SpeedyV6

August 6, 2006
A New Blast From Triumph’s Past
By JERRY GARRETT



TODAY’S motorcycles are too specialized — too big, too heavy, too powerful and too complicated — to be compared with the go-anywhere and do-anything machines that I grew up riding in the late 1960’s and early 70’s. Maybe that is why the Triumph 900 Scrambler is so appealing: it reminds me of a time when motorcycling was a simpler pleasure.

Among the most desirable bikes of that time were the all-purpose scramblers made by almost every manufacturer. With engines large enough for highway use, along with the knobby tires and high-mounted exhaust pipes required for off-road adventures, these bikes — especially models like the Triumph Trophy and Bonneville Scrambler — were the dream machines of many young guys. It didn’t hurt that Marlon Brando, Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin rode Triumphs and starred in movies on them.

But good looks, good performance and celebrity riders were not enough to keep Triumph from going out of business in the 1980’s.

These days, Triumphs are back — made by a newly reincarnated company, but still in England — that look at least as good as they did in their heyday. Their period-correct image, however, belies a host of modern improvements.

Swing a leg over the new Scrambler, fire it up and the first thing you’ll appreciate is the modern electric starter instead of the kick-starter of the originals. The two-cylinder dual-cam engine, displacing 865 cc, is thoroughly modern (aside from being carbureted instead of fuel-injected, as modern engines usually are). Though rated at just 54 horsepower, its plentiful torque and smooth five-speed transmission make the bike surprisingly easy to ride, even at freeway speeds.

The rider sits upright on a hard, retro-style seat that remains as uncomfortable as it ever was. Early Triumph exhausts were infamous for scorching boots and inseams; this Scrambler’s exhausts are still inconveniently positioned but are at least covered by heat shields.

John Bloor, a former plasterer who made a fortune in commercial construction, was looking for property to develop for housing in 1983 when a real estate agent showed him the shuttered Triumph factory in the English Midlands. Mr. Bloor ended up buying a lot more, paying about $300,000 for the Triumph name and various assets; he built a new factory about 15 miles away and in 1991 introduced the first new-era models.

The company grew slowly but steadily through the 1990’s and was poised for a sales surge in the new millennium when disaster struck. A good portion of the factory burned down in March 2002, pushing the company to the brink of collapse again. Mr. Bloor pressed the insurance companies for fast action in settling claims; within six months, production was restored. New bikes were added to the portfolio, and the next fiscal year, Triumph posted a modest profit.

The Triumph line now comprises bikes in three categories: the so-called modern classics, which includes the Scrambler; the racy “urban sports” models; and a cruiser line topped by the 2,300 cc Rocket III.

When Triumph introduced the new Scrambler, skeptics wondered if riders would be enticed by a $7,999 bike that was more of a styling exercise than a true dual-sport. The market’s answer came quickly: this year’s production run, the company says, is “spoken for.”