2013 Triumphstreet Triple R

2013 TriumphStreet Triple R

ROUNDUP

QUICKRIDE

Messing with success

THE STREET TRIPLE IS THE best-selling Triumph worldwide (with over 50,000 sold in the last five years), so the 2013 model tries not to mess with success too much. The most obvious difference is the new low-slung, GP-style exhaust, which is responsible for about 8 of the 13 pounds the bike has lost, but there's a new frame and swingarm, too. While the engineers were at it, they came up with a new subframe and a lighter rear wheel and brake caliper. It all adds up to 52 percent of the new bike's weight being on the front Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa contact patch, compared to 49 percent previously.

As before, the R model gets a three-way-adjustable, piggyback-reservoir shock that's longer than the vanilla bike's and provides 0.4 inches more wheel travel (5.3 in.), which is also why its seat is 0.8 in. higher and its rake a tad steeper (23.4 vs. 24.1 degrees). The fully adjustable 41mm Kayaba fork gets a touch more wheel travel (0.2 in.) than the standard model's. Also like be fore, the R model's four-piston radial-mount front brake cali pers are almost too powerful in their initial bite when many times, all you want is a tiny nibble. What's new this year is standard ABS for both models in the U.S. market.

First gear-is~a bit taller, and Triumph says recalibr~t11r thëTuel injection has made' the bike an impressive 30 percent less thirsty in urban use. (Our `12 model got 41 mpg in mixed use.) The EFT tune also includes a "kicker" function that opens the throttles slightly during decel for reduced engine braking. It works well enough to make people assume the bike has a slipper clutch.

Battling strong headwinds at 8000 rpm and 90 mph on the Spanish motorways was not the bike's forte, but once into the pine trees, ancient farmhouses and curves, the little Triple was in its element. The tighter the road, the better the ST liked it. Though rake is about three-quarters of a degree steeper, trail on the R at 3.7 in. is a tenth of an inch longer (compared to the `12) thanks to an increase in fork offset. That's a quick-steering num ber, and with its wide handle bar and light weight, this is a motorcycle an expert rider could really snap into corners. As for me, I had to remember to squeeze the tank with my thighs so as not to put too much input into the bars. a

The little three-cylinder remains a favorite, with a more-or-less flat powerband that begins making usefully sporty power as low as 5000 rpm and puts out a raspy, classic Jaguar burble the whole time. Triumph's claim of 106 horses translated to 94 rear-wheel ones on our Dynojet dyno last year. The accessory Arrow stainless slip-on fitted to my bike at the press launch in Spain had its "sound deflector" removed from the end cap; even so, it was acceptably quiet while producing a couple addi tional horsepower, according to Triumph. It only removes about a pound of weight, though.

The "Intellishift" quickshifter, dependent on gear loading and speed, is another nice option for people who plan to do track days; on the street, I can take it or leave it.

Is it way better than the old Street Triple? Actually, it is: Triumph really has upped the overall package in a lot of subtle ways, and you'll love the standard ABS the first time somebody turns left across your bow. The new exhaust is a big improve ment; undertail is so `90s. The R is a lot of good, ev eryday-usable sportbike for $9999, although most of us could be just as happy, $600 wealthier and an inch closer to the pavement with the reg ular model. But the R is new, it's improved, and it is what it was: one of Cycle World's favorite motorcycles.

Both the Street Triple and Street Triple R should be in showrooms by January.

John Burns

$9999

"The tighter the road, the better the ST liked it."