My New Ride, how does it compare?

[Shinn]

I like that bike a whole lot. Make sure you find a dealer you trust though! The dealer here turned me off triumphs for good, lol. And for suspension, check some magazine articles, they can usually recommend a good set up to base off of.

 

[cap'n]

Daaaamn that's a beautiful bike. I'm completely jealous.

 

[Wavex]

I like that bike a whole lot. Make sure you find a dealer you trust though! The dealer here turned me off triumphs for good, lol. And for suspension, check some magazine articles, they can usually recommend a good set up to base off of.

F the dealers! find a local mc shop or do your maintenance yourself... you can also befriend the owner, watch them work on your bike etc etc... something the "dealer" will usually not allow (at least around here).

I'd never taken my FZs to the Yamaha dealer (too long, too expensive, too....etc). Same with my Buell, the only time I went to the dealer is to pick the bike up! Harley will never see my bike in their shop ($1 million dollars for a 10min oil change, no thanks)... granted, the Buell requires virtually no maintenance at all (other than oil/filter) :thumbup:

What's the valve adjustment schedule on the Triumphs these days?

 

[rsw81]

Congrats Abacall, that's an amazing bike. When I shopped my Street Triple R, I also looked at the Speed Triple but felt it was more bike than I was comfortable with. The torque is just monstrous on these motors, even in 675 form. Take good care of her and she'll reward you with seriously maintenance free fun just like the Japanese bikes.:cheer:

 

[Jman]

Very nice looking bike.......what kind of mileage do those get?

 

[abacall]

F the dealers! find a local mc shop or do your maintenance yourself...

What's the valve adjustment schedule on the Triumphs these days?

I completely agree on maintenance, I try and do as much as I can. I plan on keeping this little beauty for a while so I don't mind investing in some of the specialty tools. I also have a good friend with a 08 SP3 so I can probably split the cost with him.
The valve check is every 12K by the book, but it seems that there are almost no cases of them being out of spec until 24K. I'll still check them at 12K though.

Very nice looking bike.......what kind of mileage do those get?

Surprisingly better than my Fazer did with the PC3 and LV exhaust. I was averaging 40 with the Fazer, and I'm at about 45 with the SP3. I think it also has a lot to do with the fact that I'm not wringing it's neck right now though. The bike is really powerful and it still demands a serious amount of respect, especially with all that torque.

 

[rsw81]

I completely agree on maintenance, I try and do as much as I can. I plan on keeping this little beauty for a while so I don't mind investing in some of the specialty tools. I also have a good friend with a 08 SP3 so I can probably split the cost with him.
The valve check is every 12K by the book, but it seems that there are almost no cases of them being out of spec until 24K. I'll still check them at 12K though.



Surprisingly better than my Fazer did with the PC3 and LV exhaust. I was averaging 40 with the Fazer, and I'm at about 45 with the SP3. I think it also has a lot to do with the fact that I'm not wringing it's neck right now though. The bike is really powerful and it still demands a serious amount of respect, especially with all that torque.

I'm going to guess that as you get used to the throttle onthis bike, those mileages will go down. I get around 44-45 on the highway doing 80mph on my Street Triple. I'd be really impressed if that Speed gets the same with all that extra power.

 

[Shinn]

F the dealers! find a local mc shop or do your maintenance yourself... you can also befriend the owner, watch them work on your bike etc etc... something the "dealer" will usually not allow (at least around here).

I'd never taken my FZs to the Yamaha dealer (too long, too expensive, too....etc). Same with my Buell, the only time I went to the dealer is to pick the bike up! Harley will never see my bike in their shop ($1 million dollars for a 10min oil change, no thanks)... granted, the Buell requires virtually no maintenance at all (other than oil/filter) :thumbup:

What's the valve adjustment schedule on the Triumphs these days?

Warranty has to be done with a triumph dealer and the local one is the only one that carries any parts. AS well the local dealer has put in a clause where no company within 60miles can even touch a triumph now. Lots of bs around here. Sucks so bad because I love triumph!

 

[Wavex]

Wow that sucks indeed... I buy most of my parts online, and I am sure you could do that for Triumph too, but good point about the warranty....

That's why I don't get warranties on my bikes I guess (my bikes' problems are usually beyond warranty considerations LOL).

 

[FZ1inNH]

OMG! That is a really SWEET ride abacall! There's a guy at work that has a newer one in white... I drool all over it when he's not looking. I'd love to make it an addition to the stable. He's actually having an issue with starting it after winterizing. He did all the right things, just being a bear to make her stay running for some reason.

Great find! I am green with envy!

 

[abacall]

Thanks for all the compliments. I am really starting to get a better feel for it, at least the power of it, as the twisty roads are still pretty gnarly right now.
While I used to go full throttle on the Fazer regularly, I am VERY timid on doing that to the Speedy. It can lift that front wheel way too easy.
It really is a blast to ride. I'm doing the first round of mods this weekend; short stalk LED signals up front, clean up the pipes from the stickers, Motovation sliders, lube and adjust the chain, and a good 300V oil change. I'm also going to try tinkering a bit with the suspension, can't do too much since I can't really test out the effects in the turns.

 

[abacall]

Here's a new shot of the bike. New signals, sliders, sticker removal, wash, wax, and a lube.

 

[rsw81]

Here's a new shot of the bike. New signals, sliders, sticker removal, wash, wax, and a lube.

Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous!!! I wish my Striple came with the single-sided swing arm like that. Love the look and those killer rims.

 

[jstoof]

Awesome bike im really debating getting the s3 when i get back from my tour but hey if you ever need something from the dealer the bmw of salt lake right off i215 has some great people when i was test riding the street triple (which i loved and hopefully next week get to test the speed 3) But they seem like way good guys and i bet they do a decent job on service hopefully

 

[abacall]

Haven't been in there yet, TBH I hope to avoid it. There are some things I know I'm going to have to go in for (valve adjustment come to mind) but the Triumph is really easy to maintain.
I just went on a 5 hour ride yesterday. It was the first long ride on the Triple and it was a blast. The seat was ok, better than stock Yami but not as comfortable as the Top Sellerie I had. The ergos are fantastic. No wrist aches (I had problems with brake side fingers going numb on the Yami) and no back aches. I could do about 1.5 hours in the saddle before I needed to walk around a little.
One thing I don't like..... The added wind pressure from no fairing makes my neck ache when I'm going 80 for extended periods of time (before I get harped on, speed limits here are 75). Under 65 it's hardly noticeable, but man is my neck sore today. I think I need to find a more aerodynamic helmet.
Other than that, I see no problems touring with this bike. Of course it shines in daily commuting, but it does great long distances as well.
Oh, as for mileage.. I saw an average of 43 MPG over 300 miles. This was combination of canyon riding and highway riding.
I have yet to really test it's handling limits though. I still have 1/4" strips on the rear tire, but I do hang off a good bit. In perspective, I was taking corners faster than I was in the Fazer by about 10% and still have a lot left on the table. I just need more time in the saddle and some confidence in her abilities.

 

[rsw81]

Haven't been in there yet, TBH I hope to avoid it. There are some things I know I'm going to have to go in for (valve adjustment come to mind) but the Triumph is really easy to maintain.
I just went on a 5 hour ride yesterday. It was the first long ride on the Triple and it was a blast. The seat was ok, better than stock Yami but not as comfortable as the Top Sellerie I had. The ergos are fantastic. No wrist aches (I had problems with brake side fingers going numb on the Yami) and no back aches. I could do about 1.5 hours in the saddle before I needed to walk around a little.
One thing I don't like..... The added wind pressure from no fairing makes my neck ache when I'm going 80 for extended periods of time (before I get harped on, speed limits here are 75). Under 65 it's hardly noticeable, but man is my neck sore today. I think I need to find a more aerodynamic helmet.
Other than that, I see no problems touring with this bike. Of course it shines in daily commuting, but it does great long distances as well.
Oh, as for mileage.. I saw an average of 43 MPG over 300 miles. This was combination of canyon riding and highway riding.
I have yet to really test it's handling limits though. I still have 1/4" strips on the rear tire, but I do hang off a good bit. In perspective, I was taking corners faster than I was in the Fazer by about 10% and still have a lot left on the table. I just need more time in the saddle and some confidence in her abilities.

That's interesting, I get about the same mileage out of my 675 motor as you do on the 1050. As for the wind on your helmet... honestly, you just get used to it. Try to think back to when you first started riding and the first time you did the highway, how much strain was on your neck. Then you just didn't notice it anymore as the muscles train for it. The same will happen with this bike. When I first got my STriple, I thought the same thing compared to my FZ6. Now I don't even notice it unless it is a particularly windy day here.

 

[abacall]

That's good to hear. I figured it would get better, guess I just need to ride more.

 

[jstoof]

Do you think you can fit saddlebags on the bag with those pipes? I just see luggage being a problem with it

 

[rsw81]

Do you think you can fit saddlebags on the bag with those pipes? I just see luggage being a problem with it

It is a problem if you don't put a rack on there. I bought a simple iron-bar rack system to put on my triumph that works like a champ.

 

[abacall]

I actually fit the soft bags on yesterday. Yeah, they do rest on the pipes a bit, but the pipes are CF and do not get hot, plus the bags have heat-shielding so I don't think it'll be a problem. I actually slid them back to the point they rest well on the passenger footpegs. Seem pretty stable...