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Pre 07- post 08 1050 Sprint differences

1K views 10 replies 7 participants last post by  Stevienh 
#1 ·
I know all the things that were changed in the 08 model, but my question is do they make that much difference?
Are the lights a lot better?
The steel tank is something I would prefer, but I have no experience with the nylon one.
Anything else really stand out?
I've found a red 2007 with all that I want with 40,000km in great condition, but I also found a silver 2009 for not much more.
I have a red 2001 VFR800, so would like to keep the theme.
 
#3 ·
The 07 is an improvement over the 05 or 06. Better fueling, mirrors are clear at speed, fairing openings are larger for great dissipation. 08 gave this plus a steel tank. I had an 05 for many miles then sold it for a low mile 07 which I plan to keep forever. It's an incredibly capable do-everything bike. Good luck!
 
#5 ·
The 1050 Sprint and Speed Triple for MY2007 should incorporate all the changes over the 2005/2006 models that Triumph announced. What happened was that the changes seem to have been drip fed through 2007. Some 2007s got the metal tank but were delivered with the v1 Keihin ECU and some plastic tanked models got the v2 Keihin ECU. There are even cases of some Sprint engines having been built with the forged internals (pistons, rods etc) from the last Daytona 955s that were thought only to have been used in the 1050 S3. Trouble is there doesn't seem to be a definite VIN cutoff. I tend to group the 1050s as '2005 - early 2007' and then 'late 2007-2010'.
I have a cutting from a Cycle World review of the time that discusses this very issue as some owners were peeved they had not got all the changes that were advertised. If I can find it I'll post it here.
 
#9 · (Edited)
For what it's worth, these changes were improvements, certainly, but not necessarily show-stoppers. The 05-06 Sprints may be a little more ragged around the edges than their slightly younger brethren, but they are not exactly "evil death machines" by any comparison.

Every vehicle is supposed to improve with development - most do, and the Triumph Sprint did - but it's all relative to the starting point. There are several later-year bikes from other makers that don't match up favorably against 1050 Sprints, even the early ones. One example is Yamaha's FZ09. It's a great performer with a wonderful engine, but ask anyone who's ridden both.

BTW, my Sprint is red!
 
#10 ·
Frankly the differences are minor across the range if you're shopping for an ST. The riser revision can be retrofitted to the earlier bikes. I never had a slow starting issue with my 2006. Metal tanks are a plus if you use a tank bag. I use a strap-style tank bag on my bikes with non-metallic fuel tanks. ABS is sometimes handy, but TBH not that big of a deal 99% of the time.

Silver is a faster color than Red though, so keep that in mind.
 
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