Test riding Triumph Scrambler 400X, Speed 400 & Speed T4 with a pillion

The Scrambler 400X felt slightly intimidating (not as much as the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450) but the ergonomics were right in place.

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So, I got a chance to test ride all 3 of the 400cc offerings from Bajaj-Triumph last weekend. I went to Khivraj Triumph, Hosur Road to take the test rides. The staff were courteous around, addressed my request really quickly and promptly provided the test ride bikes. Rode the bikes in the following order along with my partner as a pillion and this is what I felt:

Triumph Scrambler 400X

Felt slightly intimidating (not as much as Himalayan 450), however, the ergonomics were right in place and off we went. I will be honest here on the fact that I couldn't enjoy the bike much as this particular one was heavily abused and there were telltale signs of the same. However, the suspension soaked in the imperfections with ease, the engine was tractable and nice, and the line of sight was clear. I felt the initial gears were quite short as compared to the Speed 400.

All went well till I had to execute a U-turn, and I faced difficulty here and I believe this is owing to the very nature of the particular platform, so not exactly a deal breaker for a good many. I believe it might get better in a month or two into ownership, however, initial impressions weren't very reassuring. My pillion mused about the high seating position as well.

Triumph Speed 400

I really liked this bike. Spot on ergonomics, nice, clean linear pull and quite sprightly, almost to the point where I felt the bike being slightly busy and pushy. Maybe years of riding a slow-revving UCE engine had its effect on me that made me state the previous statement. It's not as pushy as say a KTM, but you will feel it at times, especially if you are coming from long strokes. My pillion was fine with the rear seat ergonomics as well, she couldn't find much to complain about.

Felt fine as long as I was making use of the low-mid range grunt to shift up and get onto likeable speeds, as revving the bike out also brought in vibes, which though not as bad as some old and new bikes out there will get to you at times. However, did I feel like I was riding a 40BHP bike? I guess not. Probably that's how the bike's designed, not to be snappy and unforgiving to first-timers or to the level-ups. Need to spend more time with the bike.

Triumph Speed T4

Now this one was interesting. Everything felt the same till you start riding. You can immediately feel the lazy, easy-going nature of the bike. You can also feel the higher inertia crank at work. It felt easier to get accustomed to, compared to the Speed 400, and the lack of 9BHP was never felt thanks to the torque wave coming in early. This means you could easily cruise at lower rpm in higher gears, with fewer gear shifts, which means commuting will be a relaxed affair.

I felt this to be a better proposition for those who are looking to buy, say a Hunter 350 or Meteor 350 for that matter. However, if I were to choose between the Speed and the T4, I would definitely go for the former considering the fantastic package that is, and the amount of goodies the latter loses for not so much of a price difference. And also because power corrupts, and power corrupts absolutely.

PS: Opinions are personal, and you are most welcome to disagree with me.

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