Should I buy a pre-owned Triumph Street Twin

My requirements today are refinement, reliability, comfort and decent maintenance costs.

BHPian dkar228 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I took a test ride of the Trident 660 in Bangalore (Street Twin wasn't available) and am contemplating buying a pre-owned Street Twin 2019 model but am worried about a few things:

Refinement

How refined is the ST? Gear shifts on the Trident felt a bit clunky and I believe the ST may also have similar problem. I believe engine refinement will be top class but gear shifts may not be at the same level of Honda.

Reliability

I have read a few blogs and posts and it seems that Street twin has its fair share of problems. I am not sure if this is applicable to the 2019 model. Moreover, the Triumph showroom in Bangalore has had very bad reviews and I read about recurring issues because the technician did not make the right choice and the owners had to pay for a lot of things that they should not have. Is this valid in 2021 as well?

Maintenance cost

I have never owned a big bike and maintenance of such bikes are definitely going to be costly. I am trying to calculate the cost for maintenance for regular part upgrades like chain sprocket, tyres, brake pads, etc. considering one completes 15000 km in a year. Do you have any numbers for me?

I have a lot of experience with variety of smaller bikes ranging from Pulsar 150/220, Thunderbird 350, Gixxer 250 but have never tried my hands with bigger bikes. I feel I am ready to make a move for a bigger bike but am not sure which one satisfy all my requirements.

My requirements today are refinement, reliability, comfort and decent maintenance costs. Bike would mostly be used without a pillion but my wife might want to join me for few rides hence pillion comfort is also something that I want to consider. I think only 2 bikes fit the bill for me: ST and Highness.

Some other options that I considered were

• Ninja/Z 650: I did not like the vibrations during 4-5k rpm. It might not be comfortable for pillion.
• CB650R: Seems very expensive.
• Dominar 400/ Duke 390: I did not think it was refined enough for my liking.
• VStrom 650: I am only 5'6" and I think the seat height will be too high for me.
• Interceptor 650: I hated the reliability issues when I owned the TB350. Do not want to take the risk again.

I am trying to evaluate my options and seems like ST is an amazing choice that I can keep for years. I have my doubts and wanted to know what existing owners think about this. Coming from a middle class background, I probably have to be sure before spending a lot on ST.

Here's what BHPian abhi_tjet had to say on the matter:

My 2 cents dkar.

Refinement:

I test rode Street twin during my Street Triple purchase last year. It is an amazingly refined machine. Gearshift was smooth and definitely not a deal breaker. Regarding Honda gearshift experience, which big Honda have you test driven?

Reliability:

Street twin is the bread butter model from Triumph and selling since almost half a decade. I doubt there will be any serious reliability issue. However, problems coming due to mishandling of dealership can be a completely different issue.

Maintenance cost:

I am quite new to super bike space. So, can’t comment much here. However, what seems to be the case is normal maintenance might be frugal for Honda. But if it comes to chain/sprocket, disc, etc. replacement, it shall be pretty much same for all big bikes.

Highness will be good choice but it’s definitely a segment lower.

In my opinion if not Street Twin, you should look for a preowned CBR650F/R.

Here's what BHPian neil.jericho had to say on the matter:

You have mentioned everything except the two most important aspects - your budget and your intended usage!

The Street Twin is pretty refined.

I know that a few bikes in India suffered from the wiring harness issue. I'm not too tuned into the Street Twin market but that is something to keep an eye out for. If you have read about more problems with the bike, expect to find them.

If you are buying a preowned Triumph in Bangalore, take it to Highlander or one of the other reputed FNGs and stay clear of the dealership.

We have a very useful thread with costs of superbike ownership. Specific to the Street Twin, the easiest thing to do is look at websites like Bike N Biker etc., for costs of spares and consumables. Tires are going to be your biggest expense, by far.

And I have to mention this, 15,000 kilometers a year is a LOT of riding to be doing on a big bike. So expect to change a set of tires every 12 to 18 months. Add that to your expected annual costs of service and insurance. Dont expect owning a big bike to be cheap with that sort of running.

The Street Twin and the Honda Highness are two extremely different motorcycles and the Honda costs less than half of what a preowned Triumph Street Twin would. Fortunately or unfortunately, almost every bike below, say Rs 5 L (ballpark price of a preowned Street Twin) suits all your requirements.

Again, without a budget and your intended usage, we can only guess what would suit you. If you are not in a tearing rush, take it slow and test ride every bike in your budget. Often, the bikes that appeal to you on paper are the ones that you cant connect with at all when you ride them and the ones that are out of your radar will be the ones that charm you.

Here's what BHPian gkveda had to say on the matter:

Since this is your first big bike purchase, suggest you to go through this thread.

This will give you a realistic picture of the situation when you purchase a big bike like street twin.

If you go to any used market sites (OLX, quickr etc), you can see many bikes which have run 10-15k kms with number of ownerships = 2, 3. This means, many people would have purchased new bike or 1st owner used bike would change their mind and sell the bike within 2-3 years.

So, there is some unpublished factor which will influence them to think they cannot use their bikes any further. And each time the bike is sold, the owner incurs a loss of minimum 1-2 lakhs.

Since you said you are coming from middle class family, each rupee earned is important. Why I am saying this is, if in case you get into same state after purchase of used Triumph bike, then you will have to be ready to lose 2-3 lakhs.

All the best for your new purchase.

In fact my BIL owns a used Street Twin and keeping it since 4 years. When he purchased it, it had 12xxx kms on its odometer and after 4 years, it has 13xxx kms (not even used 1000 kms). The drawbacks according to him (and what I have seen) are:

1. Low ground clearance makes it usable only for rider. With pillion, big humps are bound to hit bike and as a result, 4-5 times he has welded /replaced side stand.

2. Small pillion seat. His wife (my cousin) never sits on the bike. So, essentially, it is only he who rides the bike.

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