BIKETEST:Triumph Bonneville SE
THIS WEEK we start with a conundrum: How is it that I was almost as fast on the 67bhp Bonnie as I had been over the same roads only an hour before on the 170bhp KMT RC8R?
A. I am such an astonishing rider that I can get the best out of any machine.
B. I am such a complete wuss that I ride every bike just as slowly, no matter what it is.
C. Riding smoothly gets you there just as quickly as riding like a maniac.
Shame on all of you who answered B – this is the last time I write a column for you, you ungrateful swines. Stop reading immediately and go to the Lonely Hearts section. Do not pass Go. Do not collect €200.
Anyway, even if B is true, I suspect the answer may be C, for how often have you been passed by a lunatic doing 130 on a Hondayamasukisaki, only to find them sitting fuming at the next junction?
The fact the Bonneville forces you to ride in a smooth, civilised fashion is the ultimate irony for a bike that was originally named after Triumph’s world speed record attempts on the Bonneville Salt Flats in the 1950s.
The very first Triumph Bonneville, the T120, made its debut at the Earls Court Bike Show in 1958. Back then, it was cutting edge.
Half a century later, as a third of Triumph’s triumvirate of Modern Classics, along with the Scrambler and the oh so lovely Thruxton, it’s an icon of understated civilisation from the moment you start the engine.
The cosmetic differences between the standard T100 and the new SE are a raised fuel tank badge and a tacho to match the classic analogue speedo.
Retro rear light and indicators complete the look, with only the modern-style numberplate jarring slightly.
Even a fuel injection system designed for clean running and to meet Euro 3 legislation doesn’t compromise the styling, with the injectors neatly concealed by throttle bodies that look like traditional carbs and nicely complemented by polished alloy side covers.
For smaller riders, the big difference is that seven-spoke 17” wheels replace the traditional-looking 19” wire-spoke rims, so the seat height is 29.5”.
Seat thickness has also been reduced, rear suspension dropped by a whisker and handlebars moved back and down – all of which is good news for the more diminutive Triumph fan, even if replacing wire wheels with alloys is a dozy move for a bike with a traditional look.
For those of us who are a fairly average 6ft 7”, what this means, apart from the smaller wheels giving a wider tyre selection, is a lower centre of gravity, which means you can fling it in and out of bends with aplomb.
Not fling in the Yamaha R1 or Ducati 1198S sense, of course; more a linked series of curves with a poetry of its own, and as I said at the start, turns you into a much smoother and not much slower rider than you would be on a Japanese space rocket.
Particularly since the wheels and shorter mudguards reduce weight by 19lb, giving the bike’s 67bhp less to haul around, especially if you wind that smooth twin up from 4,000 to the 7,000rpm redline.
As for stopping, at the rear the SE has an authentically Seventies-looking single rear disc, albeit a hefty 255mm disc with Nissin two-piston caliper, while up front there’s an extremely capable 310mm disc with another two-piston Nissin caliper.
All in all, an entirely civilised way for a chap to get smoothly and quickly from A to C.
Those of you who answered B can stop not reading now.
Factfile: Triumph Bonneville SE
Engine: air-cooled DOHC 865cc parallel twin, 67hp @ 7,500rpm, 51 lb-ft torque @ 5,800rpm, multipoint sequential EFI fuel system
Gears and drive: five-speed, chain final drive
Frame: tubular steel
Wheels: seven-spoke cast aluminium, 17 x 3 front, 17 x 3.5 rear
Dimensions: length – 84.3"; width – 29.4"; height – 43.3"; seat height – 29.5"; wheelbase – 57.2"; rake/trail – 27º/106mm
Dry weight: 440lb
Fuel capacity: 4.2 gallons
Price: from €8,150. Bikeworld, Dublin 12, tel: 01-456 6222, bikeworld.ie. UK price from £5,829
(Test bike supplied by Philip McCallen, tel: 028-9262 2886, philipmccallen.com)