Back in the summer of ’69, a trio of Triumph Bonneville-based production race bikes dominated the podium of the Thruxton 500 endurance race over in England.
Fifty-odd years later, a more assertive and switched-on version of Triumph Motorcycles celebrated that historic production racing victory when it selected the name “Thruxton” for a sporty 900cc version of the Bonneville. First introduced in 2014, the Thruxton sold particularly well here in New Zealand, especially when a muscular 1200cc parallel-twin engine later added the athletic performance needed to live up to the promise of the sexy café racer ascetic of the model.
Thruxton-badged Triumphs pretty much found buyers as soon as they left the shipping containers that bought them to these shores, but 2024 saw the release of a “final edition” of the Thruxton 1200. NZ’s allocation of the limited production run of the FE models sold out even before the bikes arrived here. To many café-chair observers, the Thruxton’s demise was hard to fathom. Why did the management at the Hinckley head office kill off a bike with such an enthusiastic following amongst Kiwi bikers?
You’ll find the answer right here: the new $23,495 Speed Twin 1200. A much improved and livelier ride for MY25, the largest displacement Speed Twin now occupies the market niche vacated by the Thruxton and has the same sporty nose-down stance but places the handlebar grips quite a bit higher and closer for improved riding comfort.
Want to feel a bit racier? The $26,990 RS version of the Speed Twin 1200 lowers the handlebar a smidge, and places your pelvis five mm higher thanks to the longer travel fully adjustable Ohlins rear shocks that are part of a performance upgrade that includes trackday-ready rubber, more rear set rider footpegs, the addition of a Sports riding mode, damping adjustment for the 43mm Marzoochi front fork, and top-shelf Brembo Stylema front calipers instead of the cheaper model’s Triumph-branded stoppers from J.Juan.
Still miss the riding position of the Thruxton? An optional set of “clip-on” handlebars just like the defunct model’s place the rider’s hands 90mm lower than the one-piece handlebar of the Speed Twin 1200.
When the 270-degree cranked, liquid/air cooled 1197cc parallel twin was first introduced to power a larger-capacity Thruxton back in 2016, I felt tempted to call the bike the “Thruston” such was the instant access to robust levels of riding force. The latest version of the motor is even more potent with 103.5bhp (77.5kW) delivered at a low-by-motorcycle-standards 7750rpm.
By the time the digital tachometer shows 4000rpm, the Speed Twin 1200 is pushing the rider emphatically forward with a 114Nm peak of riding force. It’s smooth and eager throughout the rev range, and the fueling in both the Road and Rain riding modes is spot-on. Frugal fuel use (4.5 litres/100km in my hands) enables the reserves of the 14.5-litre fuel tank to go further than expected for a 216kg 1200.
The Thruxton DNA is noticeable in the responsive handling of the newest Speed Twin. With a stubby 1413mm wheelbase and forks raked almost upright at 22.4 degrees, the 1200 carved up the chicanery of the “Coromandel Loop” like it was born for it.
The firm ride of the suspension can feel harsh in steady-state touring applications, but really comes into its own during maneuvers of the sporting kind. Brake lever feel with the cheaper braking package of the base 1200 is excellent, the bike sharing its radial Bembo master cylinder with the RS, and the Metzeler M9 Sportec RR front tyre can be trail-braked into the corners with confidence.
Yet, much as I enjoyed the Coro circumnavigation on the 1200, frustrations included the lack of legibility of the circular digital TFT display, and despite it being supposedly the comfiest of the newest big-block Speed Twins, it still felt a little cramped over longer riding distances.
Somehow, Triumph’s commendable wealth of specification choice with the two new 1200cc Speed Twin models doesn’t quite gel to perfection. I desire the suspension adjustment, the Stylema calipers and extra seat height of the RS, but not the tread-deficient tyres that may prove treacherous in the rain. The base model 1200 is great value, a good look, and a hoot to ride; but a lack of final finesse in the suspension and braking departments shave the last few millimetres of gloss off it.
Maybe the solution to this dilemma is a secondhand Thruxton R. Final Edition, of course.
