All the Duels – Duel Speed ​​Triple S Vs XSR900: households with three – The Triple according to Triumph or Yamaha …

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Duel Speed ​​Triple S Vs XSR900: three-way households

All the Duels - Duel Speed ​​Triple S Vs XSR900: households with three - The Triple according to Triumph or Yamaha ...

The maxiroadsters segment, boosted in recent years by supercharged bi- or 4-cylinder motorcycles, saw the arrival in 2016 of two new 3-piston machines: the Triumph Speed ​​Triple and the Yamaha XSR900. Site compared them… Duel !

The Triple according to Triumph or Yamaha…

In 2014, Site opposed during a large comparison of particularly explosive maxiroadsters: the new BMW S1000R, Ducati Monster 1200, KTM 1090 Superduke R and Kawasaki Z1000 (read our). The manufacturers then played the card of excessive power…

Last year, Le Journal moto du Net brought together motorcycles that were a suspicion less radical – but no less fatal: the new BMW R1200R was up against the R version of the Ducati Monster 1200 and the good old Triumph Speed ​​Triple, "of course "(read our, without forgetting that of).

In 2016, Hinckley’s three-cylinder is back for a ride thanks to a major update (read our). However, its arrival coincides with that at Yamaha of an MT-09 dressed in neo-retro sauce (read our). Site therefore logically organized a duel between these two new features !

A conservative Englishwoman ?

This new face to face is the opportunity for Site to test the S version – like "Standard" – of the English maxiroadster. "Good Bye" so the Ohlins suspensions, the carbon mudguards and tank trim, the engine spoiler, the machined handlebar trigger guard, the rear wheel hub cap and the specific color accents. For the rest, nothing moves compared to the R.

Aesthetically, the 2016 Speed ​​Triple does not differ significantly from the. Redesigned – rounded! -, equipped with LED daytime running lights, overhung by an intriguing air intake and fixed lower on the fork, the double optic gains in modernity but remains faithful to the Triumph spirit.

Likewise, the English maxiroadster respects the values ​​of its house by keeping its distinctive double silencer placed under the passenger seat. And too bad if this goes against current trends of housing the exhaust under the engine in order to lower the center of gravity of the motorcycle.

This "old" configuration also has a significant advantage: the perfect enhancement of the rear rim, magnified with original white edging and equipped with an angled valve that is also found on the front rim (but not on the Yamaha).

The slight Italian accent of the "British" is also carefully maintained: in addition to the refined single-sided aluminum and the red color of the model that Triumph France has entrusted to us, the Speed ​​Triple sports illustrious Brembo monobloc calipers, including in this version S !

The level of finish is still as high: screws, surface treatment, cable arrangement, radiator scoops and covers in the frame, LED indicators and remote mirrors – as standard! -, split plate support, saddle stitching, worked curves of the mudguard, the tank and the passenger seat cover … Everything is at the top..

Identical to the previous version, the 2016 dashboard has new indicators, such as the gear engaged. This appearance and those of new mentions (Rain, Road, Sport, Track, Rider or even TC ?!) reveal the bulk of the work accomplished by Triumph…

Indeed, if the Speed ​​retains its 1050 cc Triple, this in no way prevents it from filling up with electronics: by integrating the ride-by-wire accelerator this year, the Hinckley engineers were able to equip their maxiroadster 2016 anti-skating and driving modes, assistance offered for a long time on its rivals.

Externally unchanged, the "Tripeul" greatly evolves from the inside ("104 changes"counted its designers!) and it was about time. Because it is not the only 3-cylinder to circulate in the category of hairy roadsters … It has been more than two years since Yamaha successfully released its own version of the "Triple", called CP3.

A revolutionary Japanese !

At the end of 2013, in fact, the initiated a sudden change – a "revolution" – of philosophy at Yamaha: the roadster with 3-cylinder engine and ultralight cycle part quickly eclipsed the previous models with more massive 4-cylinders (and even)..

But Site readers – who, as everyone knows, have a little more culture than others – know that the term "revolution" also defines "the movement of an object around a central point, an axis, periodically bringing it back to the same point"… And that’s where the XSR900 comes in !

Based on the Yamaha "roadstar" with the same engine, frame and running gear (see technical sheets at the end of the article), this bike skilfully rides the neo-retro wave that is currently sweeping the motorcycle market. Rather than confronting the new Triumph with MT, MNC therefore preferred to select this novelty for 2016.

To imitate the bikes of the good old days, the XSR900 revives round headlights, "old-fashioned" … but its rear light is studded with small, very efficient LEDs! We note in passing that unlike the, the front light of the "nine hundred" is not excessively long.

Also round, the small dashboard of the Yam ‘is placed on an elegant aluminum plate stamped with the three tuning forks of Iwata. On the other hand, we regret the absence of a nose screen (fitted as standard on the Triumph) which would allow the three fixing screws and the cord to be hidden..

Stripped to the max, the XSR900 is somewhat disfigured by the front brake hoses (braided on the Triumph) and the ugly strand of electrical cables that run under the headlight, as well as the dark plastic housings installed on the frame..

The frame, in fact, is magnificent: made in only two pieces – left and right – it is perfectly smooth. On the Speed ​​Triple, the welds between the different tubes of the aluminum frame may be light and regular, they break the line more..

Specific to the XSR900, the polished tank is topped by an asymmetrical trim adorned with pretty screws and a cap offset to the right. Original! Behind is a two-seater saddle – biton and "bimaterial"! – which does not perfectly join the tank: a small cover would not have been too much. Ditto a few centimeters below, where the ABS pipes are exposed…

At the rear end of the bike, the raw plastic plate holder this time seems too massive and does not really stick with the "retro" label claimed by the bike … "Retro" questions precisely, one wonders why the Japanese manufacturer has not opted for round mirrors, as long as it is.

At the end of this first round of observation, the observation is clear: on the one hand, Yamaha has taken care of the simplest to offer a "new" motorcycle capable of seducing European bikers, many of whom last year fell for the or the …

Failing to be perfect, as we have seen, the result is relevant: Yamaha is offering this neo-retro for € 9,699 (€ 9,999 in the old colors of the brand). It’s 1200 euros more than the original MT-09, of course, but fans of roadsters strong in mouth and in character are not stolen..

Priced at € 12,100, the wicked Triumph roadster is far from a bad deal. Compared to its rival of the day, the Speed ​​Triple legitimizes its 2400 euros extra thanks to its flawless finish and its high-end parts. But on the road, is this price difference still justified? This is what we will see on the following pages !

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