'11 Thunderbird comments

[RBEmerson]

In what might be called a bit of irony, my local BMW dealer, Hermy's (Port Clinton, PA), sent me out on a Thunderbird as loaner.  Initially I laughed and thought they were kidding.  They weren't.  Some 200 miles later, I have to admit I kinda like the thing.  

This is a cruiser, even if it's not a V-twin.  The pipes rap and roar as expected, but the loping sound of a V-twin, of course, isn't there.  But, pull in the clutch, light the fire, and the thing fires right up.  I suspect the 1600cc engine would pull stumps if asked to.  OTOH, a run down the PA Turnpike at 80+ worked, too.  Sorta.  The bike did it, the rider got tired of the wind.  

Ergos... the riding position in typical cruiser.  I'm 6' and generally reasonably proportioned (my knuckles don't drag) - I found myself reaching forward to hold the bars while sitting upright.  Slouch forward a bit, and the reach isn't so bad.  But holding the position for an hour or two and... not fun.  

Suspension... it's not marshmallow soft but it's not hard-tail hard, either.  The real surprise is the bike will bend around corners surprisingly well.  I've held off from trying to drag the boards, of course, but still thrown the bike into some fairly tight turns at a brisk pace.  Parking lot maneuvers are hindered by a limited stop to stop angle, but it's not too bad.  

The speedo and tach are on the tank.  Tucked into the side of the speedo is a combination gas gauge and trip computer, controlled by an info button the right grip.  

I have no great urge to duplicate Wild Hogs (thank goodness!!!!), but I will be a little sorry to hand this rascal back later today.  

[caddydaddy]

So, are you getting one as a second bike?  

[MadOzodi]

Next time ask for a Rocket III Roadster!  

[falconati]

Next time ask for a Rocket III Roadster!  

I want to ride one of these guys so badly, but I'm scared about dropping it!

[caddydaddy]

I want to ride one of these guys so badly, but I'm scared about dropping it!

Surprisingly, the Rocket III has a very low center of gravity.  I thought it was very easy to move around at parking lot speeds.  

Then, jump on the throttle and become addicted to tons of torque in ANY gear!  

[stealth1]

I wish Triumph would take that Thunderbird motor and put it in something like the Yamaha MT-01.
That would be something I would have to look at.

[MadOzodi]

I want to ride one of these guys so badly, but I'm scared about dropping it!

d3wd, I'm 5'6", couldn't flat-foot it, and had zero problems riding it!  You must ride one naow!!  

I wanted to ride the T'Bird, but my legs weren't long enough to comfortably reach the forward controls.    

[Rincewind]

Thanks for the review.  I have ridden the Rocket but not the new Tbirds.  The handlebar activated computer sounds trick.  ABS is also available.

I owned one of the 2001 885cc triple Tbirds back when it was a standard bike.  I was sort of miffed when they reused the name on a stretched parallel twin custom bike instead of another triple.  But the times that I've seen it, the big Bird has a good style. I enjoy my wife's custom feet-forward bike sometimes.  It can be fun and also corners well, which surprises me. I can see how a bike like this Thunderbird twin could be a keeper and I like the belt drive. But a custom bike is not for me, long-term.  It puts my butt to sleep, literally.

[RBEmerson]

You're not that far from Hermy's.  Give the T-bird a try.  I put on 325 miles in the brief time I had it.  This puppy had floor boards (or whatever they're called) for the passenger and whoever sits in front.  The shifter was heel and toe (toe only worked better for me) and the rear brake pedal was at the front of the board - not quite forward controls but close to it.  It also had a huge slab of plastic for a windshield.  Beating feet up the turnpike at 70-80, the gas gauge almost visibly dropped.  Streamlined it's not.  Between that and the wind pounding my legs (even with ATGATT pants and boots), extending high speed rides would be tiring.  Also, the bike felt as though much past 80, I was starting to really push it (no idea what the top end is, but running close to it could get old fast).  So cruise down roads in the 50-60 range and life is fun.  This is not a three digit sightseeing bike.  

Probably the best way to sum the bike up is to report on the "nice bike" compliment I got from someone in parking lot.  Considering he had a dirt bike carrying rack on the back, that's saying something.  

Going back to my BMW K1200RS was interesting - darned if I could figure out where my feet went.    

[garry]

If I was going to buy a cruiser, the Tbird would be on the short list for sure. I like its understated looks.

[RBEmerson]

The brakes are good, and it gets up and goes when you twist the loud handle.  The ride is comfortable, too.  The riding position or posture is, after my KRS, a little odd.  Either the bars need to come back a bit more or they need to sweep back a bit more.  Again, I'm not all that long-armed, but not I'm not that short, either.  For someone with shorter arms, this might be a real issue.  I have no idea what after-market goodies exist to deal with the problem.  

One other detail nit: no 4-way flashers.  Of course, using a Kisan Signalminder would help this issue.  OTOH, the turn signals are already self canceling, so a Signalminder module would be redundant in that respect.  The bike is wired for "fog" or riding lights, and there's a switch for them on the left grip.  Overall, the lighting was surprisingly good, certainly better than the stock lights on the KRS (now replaced with DDM's HID modules, which I recommend).  

There are three odometers: overall mileage and two resetable trip odometers.  Very nice to use one for a "how far have I gone on this trip" meter and one as a backup to "how far since the last gas stop" meter.  The fuel level is always present and there's a "miles to go in the tank" estimate display, too.  And, of course, time of day.  

Once the Tbird was up and moving, I wouldn't call it a shaker or obnoxiously buzzy (lots of thumps and rumbles at very low engine speeds - that's part of the cruiser twin charm, no?).  Still, moving back to the KRS' in-line four cylinder engine was a night and day difference.  But then, that's comparing a twin to a four cylinder motor.  NTL, I wouldn't turn the Tbird down because it's buzzy.  

[MadOzodi]

I owned one of the 2001 885cc triple Tbirds back when it was a standard bike.  I was sort of miffed when they reused the name on a stretched parallel twin custom bike instead of another triple.  

I owned the '00 "murdered-out" version, i.e. no chrome, of the TBird for less than 6 months and felt the same way when I read the announcement.  Still, it seems to have been the right move for Triumph as the TBird Storm took 1st in the recent motorcycle-usa.com performance cruiser comparo.

[RBEmerson]

Good point.  When I heard the name, I flashed back to the Triumph Brando rode in The Wild One.  I hoped for a Bonneville relative.  Color me surprised.  

[Aero]

I thought the purpose of the 270 degree crank was to give a V-twin feel and sound?  

This is a cruiser, even if it's not a V-twin.  The pipes rap and roar as expected, but the loping sound of a V-twin, of course, isn't there.  But, pull in the clutch, light the fire, and the thing fires right up.  I suspect the 1600cc engine would pull stumps if asked to.  OTOH, a run down the PA Turnpike at 80+ worked, too.  Sorta.  The bike did it, the rider got tired of the wind.  

[RBEmerson]

I didn't get into the issue with the guys at Hermy's (the dealer supplying the Tbird as a loaner).  Given the v-twins that I hear often enough, the Tbird didn't seem to have that sound.  That's just my subjective take on the matter.    As I said, the 1600 engine certainly can rumble with the best of them.  It just isn't quite the same note as something built in York or Milwaukee.