[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

However there is a part of you that wishes that it was a little more shouty, that it blew your socks off with its performance and thrilled the senses a bit more. You can get used to a bike very quickly and the things that you love at first sight might be the things that you take for granted with the passage of time. It is that unpredictability that keeps the love alive .

Is it possible that you will get bored of your Bonneville in a couple of years? It's worth thinking about.

You have hit the nail bang on! Exactly the thoughts i had in mind when i test drove the bonnie. It ticks all the boxes, but then there is something that it misses. Could not really make up my mind. After spending 7 big ones, i wouldn't want the itch to start in 3 months time. That way a 10k rpm 100+ bhp one at 9 lakh more sense?

I am waiting for this experiment to be done on few of my close buddies and then decide

[speedy]

I went for the Triumph launch party held on Saurday and even after some hiccups at the event due to the cops..it was a good one. The showroom has also opened their doors for walk ins.

On a side note my brother got his Tiger 800xc delivery on Friday.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

Mobike008 has comprehensively covered this bike from every angle and pretty much everything he says is spot on. This is a beautiful bike, especially in white and blue. It is extremely easy to ride: you could hop off a very basic bike and feel right at home in minutes. Two things stand out in particular

Glad to know that you feel my feedback is matching to your views as well.

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

few things that bothered me slightly

The heat: I've never ridden a big bike before so I don't have a frame of reference but the Bonnie does heat up. Not fry-an-egg heat up but sufficient to be clearly felt near the calves. Around twice as hot as my 500. I was riding it in fairly sparse traffic. I guess a heat shield would be nice.

The turning radius A Pune phenomenon. You have to plan it on a Bonnie.

The exhaust/tuning I like the subtle burble of the stock exhaust. However it is restrictive and you can feel it when you accelerate hard. You could also hear very mild pops when you decelerate abruptly. All of this indicates that the bike will need an exhaust swap and a remap of some sort to reach its full potential. I know this feeling very well. I've seen a manifestation of the same issue in Bullets with their terrible factory fitted exhausts.

Built for shorter riders Without question. A friend who is 5' 4" was super comfy on the Bonnie. I'm 5' 7" and I was very comfortable too. Some of the taller guys who test drove were complaining. I can see my significant other riding the bike quite comfortably

Allow me to address your concerns

Heat : As mentioned in my thread, heat in city traffic is quite a lot for the first 800kms. Post 1st service, heat has reduced considerably and on open highways, its not even felt

Turning Radius: Agreed. When at standstill, I too mistook the turning radius and had to reverse (pull the bike behind) and then turn. But, I never knew this can even be considered as worrisime? Maximum it can be a minor irritant but, personally never even dwelled on it until you mentioned it

Exhaust Note: Initially, like everyone i too was disappointed with its soft burble and felt my 7 Lakhs is NOT well spent as I cannot showoff my bike to fellow road users...lol...But, after riding a loud Arrow Exhuast Bonnie, I am appreciating the soft sound of the Bonnie more and quite apprehensive to change to loud exhuast as I dont want to come out " swimming pool of smooth butter"

Made for Short Riders : I think its a misnomer. Iam 6ft.1in and very happy with the bike and have no complaints whatsoever. I know the bike may not look "built for me" but, I didnt buy the bike to make me look good on it but, to make me feel good on it

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

Is it possible that you will get bored of your Bonneville in a couple of years? It's worth thinking about

I think it would be more appropriate if Ram answers this query. But, my suggestion to you is dont base your opinion from a short city ride of the Bonnie.

Ride it on a highway and iam confident you will change your opinion about it !!!

Ram is riding the Bonnie from last 5 years and did 26,000kms and still seems smitten like a school kid ( Ram, hope your not offended if i say that, it's a compliment) and after riding my Bonnie for 3000+ kms, now I know why he feels like that about it and iam also sailing in the same boat

Originally Posted by Jaggu

You have hit the nail bang on! Exactly the thoughts i had in mind when i test drove the bonnie. It ticks all the boxes, but then there is something that it misses. Could not really make up my mind. After spending 7 big ones, i wouldn't want the itch to start in 3 months time. That way a 10k rpm 100+ bhp one at 9 lakh more sense?

Jaggu, its not about horses alone. I wont be bored with Bonnie's power for next 2 years for sure (my guestimate) and maybe after that, may have cravings of few more horses (not to change to a bike with more horses)...then my wicked mind will start thinking of modifications to make it more powerful..Hehe!!

Btw, Street Tripple is not getting any attention from buyers (sold none in Hyderabad...AFAIK) whereas Speed Tripple is getting more than it

Any clue how many ST's sold in Bangalore?

Originally Posted by speedy

On a side note my brother got his Tiger 800xc delivery on Friday.

Congrats to your brother. Please share some pictures and also a short paragraph of how the bike feels/rides ( if you have ridden it already)

[speedy]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Congrats to your brother. Please share some pictures and also a short paragraph of how the bike feels/rides ( if you have ridden it already)

Thank you. I have not ridden it and i don't think i would as i find it too tall for me. I shall ask him to pen down his views and give me to post.

[ranjitnair77]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Heat : As mentioned in my thread, heat in city traffic is quite a lot for the first 800kms. Post 1st service, heat has reduced considerably and on open highways, its not even felt

Glad to hear this and this is pretty much universally true with most bikes. I wasn't really bothered by the heat but it was sufficient enough to be felt. This would never be a deal breaker for me.

Originally Posted by mobike008

Exhaust Note: Initially, like everyone i too was disappointed with its soft burble and felt my 7 Lakhs is NOT well spent as I cannot showoff my bike to fellow road users...lol...But, after riding a loud Arrow Exhuast Bonnie, I am appreciating the soft sound of the Bonnie more and quite apprehensive to change to loud exhuast as I dont want to come out " swimming pool of smooth butter"

I personally dislike loud exhausts. I've spent many hours riding behind a friend who had a Thunderbird with goldstar silencer. It would take all my powers of self restraint not to brain him with that silencer by the end of the day .

What I was talking about was that the factory fitted silencer and the state of tune felt restrictive under acceleration. i.e the feeling that the bike could run a lot easier with better pipes. The very mild popping under hard deceleration had me slightly concerned about the state of tune. I would never want to put an obnoxiously loud silencer on the Bonnie just for performance. The Norman Hyde Togas sounded just right (at least on youtube)

Originally Posted by mobike008

Ride it on a highway and iam confident you will change your opinion about it !!!

I love the bike and I think it is a great buy. I wish I could borrow one for a blast to Lavasa city but I don't think Puneites are as generous as the Hydees. I know since I've stayed in Hyderabad for a while

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Any clue how many ST's sold in Bangalore?

My friend has a black one, and another white i have seen on road. Rest no idea, not keeping track also. But what i understand, unlike bonnie rest have bad delivery timelines?

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

What I was talking about was that the factory fitted silencer and the state of tune felt restrictive under acceleration. i.e the feeling that the bike could run a lot easier with better pipes. The very mild popping under hard deceleration had me slightly concerned about the state of tune

I think you misunderstood me. I would love to install the Arrow Pipes or someother brand pipes as long as i get to retain the smoothness of the engine that is currently Iam enjoying. But, when i test rode the Arrow'ed Bonnie, that smoothness was missing and also the bike became a bit jerky, accelarates too fasts/decelerates too fast.

With regards to popping sound when Bonnie decelerates, I love that sound and never felt the bike restrictive in power delivery. Maybe Ram can add more on the technical aspects but, i never felt the bike to be restrictive in power delivery.

Getting more power out of the engine is a different matter altogether and very much possible too.

Basically, wouldnt want to sacrifice the smoothness and linear power delivery for loud pipes and jumpy accelarations/declearations

You see, I want the cake and eat it too

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

I love the bike and I think it is a great buy. I wish I could borrow one for a blast to Lavasa city but I don't think Puneites are as generous as the Hydees. I know since I've stayed in Hyderabad for a while

Oh yeah. Iam blessed in that aspect. All my friends are like that and that surely is missing in rest of the country. Thats why I love Hyderabad

Imagine Absythguzzler letting me ride his Bonnie for 100kms just to ensure my decision is not regretful later on

Originally Posted by Jaggu

My friend has a black one, and another white i have seen on road. Rest no idea, not keeping track also. But what i understand, unlike bonnie rest have bad delivery timelines?

Rebel Dealership were smart in that aspect. They pre-ordered several Bonnies and you can get a Bonnie in 2-3 days and other bikes take much longer for delivery

I think they created their order pipeline ( to manafacturer) based on enquires/demand of a bike model...Good strategy, I say !!

[r_nairtvm]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Ram is riding the Bonnie from last 5 years and did 26,000kms and still seems smitten like a school kid ( Ram, hope your not offended if i say that, it's a compliment) and after riding my Bonnie for 3000+ kms, now I know why he feels like that about it and iam also sailing in the same boat

Avi, you can say that again. Actually I got smitten by Bonney almost as a scool kid (not really) but way back in 1979. Me and a friend were hitch-hiking in Europe and one day we got a lift from a group of bikers. Fortunately or unfortunately, the bike I got on to was a 1976 Bonneville 650 Twin. It was long journey of 550 odd kilometers from Bern (Switzerland) to Paris, along the way I became very friendly with the owner, and eventually he let me ride the bike - I still remember the day - it was 1st May 1979 - right then and there I knew that I had to have a Bonney some day.

If one had to wait 30 years to realise your firs love, you are bound to have a stupid smitten grin for a very long long time

In between, I must confess, I had forgotten about Bonney - that was for period of 1985 to 1992 - when I got my new lovely blue bird RD350.

(you must have noticed both my beuties in my Avatar)

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

Is it possible that you will get bored of your Bonneville in a couple of years? It's worth thinking about.

Rajit,

In my opinion, there are two kinds of riders -

One - Those who ride enjoying every moment of the ride and riding at their own pace and as per the situation - fast when required and sedately when it suits them

Other Group are those who have to go all out at all time and are not happy until they rideline (say at speed of double century plus) and stay there as long as possible, whether necessary or not.

The riders belonging to the 2nd group could get bored with a bike like Bonney and the Triumph classic range pretty fast.

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

Is it possible that you will get bored of your Bonneville in a couple of years? It's worth thinking about.

Bored in what way? Power or Looks? Its a retro bike and the design is reflects the bikes from the 60s. Unlikely that it will change in 2 years

As far as raw performance, a Duke 390 has ~ the same 0-100 acceleration and a Ninja 650 beats it. Where the Bonnie excels is in having a good blend of low end torque and hi-speed performance

[crazybiker46]

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

In my opinion, there are two kinds of riders -

One - Those who ride enjoying every moment of the ride and riding at their own pace and as per the situation - fast when required and sedately when it suits them

Other Group are those who have to go all out at all time and are not happy until they rideline (say at speed of double century plus) and stay there as long as possible, whether necessary or not.

The riders belonging to the 2nd group could get bored with a bike like Bonney and the Triumph classic range pretty fast.

That's a nice story about Bonnie

Completely agree to your point, When i decided to go for a bike, i wanted to enjoy riding which is the reason i went for a sports tourer ( you can ride sedate/fast as well as enjoy corners).

If you love superbikes and want to do 200+kph speeds, then bonnie is not for you.Couple of months back, I had a chance to ride with Ducati gang(they are bloody fast!!), i was pushing my bike to the limit to keep up with them. didn't enjoy the ride except for the twisties section of the route


Coming to the topic, I have ridden only Street Triple(my friend's bike)

Being a street fighter, I found Street Triple good for riding in city, you can happily ride leaving traffic behind.
On highway blast, being a naked bike its tough to enjoy at high speeds.
Handling on corners is sharp, you can approach corners with confidence and at good speeds too. I would keep ST on par with CBR600 but without a fairing

[Dr.Awesomeness]

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

A Big Shoutout to the fellow Triumphers from God Own Country and my home !!!

Hope to ride with you all one day !

Shyam, why is the shop board brown ? I thought all Triumph boards are White Letter on blue

Best Regards & Ride safe

Ram

Originally Posted by mobike008

Thanks for sharing this anecdote. I didnt know my thread was that popular



Congratulations on first ride for Kerala Triumph Riders

Agree with Ram. That brown board doesnt really gel with Triumph branding

Btw, its not clear. Are you the owner of this dealership?

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

Dr Awsomeness (Shyam) is the owner of dealership. His family reportedly a business family mainly in to engineering contracting, I believe, and this is their first foray in to automobiles field. The showroom is in their owm building, I was told, in the Kochi by-pass of the NH 47 (old number).

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram

Ram, actually the shop board is black with white letters. The picture was taken early in the morning and the sun was just rising and hence the orange hue turned the black to brown. Let me clear the air, I am not the owner of the establishment but the GM for the store. The owners are Syama Business Group and it is a indeed a coincidence that I have the same first name as the brand.

[mobike008]

That was a wonderful story Ram. Your lucky to have to enjoyed a cross country road trip across Europe at such a young age

Btw, why did you wait for 30 years to buy your Bonnie?

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

In my opinion, there are two kinds of riders -

One - Those who ride enjoying every moment of the ride and riding at their own pace and as per the situation - fast when required and sedately when it suits them

Other Group are those who have to go all out at all time and are not happy until they rideline (say at speed of double century plus) and stay there as long as possible, whether necessary or not.

Honestly speaking, I actually fall in second category

What's different/clear about my choice was that I was sure that i didnt want a superbike that has uncontrollable amounts of power & can do crazy speeds and is more suited on a race track than regular roads

Bonnie makes a fine balance, bang-in-between normal commuter & superbikes.

It cannot beat any superbike but, at the same time, it wont be left behind too much as well and has power that is useable on a daily basis.

Like you rightly said, If required can be ridden sedately and when required can burn the tarmac with all guns blazing

[r_nairtvm]

Originally Posted by Dr.Awesomeness

Ram, actually the shop board is black with white letters. The picture was taken early in the morning and the sun was just rising and hence the orange hue turned the black to brown. Let me clear the air, I am not the owner of the establishment but the GM for the store. The owners are Syama Business Group and it is a indeed a coincidence that I have the same first name as the brand.

Thanks

I am sure that this must be an alternate colour scheme approved by Triumph (which I sure is as finicky about their image as most of the MNCs tend to be).

But, Shyam, you can suerly put up few pictures of the show room interior etc, just to get an idea how the store is in my own native.

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram

Originally Posted by crazybiker46

I had a chance to ride with Ducati gang(they are bloody fast!!), i was pushing my bike to the limit to keep up with them. didn't enjoy the ride except for the twisties section of the route

CB46, Good to know you are riding here now. Should catch up one of these days. Since, I don't have a bike currently (still undecided on my plans here here and hence, delaying the decision of bike as well).

PM your contacts when you can will be good to catch up.

Originally Posted by mobike008

That was a wonderful story Ram. Your lucky to have to enjoyed a cross country road trip across Europe at such a young age

Btw, why did you wait for 30 years to buy your Bonnie?

• It cannot beat any superbike but, at the same time, it wont be left behind too much as well and has power that is useable on a daily basis.
• Like you rightly said, If required can be ridden sedately and when required can burn the tarmac with all guns blazing

Yes I was lucky to have travelled there in that era. Thanks to Youth Hostels etc and some good contacts I developed with fellow students from those part of the world, who were in my college in India, which was run by one of the Late God Man from AP

Why wait 30 years - 2 reasons - Moolah and availability. I had enough Moolah in about 10 years but it was not available either in India or in Middle East. It became officially available in ME only in 2000. But then I had other bikes going including a Triumph Tiger, and did not think of Bonnie until the EFI models became available.

Amen to both the bullet points - on sprints it can't keep up, but on endurance a definite YES.

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram

[ranjitnair77]

Originally Posted by mobike008

With regards to popping sound when Bonnie decelerates, I love that sound and never felt the bike restrictive in power delivery. Maybe Ram can add more on the technical aspects but, i never felt the bike to be restrictive in power delivery.

It isn't restrictive per-se. What I meant was that that the bike has the potential to be much better with the right set of modifications. The default pipes and the state of tune are more than adequate to start with but the bike deserves an upgrade and I will definitely look at better pipes (hopefully subtle) and a better state of tune if I buy the Bonnie.

Originally Posted by Mpower

Bored in what way? Power or Looks? Its a retro bike and the design is inspired by bikes from the 60s. Unlikely that it will change in 2 years

The looks are timeless and I wouldn't change anything about that.

My impression was that this is the perfect bike for anyone moving to big bikes for the first time. It is extremely forgiving in nature. My friend who struggled to ride my temperamental 500 and has never ridden anything bigger than a Pulsar was right at home on the Bonnie.

The bike is an all-rounder which is both its strength and its weakness. In my opinion, a majority of the riders would be extremely happy with the Bonnie and keep it for life.

However I can also see a few who would find the performance inadequate with the passage of time and wish to upgrade. Just as an Enfield rider who will upgrade to a Triumph. Triumph, any plans for a bigger Bonneville?

The Thruxton set my heart beating a lot faster than the Bonnie but it wasn't available for a test ride. I would be curious to try them both out back to back and see the difference.

[Dr.Awesomeness]

Originally Posted by r_nairtvm

Thanks

I am sure that this must be an alternate colour scheme approved by Triumph (which I sure is as finicky about their image as most of the MNCs tend to be).

But, Shyam, you can suerly put up few pictures of the show room interior etc, just to get an idea how the store is in my own native.

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram


Ram

Ram,

The color scheme that you see on the insignia is the new corporate image for Triumph motorcycles around the globe. Old White and blue combo is out and Black and white is in. Triumph launched this new color scheme first in India and now the rest of world is upgrading their store to the new look.

As far your request goes for pictures, feast your eyes on these for now.