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Triumph Daytona T595 test

Almost lady

The UK motorcycle industry has its own representative: the Triumph Daytona T595. She represents the super sports ambitions of the English.

Many can build good motorcycles. In the case of good sports motorcycles, the circle of manufacturers is already significantly smaller. The bar is high. At the top is the Honda CBR 900 RR. Low weight, a powerful engine, an easily manageable chassis and almost perfect driving characteristics make the difference. The Italians tackle it on the emotional side. Most prominent representative: the Ducati 916. The successful design and the robust character of the V-twin cylinder make your stomach tingle. A synthesis of both models, that would be it.
And that’s exactly what John Bloor, owner of the new Triumph factories, is aiming for with the Daytona T 595. Borrowings in the design of the fairing in Ducatis 916 are obvious. The single-sided swing arm could also come from the Italians. But some things have to be easy. After all, this rear wheel guide allows the oval rear silencer of the three-in-one exhaust system to fit very tightly despite the wide 190 mm drawn, thus improving the lean angle.
The aluminum bridge frame is also nothing unusual for a modern super sports motorcycle. But only this design made the straight, performance-enhancing arrangement of the intake ducts with a generously dimensioned airbox possible. And the oval tubes instead of the extruded profiles as a connection to the individual castings give the T 595 a personal touch. In addition, the light alloy frame with the screwed-on rear frame weighs only twelve kilograms.
Lightweight construction – the magic word of modern sports motorcycle construction – permeates all assemblies of the T 595. On the new, nominally 130 hp three-cylinder with 956 cm³ displacement (see MOTORRAD 21/1996), the English shed twelve kilograms compared to the well-known triple. Another five are due to the exhaust system. Magnesium holders for the instrument panel and cladding, conventional instead of upside-down forks help reduce the weight of the Daytona, which once weighed 257 kilograms, to 226 kilograms when fully fueled. A good value, but not an excellent value compared to the competition.
The T 595 is set to demonstrate its apparently sporty talent on the racing slopes of Cartagena in southern Spain and on the MOTORCYCLE home track in Ledenon. The new model proves to be more comfortable than its predecessors when it comes to sitting. The shorter tank allows a far less elongated position, the driver can now keep the vehicle better under control. The winding course in Cartagena more than accommodates the high-torque, so nice, hoarse hissing three-cylinder. Just two or three gears of the easily shiftable six-speed gearbox are enough to accelerate out of the mostly tight bends. The three-cylinder converts every little twist of the throttle grip, regardless of the speed, into vehement thrust without the slightest delay. Its power development seems to be greatest in the middle speed range, so that one is inclined to shift up a gear sooner rather than later, although the engine willingly and no less forcefully continues to turn into the red range at 10700 rpm. Amazingly, there is no trace of the hole in the power curve of the measured 126 hp engine.
The chassis is not that convincing. Fast lean changes are still playful, braking in an inclined position with a negligible set-up moment is due to the Bridgestone Battlax BT 56. In return, the exactly 192 millimeter wide tire cannot inspire with its stability. Again and again the Daytona pushes to the outside of the curve, never really wants to follow the steering commands of its driver and reports on bumps with a noticeable righting moment. The adhesion of the BT 56 could also be better in view of the enormous power boost of the three-cylinder.
It’s a shame that the low-lying exhaust manifold opposes extreme lean angles in right-hand bends.
Everything could work so harmoniously. The sensitively appealing spring elements offer a wide range of adjustment options, with which, with the appropriate tires, you can certainly work out a suitable adjustment for a sporty, brisk pace.
In normal everyday surgery, far from the racetrack, the Daytona is far more in its element. With 140 millimeters of travel at the rear, a soft spring and a very strong progression, the chassis also absorbs bad road damage without the shock absorber bottoming out – even in two-person operation. The telescopic fork with 45 millimeter thick stanchions ensures precise steering properties and flawless spring / damper functions.
The Daytona’s front braking system also works at a high level. The four-piston calipers from Nissin on the two 320 brake discs decelerate extremely effectively, even under the toughest loads. Good controllability and a constant pressure point make it always predictable, even for less experienced people. The inconspicuously working stopper at the back goes well with this.
Already not convincing on the racetrack, further weaknesses of the extra-wide 190 Battlax tire come to light on the country road. Due to the low level of self-damping, it appears very uncomfortable and is sensitive to longitudinal grooves. At high speeds on the motorway, there is a slight unrest in the chassis. The Daytona runs at top speed at an impressive 249 km / h. It is not even particularly turbulent for the driver behind the fairing. The wind protection is surprisingly good for a sports motorcycle.
In contrast, the consumption is less good. Despite the complex injection system, the computer of which is fed with all the necessary information from the pressure conditions in the airbox to the current speed, the new engine turns out to be an unstoppable drunkard. Seven liters at country road speed and 8.6 liters per 100 kilometers at a constant 180 km / h stand in stark contrast to the ambitious and future-oriented goals of the English technicians. There is no other choice than to trim the electronic injection as quickly as possible so that not only the exhaust gas values ​​are correct, but also the consumption reaches an acceptable level.
The quality of workmanship is better. The aluminum frame covered with protective clear lacquer or the polished accessories testify to the attention to detail, which, however, comes to an end when the curious ventures into the intertwined entrails of electrics and attachments. Rather built-in and can only be managed with the torque wrench, the technical exploration is not exactly screwdriver-friendly. Even the handful of quick-release fasteners on the cladding are no go along of much help. John Bloor knows at best why the cover of the expansion tank for the coolant is fastened directly in front of the tank with very unusual Torx screws with an inner pin, for which a tool is only available in specialist shops. Because only he wanted it, they say internally at Triumph.
NOTand, as they themselves admit, the English tend to play games. “There is hardly anything the British think is better than football, ”announce the Triumph advertising strategists, and then add:“ But there is something they can do better. Building motorcycles. "Probably, because this Daytona is easily suitable for the Japanese Premier League, and with crazy screws, but especially with carbon frills such as mudguards, tank pads or rear wheel covers, it approaches the beautiful players from Italy’s A series.

How – “No sports? We will see. ??

MOTORRAD editor Rainer Baumel on British understatement.

"No sports," commented Triumph owner John Bloor in early 1996 when asked curious MOTORRAD journalists whether the new Daytona should be used in superbike. As a reminder: At that time it was not yet clear that the Daytona would exceed the capacity limit for three-cylinder engines by 55 cm³ (for two-cylinder, the upper limit according to the Superbike regulations is 1000, for three-cylinder 900 and for four-cylinder 750 cm³). Bloor still denies today There are still plans for a racing comeback for Triumph (at the beginning of the 1970s, the then Trident dominated the series machine class of the Tourist Trophy on the Isle of Man). Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, last autumn he asked the Superbike World Championship organizer Flammini whether the regulations could be changed a little and the maximum displacement for three-cylinder machines increased to 955. However, the proposal was rejected under pressure from the manufacturers already involved in the World Cup. With a displacement of just 900 cc from three cylinders, you could stir up the competition in the superbikes. After all, the Japanese 750 four-cylinder engines suffer from their lack of acceleration in the lower speed range and the 996 Ducati twin from its susceptibility to defects, as the Italians have to expose their engine to speeds and piston speeds beyond good and evil in order not to lose ground in top performance. A 900 three-cylinder would be both powerful and stable in terms of engine speed. The unplanned displacement of the new Daytona to 955 cc had become necessary because the British did not want to lag behind the direct market competitor Honda CBR 900 RR in terms of standard performance. As is well known, it has four cylinders and can therefore draw its power from a higher speed potential. The Triumph engineers were only able to compensate for this shortcoming with more displacement, but the use of superbikes is not ruled out once and for all. For whatever reason, the second new Triumph model, the undisguised Speed ​​Triple, only has a displacement of 885 cc. Even engine mounting points in the frame are the same as in the Daytona. Nothing could be more obvious than simply relocating the engine, provided that you manage to tease out the necessary horsepower for the racing trim beforehand. Triumph would have to build a special series of 200 such Daytona "R" models in order to compete in the Superbike World Championship. We will see.

My conclusion

For Triumph, producing motorcycles in a modular system was certainly sensitive under purely economic considerations. But the stuff that motorcycle dreams are made of was so difficult to realize. The new Daytona is completely different. She has the character to be at the forefront, to arouse emotions. The pithy hissing three-cylinder sounds different than the V2 of a 916, but no less exciting. And pulls away mightily. You just have to put other tires on the power pack and stop drinking too much.

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