Triumph Scrambler

Thanks for all the responses about the seat and riding 2 up. Hope to have either a Scram or a new Bonnie in the garage next year. Just need to sell my almost new Concours, not the bike i was hoping it to be.

I don't know if they are all made in Thailand but my 2008 was. It may be the most trouble free motorcycle that I have ever owned. I am not really happy about rusting mirrors and spokes, but I don't spend any time cleaning. I Don't clean the other bikes either though and only the XT shows similar tendencies. I have heard others comment on similar conditions but don't know if those are bikes from Thailand or England. Other than not being able to read the signature of the pinstriper , I don't find much to complain about. My english Triumph Tiger ('72) doesn't have the rust issue or leak oil, of course I haven't gotten it started in a couple of years and it is probably empty.....

Bruce

Then you're not buying a new Scrambler.

My 2006 Scrambler was one of the last to come out of the Hinckley factory. All the Triumph Classics since have been built in Thailand. There is a locked-down thread on the RAT BB about it.

Really, I don't see why the bikes would show more "defects" just because they are made in Thaïland.
My english isn't good enough I'm afraid, to explain why it dissappoints me. But I can think of an example that could explain my point of view: What if Harley-Davidson bikes were made in, let's say Brazil Belgium Philippine or even South-Korea?
Many "purists" would feel betrayed and choose another bike. In my case, I just can't buy "local". But if I were British, American, Italian or even French, I'd try to put my money in a more local bike. What can I buy here in Québec that is local?
An aircraft, a snowmobile, a Can-Am "three-wheeler"...maple syrup... snow-shoes...(even tough most snow-shoes sold here are now "made in China")
I really like the Scrambler. But I'll need my two years to convince me a "Thailand-Triumph" is ok.
Eric

Have a read of this thread if that dose not convince you of how good the Scrambler is then you won't buy one and you will miss out on the most fun bike that is on the market today.

I have a 06 Scrambler & made in England as far as I can work out & a 09 Thruxton which would be a Thailand bike & to be honest the Thruxton is build to a better standard...now that could just be these two bikes or the Thruxton is built better as it's the flagship of the Classic twins..don't know but I don't think it matters where it's from, it's about the ride & the classic look.

Quality is the same at both plants. We sell a boat load of 865 bikes and there is no difference.
And lots of Harley stuff is made overseas. It's how the world works now.

Edited from GTriders.com about a Thailand Triumph factory tour they arranged.

...we wondered through the 3 huge state of the art factories over 4 hours.

...However I will say how totally impressed I was with the state of the art machinery, the quality of manufacture and product, the U.K. regulation work conditions and environment, the Q.C. inspectors and checks at every point of fabrication and the shear size of outfit, these factories produce 62 motorcycles per day!

...The management's attention to detail was extraordinary.
Each production process has been broken down into parts: A,B,C,D etc.
With encapsulated instructions.
Also, where appropriate, testing jigs have been created to check the finished product - holes drilled in the correct place and correct depth etc.
At the end of each process it is checked by a part of the QC team, answering to a separate QC management, checking the finished item before it proceeded to the next stage.
We were astonished to be shown examples of those that had failed the test: a white tank that was covered in felt-tip circles indicating -to our eyes at least- invisible blemishes: too orange here, a spec of dust there.

The same went with the chroming, where we saw a number of the new T'bird engine cases that had failed their rigorous standards.

Another element in modern manufacturing is the need for stringent metallurgical tests.
An ingot is taken from the batch of every casting and checked for its content.
Also each machine is recalibrated before each shift starts work.

You can read the full tour story here:
http://www.gt-rider.com/thailand-motorcycle-forum/showthread.php/29061-Special-Invitation-to-GT-Riders-Triumph-Factory-Chonburi/page2?

My hinkley modern triumph leaked oil. My 2012 modern triumph does not.

So there's that.

What's with all this shizz about so-called reliability issues between UK / Thai built Scrammies?

The facts speak for themselves. High sales and low warranty returns, loads and loads of satisfied customers and a justly gained reputation as a bullet proof engine.

Electronic ancillaries will always be the weak link with any automotive machinery, witness the F1 GP retirements, so just pay your money, enjoy the bike and ride it as hard as you like.

about 3 puddles after this i found myself in one exhaust deep!!! but i failed to take a picture for soem reason

Hey Max, I ordered up one of those Speed Mechant front sproket covers for my Scram because I liked the looks in the side-on pics. Alas, when it arrived I discovered it was disgustingly heavy so I refused to fit it. I have a personal rule that any replacement part must be lighter than the part replaced. I would shudder to think how much extra weight you have added with that finned timing cover knowing how thick the sprocket cover was in its cross section!

To be exact with the above comments, the original sprocket cover weighs .82kg and the Speed Merchant item weighed in at .77kg so I stuck with the MAS sproket cover previously fitted that weighs .2kg. Less weight=better acceleration and handling.

BTW, You bike looks sweet as an overall package!

Hope you like the last mods on my scrambler new seat, fenders, subchassis etc

Hey Sunshine,
The Scram looks great! Did you fabricate the fenders yourself, are they aluminum?
Thx

Great looking bike, that is how the scram should look from the factory.
Much better look, when cut the rear frame

that looks brilliant! if my scram wasn't on finance id chop it like that!

Thanks Griz.
I don't recall my side covers being overly heavy at the time - it is cast aluminum right? And I did not weigh them.
But I agree with you, parts replacement should equal to or lighter than stock.
Thats hard to do here in ADV land. Racks, skidplates, guards, mounts etc all add up to make a bike heavy ...fast.
And everybody adds that crap round here.

Now if I just had a motor like yours, for some real punch.

Careful Eric, where I come from that sort of comment has a bad name ..... My 06 was built in the UK but I don't nessassarily see it as a positive, I'm just happy with the way the bike performs.

ps: the British car industry in the 70's and 80's blows a hole in your theory about who makes quality motor vehicles

Yo hey, what brand are those hand guards and do they fit over stock levers?
Nice pics.

Winter brings less riding & more tuning. One of the last annoying things on “my precious” is the layout of the rectifier under the headlight. Moving it on the place of the horn is frequent although it doesn´t IMHO save the show at all. It still destroys the clean classical lines and looks again somehow strange on that place. Me no likey.
I was looking on other bikes and their rectifiers recently but I still have no satisfactory solution. I´d like to hide it somewhere it the under-seat area... Any suggestions or experience?

BTW this is the weirdest locations I have seen: BMW F800 engine “cooled” rectifier :eek1.