RIDDEN: Triumph Speed Twin 1200

The retro market is one of the strongest sectors out there, and to ensure Triumph stays up at the pointy end of things, it’s just reworked its much-loved Speed Twin 1200 family . Bruce Wilson brings us up to speed. Photos: Gareth Harford/Chippy Wood

Roughly a third of Triumph’s sales can be attributed to its old-school themed range. From Scramblers to Bobbers, it’s fair to say the British brand knows how to build a modern classic, and one of its best sellers is the Speed Twin. Since 2019 it’s sold around 20,000 units, and that’s a figure that’s sure to rocket higher thanks to the introduction of not one, but two new Speeds.

Built around a similar foundation, the new Speed Twin 1200 and Speed Twin 1200 RS are well-thought-out enhancements over the smash hit iteration that came before them. Despite being slightly different, mainly owing to an onslaught on fancy shiny bits on the higher spec RS version, that and the base option share lots of key components such as the next generation’s enhanced frame, remodelled fuel tank and polarising TFT, cylindrical dash. They also sport the same, freer flowing exhaust systems, that have played a big role in making the model Euro5+ compatible, while the fitment of cornering ABS and traction control are also common on both models.

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With the base bike costing £12,495 and the RS £14,495, you’d be right to wonder what the pricier option has over its sibling? Well, having pricked my ears during the Speed’s presentation in Mallorca, it hit home that the main differences include uprated suspension, sportier ergonomics, the fitment of a shifter/blipper system, and the inclusion of an additional riding mode; you get Sport, as well as the Rain and Road options found on the base bike. A slightly nicer seat also joins the mix, but both bikes feature the same, larger-than-life centrepiece – the bettered 1200cc, parallel twin motor.

New throttle bodies, the aforementioned new exhaust system, new cams and a modified cylinder head have come together to bring the bike an additional 4bhp, which is no mean feat at a time when blowing hot air could have you hauled up in court for killing the planet. Admittedly, I was a little startled to learn that the peak output of the bike was just 104bhp, but my blood pressure returned to normal when it was said maximum torque from the twin was a whopping 112Nm. Whichever way you look at it, that kind of output cannot be sniffed at, and, considering this was my first-ever ride on a Speed Twin, I was gagging to see if that motor was a mad as the figures alluded it would be.

Kicking things off with the base model, just firing the twin into life was something of an experience. Triumph knows a thing or two about building bikes with exciting soundtracks, and this machine was bang on trend. Even with the stock silencers, the throaty bark emitted with every twist of the throttle got me nodding internally with approval. It certainly sounded the part, and it didn’t exactly lack when the time came to slip the clutch and let rip.

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Most twins tend to be quite torquey, but the inclusion of a 270° firing order has no doubt played its part in making the punch of the big machine feel even more zesty and urgent. That said, one thing I picked up was the fuelling maybe wasn’t as crisp as I was hoping, especially in the lower revs, at anything under 2000rpm. You might think I’m being quite picky throwing a stat like that out there, but when you consider this thing’s more in the red than me before payday at 8000rpm, that first 25 per cent of the revs is often accessed and leaned upon. Given time, the motor would pick up with haste and I’d find myself firing off without too much delay, but it was perplexing how weak the motor was in that area, as at anything above that the Speed would feel pretty awesome, racing up to the national speed limit in a jiffy.

With time and miles, I learned to treat the motor that little bit kinder, and to make more of the lightweight clutch that could be leaned upon to add revs and smoothen the bottom end. I was also leaning pretty heavily on the clutch for every up and downshift. The ’box on the bike isn’t the slickest and I’ll admit I was cursing the fact that the base model didn’t come with a shifter/blipper to make life easier. I write these words realising how pathetic that might sound, as not too many years ago such luxuries were the preserve of pukka racers and that was that. But times have changed and systems, like ABS and traction control, are more common than colds.

Of course, dig a little deeper in your pockets and you’ll find the tech at home on the RS. What you won’t find on either spec though, is cruise control or heated grips, and I could have done with the latter because it was bloody freezing and most of the roads were wet. Given that this bike is kitted with sporty Metzeler M9RR road tyres as standard, I did toy with putting the bike in Rain mode for a while, but it proved way too intrusive for my liking, literally holding the bike back until it was sufficiently upright to permit acceleration to the rear wheel. Even in Road mode, the spiciest of the two options on tap, the electronic intervention could still be felt much more than I hoped. The only other option would be to turn the traction control off all together, which I didn’t fancy at that stage as I have a habit of crashing bikes on launches in the wet. Fast-forward half a day and my time on the base model was up. It’d impressed me for lots of different reasons, not least of all how comfy it was, and at how well the non-adjustable suspension tackled the lumps and bumps in the road. The question was, would I notice much difference on the RS?

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The answer to that question is yes. By the time I’d pulled out of the lunch stop car park, the RS was feeling notably different. The higher seat, sportier poise and inclusion of Sport mode meant the costlier bike had a whole different feel to the base machine that just simply couldn’t be ignored. And as for the handling, the adjustable Marzocchi forks and fancy Ohlins RSUs brought a whole other level of competence to it.

While there’s definitely a place for the chilled, slightly less firm feeling base model, the stiffer, more precise handling of the RS was much more up my street, and it didn’t take me long to start exploring its potential on the myriad of bends that our six-hour joyride brought about. I felt so much better connected with the front wheel on the RS and was more inclined to ride the bike in the way that I wanted at all times.

It’s stability certainly impressed me, and while I’d stop short of saying it was anywhere near as agile as the likes of a Street Triple, it could hunt out apexes respectfully for a bike with a kerb weight of 216 kilos. Best still, it was kitted with that much craved shifter and blipper. While the actual gearbox on the bike still wasn’t great, having that tech to use and abuse took the pain out of my ever-changing shift pattern.

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As for the fancy Brembos… well, they certainly looked the part, but I’d argue the Triumph branded options on the base bike weren’t much worse. Ultimately, they could be leaned on to stop me when needed, although I did have a few too many engagements of the ABS for my liking. Unlike the traction control, you can’t disengage that, or switch it to a less intrusive level, so it was more a case of adapting my braking style to that which you’d expect from the typical buyer of one of these.

Truthfully speaking, I was getting carried away on the Speed because it was way more fun than I’d expected, constantly being egged on by the bike’s booming exhaust note that only got better with revs. The more I put into the Triumph, the more it had to offer, both in terms of performance and character. Being so naïve to bikes like this, I couldn’t help but find myself impressed and contemplating whether a bike like this could actually find itself at home in my lifestyle. Personally, I wouldn’t look to one as my main bike, but I could see the virtue in owning one for more relaxed, pleasurable times… which is arguably what a bike like this has been designed for.

It’s a very uncomplicated machine, built with simple pleasure at its heart and there’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, for those that don’t want to go at 200 miles per hour, the appeal is overwhelming, especially when you factor in the bike’s good looks. Triumph is a pro at providing quality finishes to its bikes and I found myself liking all that I was seeing. Even the orange paint on the tank started to grow on me, which is something I never thought I’d admit. Of course, looks are subjective, so it’s not for me to convince you whether this bike looks great, but what I will say is that underneath that classic guise lives a much more modern and playful reprobate. Am I ready to go retro? Well, if bikes like this are anything to go by, I’m keener than I was before.