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New Triumphs

17370 Views 81 Replies 39 Participants Last post by rc51zen, Sep 12, 2003

40446

Discussion Starter · Aug 19, 2003

>The Thruxton is a Bonneville dressed as a cafe racer. The motor has 65 more cc of grunt. It has clip-ons and high pegs.

Is it gonna look like Bonneville Ace Replica;

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/detail?sectionID=67356&documentID=163068&navID=9

I donno what the production model looks like but that 2.2L triple thing just look ugly.

21 - 40 of 82 Posts

brickl

· #21 · Aug 20, 2003

This Rocket III is gonna sell big. Finally a cruiser with serious balls. VMax looked like ***** (IMHO) and handled even worse but it sold because it went like hell (before it was neutered, that is). Once the performance buzz gets around this bike'll be a hard one to obtain. And even if it is shunned for looks, its performance numbers will ensure it'll be a collector's prize.

Frankly, though, I don't think it looks bad at all. Rear end looks good, as does the view forward. I like the lights. But I'll reserve final aesthetic judgement for an in-person viewing.

42110

· #22 · Aug 20, 2003

As far back as I remember, the Big 4 have always tried to "outdo" one another in the same displacement and looks departments. As with the Rocket lll, beauty is in the eye of the beholder! I , for one, think it's a great looking bike and if you don't want one......Great!!! That's gives me a better chance to buy one!!!!!!

rider_md

· #23 · Aug 20, 2003

this is a great example of why you will never win if the main reason you choose a bike is for the most hp / most torque.

who woulda thought... triumph?

in any case, i like the looks of the rocket 3, i think it does look different from the other cruisers.

owners of other cruisers (manufacturers will go unnamed) will whine and cry about how its so ugly and its such a POS, because they refuse to believe they might have bought a POS themselves. they want affirmation that their bike is the bestest bike in the whoooole wiiiiiide worllllldddd.

*cough* harley *cough*

hats off to triumph.

but personally, im interested in the cafe racer. i want my bruxton with performance unbaffled pipes and a custom red paint job. woo hoo!

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Ow595

· #24 · Aug 20, 2003

Check out and join the Rocket II group.

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/Triumph_Rocket_III/?yguid=65279788

William

Santa Cruz, Ca

Lowrez

· #25 · Aug 20, 2003

Uh... are you trying to imply that the Rune won't sell? My understanding is that many (maybe all) are already sold. This cruiser actually appeals to me more than most currently on the market based on looks alone. I think they're just going for a different sense of style, which is a good thing because going after a segment ruled by Harley is just plain dumb.

FurySting

· #26 · Aug 20, 2003

Re: Triumph Rocket III

Well I agree it's not completely ugly, but the right side of the engine is UGLY.. It looks like a car engine, and I don't mean because it isn't chrome, I mean because it looks like a hunk of metal ripped from a little Japanese car. The radiator is also pretty ugly.

I can dig the concept, and I hope they think a little more about styling. It's also at least a bit odd that the whole market is heading towards cruisers that go as fast as sport bikes, but still handle like cruisers. You'd think they would be afraid of killing off their market.. But you know it will probably be like all of the other giant cruisers, give it a couple of years and the HP / Torque Rot will set in, then everybody's safe again. Like someone said earlier, the VMAX was bad when it came out, and it has gotten a little weaker every year since, same goes or the Valkerie.

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muskythesecretsquirr

· #27 · Aug 20, 2003

I think Indian used to use inline multi-cylinder engines in the same configuration forty or fifty years ago and they looked about the same. So first of all, it was the Indian Motorcycle Corp that did this sort of thing, not the English.

-Musky the Secret Squirrel

15052

· #28 · Aug 20, 2003

Nice concept, nice execution. BUT...at $17K and up, it's going to sit on the sales floor for a VERY long time. You'd have thought after Triumph just lowered the prices on many of their bikes, and they started selling again, they would have priced this one a bit less exclusively. Maybe I'm wrong...

33129

· #29 · Aug 20, 2003

This Rocket is as ugly as the first BSA Rocket with the Buck Rogers exhaust pipe version. Looks like a Sunbeam gone bad. It took guts and I wish Triumph well. But that right side view could use some help.

43093

· #30 · Aug 20, 2003

HP must be pretty important cause after getting the so called style most spend ungodly amounts of money and time trying to make slow a little faster and much louder. Ugly is in the eye of the beholder. Again.. since it's not a V-twin..since it does not follow that narrow set of rules Harley has everyone brainwashed into what is right and wrong as far as STYLE goes then it is labeled ugly. I for one am glad to see style getting stretched, it gives me more choice. I don't own a Valkyrie, but I think it is an awesome bike, style and certainly performance. V-twins are ok, but they suck performance wise. Some of us still have testosterone flowing in our blood and actually enjoy a real motor. Making a V-twin is the best way a mfg. can sucker the most total money out of the buyer, and that's why Harley loves you guys.

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BBD_Racing

· #31 · Aug 20, 2003

Re: What's wrong with the Rune???

I'm with you, the Rune paves new ground and is stiking (in a good way).

BBD_Racing

· #32 · Aug 20, 2003

Serious-fast cruiser idea: A+

Engine styling from John Deere: F

You can fix performance problems, you can monkey with looks, but you can't make that square lump look good. No amount of money will fix that thing's looks.

Of course, it seems that no amount of money will cause Harley to actually engineer a good motor for Buell..........

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ValknMag

· #33 · Aug 20, 2003

Do you have a cruiser?

longride

· #34 · Aug 20, 2003

Everyone can argue all day about if it's ugly, overpriced, good or bad, but it's who's gonna plunk down 17 large for it that will answer all the questions. Just by looking at it, I don't think it will sell all that well. The engine looks like a Wankel knockoff, and those punchbowl scallops on the sides aren't winning any points. The Brits, like the Germans, just don't really "get" the cruiser thing. If it doesn't appeal to the eyes, it probably won't sell no matter what the power.

13630

· #35 · Aug 20, 2003

No, going after the segment ruled by Harley is the smartest thing they could do, because that's where 95% of the customers are at. Creating their own completely new segment is extremely difficult, slow, and costly.

33129

· #36 · Aug 20, 2003

Re: Triumph Rocket III

Most Harleys look ok before they are customized. Most get worse after. The Rocket could only get better.

13630

· #37 · Aug 20, 2003

Finally, another voice of reason.

mscuddy

· #38 · Aug 20, 2003

Re: What's wrong with the Rune???

Yes, the Rune will probably be striking lots of pavement, I'm sure.

This reminds me of the Detroit panic of '58. If you can't think up something new, think up something completly looney. Startle the consumer.

I'd hate to have a Rune fall over in a parking lot, impale innocent passerbys on all that sharp pointy stuff hanging off it.

I'm thinking BSA Rocket Three molested by a '58 Buick Roadmaster.

F451

· #39 · Aug 20, 2003

Why the Triumph Rocket will do Well

Many are overlooking a new trend growing subtlety, but surely and it is the motorcycle owner who has multiple motorcycles both of brand and purpose. I see it in Rune owners, I see it in other brand and make owners, I see it in multiple facets. Motorcycling is become popular in many ways. I own several motorcycles and each provide a different style and intent of riding. There are many demanding motorcyclists who will pay the price of the Rocket III's admission for various reasons and the main reason is variety. I greatly respect Triumph for what it is now and for what it is becoming

The Rocket III will do well. Very well.

aknopak

· #40 · Aug 20, 2003

I think you may be referring to the Triumph Sprint 'RS.S': RSS1.jpg.

Here's the rest of the article:
RSSCover.jpg

RSS1.jpg

RSS2.jpg

RSS3.jpg

RSS4.jpg

What a stunning bike! Unfortunately, I seem to recall that the Italian designer has since died in an accident...

Earlier this year I traded in my Yamaha FZS600 for a damaged RS, and put a Yamaha '02 FZS600 fairing on it (very similar to the FZ1 fairing). I'd like to think it actually looks a bit like this bike ;-) (although I have a '00 RS, so it doesn't have the single-sided swingarm the '02 RS's have...)

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