Triumph Thunderbird Sport
Year: 2000
Color: White/Orange
Mileage: 6500
Overall Rating: Excellent
Modifications: Predator Stainless Steel Cans, Flyscreen,
chrome back rack, front fork guards.
Problems / Resolutions : No real problems encountered as yet.
Owner Review:
I bought this bike last summer. I saw her in a dealer. Low mileage, mint condition, with all the above extras except the exhaust cans. I fell in love with her. Growing up in Glasgow in the sixties and seventies, I always dreamed of having a Triumph Bonneville. I ended up on a succession of rice burners, and by the time I could have afforded a Bonny, the British Bike industry had self destructed.
I had heard and read good things about the new Triumphs, and this bike clinched it for me. Since then I have used it for weekend rides and fair weather commuting. (I am actually proud to be a fairweather biker now, having endured years and many thousands of miles commuting in every kind of pain the Scottish weather could throw at me).
This bike is equally at home pottering along or making good progress through the twisties. Although relatively heavy the wide bars, responsive but not harsh brakes, nicely balanced chassis and relatively narrow profile (when compared with some cruisers that is) mean that when filtering through traffic she is remarkably nimble.
On motorways the curse of the naked bike kicks in, as wind blast would make riding above 80mph for any length of time a painful experience. The seller assured me the flyscreen deflected a lot of turbulence. It certainly did not work for me, and I am not tall coming in at 5ft8in. I rarely use the bike on these roads however, and am content to stick to more sedate speeds.
Bendy A roads and twist B roads are where the fun really starts with this bike however. The engine is a peach. It has torque enough to allow a lazy 'stick er in top gear and forget it' riding style. If up for it however, the handling and available power range through the gears is so good, that rapid and grin inducing progress can be made. These factors and a comfortable upright riding position with good vision make safe positive overtaking an easy prospect.
The sound the engine makes when being worked a little is fantastic. I can only describe it as a howl / growl, and it makes the hairs stand up on your neck. She doesn't burn oil, and is so far, extremely reliable. Starting in damp, cool conditions is an art. You have to experiment with the optimum choke position, but once you have it its a dawdle.
She needs a lot of cleaning to keep the trim looking good, especially in the winter, but when buying this type of bike that is a given. The chain needs regular attention too.
I reckon with panniers, a decent screen and a scottoiler fitted she will make a spanking good long distance tool, a theory which I will test this coming summer. I will post the results of said experiment on this site. As you may have guessed I love this bike and would recommend it to those wanting a change from sports bikes/sports tourers, but still looking for a bit of grunt when required.
Recent Pictures
[ This message was edited by: Levenvale on 2006-02-27 02:38 ]
