Versatile Machine

The Street Twin & Street Scrambler have been updated with more power and improved refinement. But the question is – have they become better bikes?

- Jared Solomon

It’s been a while since I rode the Street Twin and Street Scrambler – nearly two years to be precise. But I remember them being brilliant bikes. Small, compact, light, powerful and handsome, the Twins from Triumph are remarkable machines. And the fact that the Street Twin line-up has become the bestselling models for the British bike maker, not just in India but also globally, further proves this point.

Fitted with a beautifully crafted 900cc twin engine, the Street Twin and Scrambler performed very well for what they were. While experienced riders could have asked for more character, they were great motorcycles to introduce new riders to the world of affordable and fun premium bikes. The Scrambler has always been my favourite of the two because of its rugged modern-classic scrambler look. The bashplate, raised front mud-guard, mid-mounted exhaust and a pair of nice knobby tires really give the bike a distinctive personality.

The 2019 versions of the bikes have now been launched in India, and I was given a choice to pick one of the two to ride first, and, obviously, I chose the Street Scrambler.

Why the update?

It’s simple, really! Triumph received a lot of feedback from current customers, and more power seemed to be the most popular demand. As a result, the new version of the bike has an added 10 horsepower with 500 more revs before the rev limiter kicks in at 7,500rpm. Triumph engineers managed to do this simply by shedding some weight from the engine. They reduced the size of the camshaft, counter balancers and dead shafts.