How reliable are modern Triumphs?

[rocker59]

Originally Posted by Foot dragger

they have no relaitionship to old Triumphs except the name.

Originally Posted by Jim K.

Don't confuse the historic triumph brand with the current Hinkleys. The only connection between them is that Mr Bloor bought the rights to use the name.The current Bonneville twins are as reliable as any other Asian assembled bikes.(Enfield excluded)

That's not exactly true...

-Bloor bought "the old" Triumph in Meriden.
-Shut it down.
-Redeveloped the property where the old factory was.
-Licensed production of "old" Bonnevilles to a 3rd party company.
-Meanwhile, he developed the new bikes and built a new factory in Hinckley.

Bloor is the link between Meriden and Hinckley.

[elite1]

I have heard that there is a guy in Brit Iron Rebels that has an 01 Bonnie with over 100,000 miles on the clock. Never opened. Hope my 2010 Thruxton will be as good.

[JustKip]

Originally Posted by cory89123

I was talking with my dad about her choice and he warned me off of it. said "There are only 2 bikes you see dead on the side of the road Harleys and Triumphs."

That was true 40 yeaars ago, except he left out BSA.
There really aren't any unreliable bikes on the market any more, as long as you're not looking at Ural or Royal Enfield from a few years back.

[Scrivens]

Originally Posted by JustKip

That was true 40 yeaars ago, except he left out BSA.

With BSAs you were lucky to reach the road in the first place. I loved mine, but boy did they use up time and money.

One good thing with the huge amount of restoration work going on has been the development of decent bearing replacements/conversions, oil filter systems and quality wiring harnesses and electrics. A late 60's Lightning or Thunderbolt can be rebuilt to be very reliable now and at a moderate expense. Great bikes, always preferred them to Triumphs.

[shizzle]

Modern day Triumphs seem to be quite reliable. There's a German motorcycle magazine called Motorrad. In their 50000km test the Tiger 800xc is the third most reliable motorcycle ever tested.

[Phineas]

To make sure the Hinckley's didn't have issues I think they sacrrificed some performance for durability. They are extremely durable. Everyone I've had has proven more reliable than my VFR much as I love it. My 95 sucked an exhaust valve at 180K, my 2001 Sprint RS hit a dump truck after 40K and in the garage is a 98 Sprint Sport with 36K. It did have some oil leaks from sitting for ten years with 12K on it before I got it so it did mark it's spot for a while.

Back when they first came the manager of Triumph North America said that actually modern Lucas was really quite reliable but they didn't want to here the jokes so went with Bosch and Marenelli.

I have a friend with a Bonnevile that has 90K and rolling. Other than being delivered with an issue with the rear wheel and bearing it's only had normal maintenance.

Buy it. It's not the last motorcycle you'll own and if she likes it it's worth a try.

[KingOfFleece]

I'm not sure Bloor ever bought the Meridian factory. As I heard it he purchased the intellectual rights and trademarks for US $200.000.00 and nothing more. I'd be interesting to know the full story. He also allowed a Brit firm to hand make Bonnevilles for the 6 years he spent setting up the new Triumph. Much of the new company was based on the time he spent in Japan to study Kawasaki and the early bikes from Hinkley show the connection.

http://triumphtalkcom.blogspot.com/2...of-vision.html This may assist.

[cory89123]

[QUOTE=ZappBranigan;20898795]I love the look of the Speedmaster but couldn't get past the forward controls. Mid-control bikes like the Bonnie/T100/Scrambler would probably be more comfortable especially on long rides.

Just a FYI there is a kit to move the controls back several inches to get a more mid/forward control setup for the speedmaster / america.

[sailer]

Originally Posted by Mordgier

My Triumph Sprint was a nightmare and I was glad to be rid of it. I love the bike but the build quality is questionable, dealer service and knowledge (at least at the 2 dealers I visited) was lacking and parts were expensive with long lead time.

With that said - most Triumph owners love their bikes and claim that they're trouble free.

what year ????


that chart looks like it may have some usefull infomation, anyone have any idea what it says ?

[Jim K.]

Originally Posted by rocker59

Bloor is the link between Meriden and Hinckley.

Well...sort of..... Bloor's link is to the Royal Receivers office which he bought the defunct property & name from. They received it from the Meriden Workers cooperative that had been awarded the property & rights when the previous owners Manganese Bronze Holdings went bankrupt in 1977. Manganese Bronze was the holding company that owned Norton Villiers Triumph. They inherited Triumph when they bought the bankrupt BSA in 1972. BSA had bought Triumph in the late '60s, the last time Triumph Engineering was an independent company. Whatever Bloor was a link to, it's hard to call it the "old Triumph".

[JerryH]

Originally Posted by rocker59

That's not exactly true...

-Bloor bought "the old" Triumph in Meriden.
-Shut it down.
-Redeveloped the property where the old factory was.
-Licensed production of "old" Bonnevilles to a 3rd party company.
-Meanwhile, he developed the new bikes and built a new factory in Hinckley.

Bloor is the link between Meriden and Hinckley.

Yes, that is true. Bloor actually "owned" BOTH Triumph companies. The original company which made the old Triumphs known for breaking down, but also known for their sound and feel and "character" I am proud to have owned a 1966 Example. The "new" Triumphs do not use anything but the name, and in the case of the Bonneville, some of the styling form the old bikes. They are brand new. Bloor actually went to Japan, and copied their designs and manufacturing methods. There is some good in this, the bikes are reliable. The bad is they are somewhat like all other Japanese bikes, bland and lacking in excitement. The sport bikes are about equal to Japanese, meaning they do their job, nothing more, nothing less. The biggest cost of using the Japanese motorcycle industry model however, may be that Triumph is building disposable bikes, not designed to be inexpensively and easily rebuilt over and over like the original bikes, and there may be parts availability issues for older models. And unlike the originals, there really isn't much of an aftermarket for the new ones, past accessories and cosmetics.

John Bloor is a businessman, not a motorcycle enthusiast, So I'm assuming he went with the easiest way to make the most money, while still keeping the company (but not necessarily the current bikes) sustainable.

[KingOfFleece]

So, anyway, I work at a multi-line dealer. I suggest you find one and ask the shop guys about which bikes are reliable and all that. I know what we'd tell but-but see for yourself. It'll let you find out all kinds of things.

[BanjoBoy]

Modern Triumphs are purdie solid, but I've known of a few peeps who got stranded when their stator or rectifier went out. Besides that, the engines & trannys are 'bout as good as anythang out there; 'cept yer FZ6 which is lower maintenance, and damn near bullet proof.

Originally Posted by shizzle

Modern day Triumphs seem to be quite reliable. There's a German motorcycle magazine called Motorrad. In their 50000km test the Tiger 800xc is the third most reliable motorcycle ever tested.

Great chart, Harley's at the top.
They actually are purdie reliable when kept stock, and ridden properly. Funny how far down BMW is; those are the bikes I usually see broken down on the side of the road.

[kraven]

Originally Posted by elite1

I have heard that there is a guy in Brit Iron Rebels that has an 01 Bonnie with over 100,000 miles on the clock. Never opened. Hope my 2010 Thruxton will be as good.

I changed a guy's oil at the shop a couple years ago who was traveling around the world on his bonnie. He had about 95k on his, and it had never been opened.

Never had so much pressure to not strip a drain plug.

[ts3doug]

Minor issues with my '07 speed triple. Stator/RR (which was common issue 05-07). Other than that it's been solid and that 3 is a joy.

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