THE MUCH-AWAITED HOME RUN

The hotly anticipated Speed 400 is here as the first from the Triumph-Bajaj alliance and here are our thoughts after the first ride.

- KARAN SINGH BANSATTA & ANKYTA ARORA

WHEN a brand is known for the largest capacity series production motorcycle in the world, what can one expect when they lower the displacement a bit? Well, a bit is an understatement but the question still stands. And the answer to that question is FIREWORKS! Because that is exactly what entailed when Triumph announced the Speed 400 and the Scrambler 400 X. Impressive specs, the iconic Triumph badge, and a price tag that swept everyone off their feet sound good and all but how good these motorcycles are in the real world?

While we have to wait a bit for the pricing and reviews of the Scrambler 400 X, we got to test the Speed 400 and we came away mighty impressed. It may not be an understatement to say that the Speed 400 may very well be the disruption the entry-level performance motorcycling was in dire need of. With many options in the market but a fair few relatively stale, the Speed 400 came in swinging and, spoiler alert, it knocked a fair few out! But before all that, a little background and some details.

It isn’t news to anyone that Triumph joined hands with Bajaj Auto for this project. Their alliance has been known for a while and we have waited with baited breaths for the result of this partnership. We were personally very thrilled with the proposition as well. After all, Pulsar is at the core of xBhp and still a part of the xBhp Garage while the titan of two-wheelers, the Triumph Rocket 3 R also sits proudly as a part of it.