Now this is my kind of old-school bike; a café racer that mixes classic looks with modern technology.
The Triumph Thruxton special edition was my ride for the recent Toy Run and I was relieved to find it had none of the “character building” foibles of a genuine vintage bike that was built when your grandparents were still dating.
It’s retro in looks only and if you’re expecting clunky gearshifts, bad brakes, and a wheezy and underpowered engine, you won’t find them here.
Tucked away in this charmingly 1960s-styled retro bike is a modern fuel-injected 865cc parallel-twin engine with electric start and a smooth-shifting five-speed transmission. And no period-correct drums at each wheel either, which require a calendar to plan your braking – the Thruxton comes with quick-stopping front and rear discs.
Named after the Thruxton circuit in the UK where Triumph enjoyed racing successes in the good old days, it goes the whole hog with looks that were fashionable when John, Paul, Ringo and George were still jamming together: wire-spoked wheels, lots of chrome, a megaphone-style silencer, old-fashioned twin rear shocks, and a period-authentic non-lockable fuel cap (what, didn’t they steal petrol back then?)
This special edition version, which sells for R95 500 (three grand more than the standard Thruxton) has a white and red colour scheme with a racing stripe running down the middle from tank to tail, blacked out engine cases, and a fly screen. As an additional Triumph genuine accessory our test bike’s engine tappet cover was anodised red to match the frame. Trés cool.
It’s a bike of great charisma that seems to cut across all biking cliques, and on the Toy Run superbikers and cruiser riders alike came over to admire it and have a chat.
It’s charismatic to ride as well. There’s something about this Triumph that puts a smile on your face and a happy song in your head as it putters along – actually putters is unfair as the Thruxton does manage a half-decent turn of speed and I saw 170km/h (and climbing) on the speedo. Nice rorty engine note it makes too, although much of the credit probably goes to the aftermarket Arrow pipe that was fitted.
Big on charm but small in stature, the Thruxton has a compact frame and a low seat that will appeal to riders who didn’t make the basketball team. This compactness makes it easy to manoeuvre and unintimidating to ride, and generally as zippy as that squirrel in the Ice Age movies. It’s a smooth riding machine too, and doesn’t shake your nerves or rattle your brain.
Now please excuse me, I’m off to find some cafés to race between.