Belated NBD & 1k miles review- Triumph Tiger 900 GT PRO
Discussion
For the last couple of years I've been tooling about on a Triumph Bobber. I traded in a Mk2 Versys 650 for it during a period when I wasn't doing an awful lot of long distance riding and fancied a bit of a change. Loved the bike, went like stink with a great noise and was better in the corners than it should ever have been. However a lot of friends that I would go for short rides with (them on Duc/BMW S1000s etc) have decided they're getting a bit too old for that malarky and have bought tourers of one description or another.
After a lot of deliberation I decided that the only bike I was interested in trying out was the new Triumph Tiger 900 GT. I did ponder the merits of a Tracer, or a BMW but decided that I didn't fancy either of them and booked a test ride with my local dealer (Shirlaws Aberdeen). Managed to get a good 80-90 mile test ride covering dual carriageway, A roads, B roads and town riding. Decided it was exactly what I wanted and agreed a PX on my Bobber. Fast forward 2 months and I picked up the bike on the 11th of June with just over two weeks to get some miles done before returning overseas to work.
NBD always exciting, went for the GT PRO with a set of the aluminium luggage (no topbox), crash bars and sump guard.
Went for a quick run, then home to fit the straps for my tailpack and replace the plastic radiator guard with a decent Evotech metal version.
Straight back out again for a run over Cairn O'mount just south of Aberdeen to get used to how the bike rides again.
When I was on my test ride I felt that there was a lot of wind buffeting coming up from the front forks. After re-fitting my helmet chin wind deflector thing and installing a Puig touring screen I found it much much better. I still feel there's a bit too much buffeting around the arms compared to my old Versys but I can live with it.
Went for a run down to Tayside to visit some friends, bumped into a lot of folks on BMWs as it was a cracking day for it. That's the GS 1250 with the 30 litre tank in the background which absolutely dwarfs the Triumph.
I managed to just get the 600 miles needed for the first service within a week and dropped it off at Shirlaws over the weekend whilst I was away. Picked it up the Tuesday and had 5 days to get a decent final run in before travelling to work. A biking friend had never been to Glencoe so we decided that was the route we were going to take.
Final run was North to Inverurie > Huntly > Aviemore > Fort William > Glencoe > Glenelg > Crief > Perth > Back home up the A90
Unfortunately once we got to Fort William it was a lot of very heavy rain showers from then almost all the way back to Aberdeen with storm clouds and showers chasing us all the way back up the road. Glencoe was really low clouds and unfortunately couldn't see the three sisters very well. It made for an atmospheric ride though.
Also spent a good amount of time stuck behind lorries tackling the narrow twisty roads which somewhat spoiled it at times.
So as a summary. Roughly 1k miles has given me a good sense of the bike. Some plusses and minuses:
Plus:
Great engine, more than enough power and torque for any real world application
Quickshifted / Blipper works great
TFT is easy to read in almost all lights that I've experienced so far
Cruise Control is fantastic for dual carriageway runs
Great fun in the twisties for a touring bike
Luggage very easy on/off
Narrow body / low seat height for those of us with a short inseam (30")
Cons:
Seat isn't the most comfortable for a long run as we did (8 hours) but I don't think many bikes would stand up to that
Upgrade to touring screen helped the buffeting but it's not a bubble of calm that you might experience on other big tourers
Not convinced by the change in crank design to give it a bit more character. Its a bit vibey at about 4.2k rpm but not enough to give white fingers or cause any discomfort. But it is noticeable through the bars.
Still haven't managed to get the Triumph app to connect to the bike but I didn't give it a huge amount of tries yet
Plans going forward. Will be looking to fit a GPS mounting bracket and TomTom just above the TFT screen, might look at getting a new end can as it's a pretty easy swap as well. Other than that, just plan on riding a lot more and not having range anxiety (bobber 90 miles for a fuel light was terrible). I fitted a fender extender and also have a rear hugger ready to go one once a new fitting kit arrives.
After a lot of deliberation I decided that the only bike I was interested in trying out was the new Triumph Tiger 900 GT. I did ponder the merits of a Tracer, or a BMW but decided that I didn't fancy either of them and booked a test ride with my local dealer (Shirlaws Aberdeen). Managed to get a good 80-90 mile test ride covering dual carriageway, A roads, B roads and town riding. Decided it was exactly what I wanted and agreed a PX on my Bobber. Fast forward 2 months and I picked up the bike on the 11th of June with just over two weeks to get some miles done before returning overseas to work.
NBD always exciting, went for the GT PRO with a set of the aluminium luggage (no topbox), crash bars and sump guard.
Went for a quick run, then home to fit the straps for my tailpack and replace the plastic radiator guard with a decent Evotech metal version.
Straight back out again for a run over Cairn O'mount just south of Aberdeen to get used to how the bike rides again.
When I was on my test ride I felt that there was a lot of wind buffeting coming up from the front forks. After re-fitting my helmet chin wind deflector thing and installing a Puig touring screen I found it much much better. I still feel there's a bit too much buffeting around the arms compared to my old Versys but I can live with it.
Went for a run down to Tayside to visit some friends, bumped into a lot of folks on BMWs as it was a cracking day for it. That's the GS 1250 with the 30 litre tank in the background which absolutely dwarfs the Triumph.
I managed to just get the 600 miles needed for the first service within a week and dropped it off at Shirlaws over the weekend whilst I was away. Picked it up the Tuesday and had 5 days to get a decent final run in before travelling to work. A biking friend had never been to Glencoe so we decided that was the route we were going to take.
Final run was North to Inverurie > Huntly > Aviemore > Fort William > Glencoe > Glenelg > Crief > Perth > Back home up the A90
Unfortunately once we got to Fort William it was a lot of very heavy rain showers from then almost all the way back to Aberdeen with storm clouds and showers chasing us all the way back up the road. Glencoe was really low clouds and unfortunately couldn't see the three sisters very well. It made for an atmospheric ride though.
Also spent a good amount of time stuck behind lorries tackling the narrow twisty roads which somewhat spoiled it at times.
So as a summary. Roughly 1k miles has given me a good sense of the bike. Some plusses and minuses:
Plus:
Great engine, more than enough power and torque for any real world application
Quickshifted / Blipper works great
TFT is easy to read in almost all lights that I've experienced so far
Cruise Control is fantastic for dual carriageway runs
Great fun in the twisties for a touring bike
Luggage very easy on/off
Narrow body / low seat height for those of us with a short inseam (30")
Cons:
Seat isn't the most comfortable for a long run as we did (8 hours) but I don't think many bikes would stand up to that
Upgrade to touring screen helped the buffeting but it's not a bubble of calm that you might experience on other big tourers
Not convinced by the change in crank design to give it a bit more character. Its a bit vibey at about 4.2k rpm but not enough to give white fingers or cause any discomfort. But it is noticeable through the bars.
Still haven't managed to get the Triumph app to connect to the bike but I didn't give it a huge amount of tries yet
Plans going forward. Will be looking to fit a GPS mounting bracket and TomTom just above the TFT screen, might look at getting a new end can as it's a pretty easy swap as well. Other than that, just plan on riding a lot more and not having range anxiety (bobber 90 miles for a fuel light was terrible). I fitted a fender extender and also have a rear hugger ready to go one once a new fitting kit arrives.
Edited by RichTT on Tuesday 13th July 07:36
Nice!
Isn't that just the OEM sump guard though? As in, it already comes with the bike? I was gonna replace mine with a more sturdy on once they're back in stock.
I went with the Triumph metal rad guards, as I also thought the plastic ones were a bit crap.
Why the need for a rear hugger? I feel like the tail does a decent job of keeping any water off your back.
Isn't that just the OEM sump guard though? As in, it already comes with the bike? I was gonna replace mine with a more sturdy on once they're back in stock.
I went with the Triumph metal rad guards, as I also thought the plastic ones were a bit crap.
Why the need for a rear hugger? I feel like the tail does a decent job of keeping any water off your back.
Bob_Defly said:
Nice!
Isn't that just the OEM sump guard though? As in, it already comes with the bike? I was gonna replace mine with a more sturdy on once they're back in stock.
I went with the Triumph metal rad guards, as I also thought the plastic ones were a bit crap.
Why the need for a rear hugger? I feel like the tail does a decent job of keeping any water off your back.
Sump guard is OEM but its an option, the standard bike comes with a black plastic job and doesn't protect the downpipes as much. Not that I expect to be doing any offroading. It's definitely a vanity option for me. You can see here on the demonstrator I had. Isn't that just the OEM sump guard though? As in, it already comes with the bike? I was gonna replace mine with a more sturdy on once they're back in stock.
I went with the Triumph metal rad guards, as I also thought the plastic ones were a bit crap.
Why the need for a rear hugger? I feel like the tail does a decent job of keeping any water off your back.
Rear hugger because I live in Scotland and ride all year round. The less grit and salt that gets into the rear shock the better.
RichTT said:
Sump guard is OEM but its an option, the standard bike comes with a black plastic job and doesn't protect the downpipes as much. Not that I expect to be doing any offroading. It's definitely a vanity option for me. You can see here on the demonstrator I had.
Rear hugger because I live in Scotland and ride all year round. The less grit and salt that gets into the rear shock the better.
Ah good to know. Didn't realise the sump guard was optional, it came std on the Rally Pro. I still think I need a better one though.Rear hugger because I live in Scotland and ride all year round. The less grit and salt that gets into the rear shock the better.
Good point about the hugger.
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