rpm and 112 Nm of torque at 4,950 rpm. Dry weight is supposed to be 196 kg (10 kg less than a Thruxton), fuel capacity is 14.5 litres (making for a range close to 300 km, supposedly), and the bike runs on 17-inch wheels, which means you should be able to fit decently sticky tires.
There are dual disc Brembo brakes up front, with ABS as standard (not leaning ABS, though). The front KYB forks appear to be non-adjustable, and the rear shocks are preload-adjustable only. The rear brake is a Nissin unit, with single disc.
Of course, as this is based on the 1200 cc T120 platform, you get liquid cooling and a ride-by-wire throttle. That, in turn, means you’ve got riding modes (Sport, Road, Rain) and traction control, which can be switched off if wanted.
All pretty modern stuff, and Triumph rounds it off with LED daytime running light, LED and brake light, and LCD inserts in the old-school dial-style gauges.
The Speed Twin will be sold in Silver Ice, Korosi Red and Jet Black paint; pricing will be available mid-January.
GALLERY
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At the bike show in 2016 I saw the speed twin at GP Bikes booth. Simple, cleanly styled and practical seating position and a bargain to boot.
As I (fortunately) get older it’s getting harder to swing my leg over my “arse-up” styled KTM without hitting the rack in the most painful way. The speed twin makes a lot of sense.
Triumph keeps knocking them out of the park !
What a beautiful bike. Modern and light too, should be a lot of fun to ride. Great job Triumph .
My wallet started twitching as soon as I saw this.