TRIUMPH STREET TWIN (2019 - on) Review

Overall rating

The 2019 Triumph Street Twin will continue the success of the previous model and does everything you want from a modern classic, but now with improved braking, comfort, safety and more importantly performance.

The increase in power and more significantly the mid-range grunt has increased the appeal of the Street Twin and injected some excitement to the bike, whist still retaining its ease-of-use and rider-friendliness.

In October 2019 Triumph announced a £500 "personalisation contribution" to make the bike your own.

This bike replaced the 2016-2019 Triumph Street Twin. If you're after a bit more power and performance from your retro Triumph, you could also look at the speedier Street Scrambler.

There's loads of forums and online communities for the Street Twin. Once you've read this review and our owners' reviews, we'd recommend visiting the Triumph Owner's Motor Cycle Club for more.

Watch: Triumph Street Twin video review

Additional reporting by Phil West

Ride quality & brakes

The ‘entry-level’ Street Twin has improved handling and braking, with upgraded 41mm KYB cartridge forks and a new Brembo four piston caliper gripping a single floating disc, replacing the Nissin of old.

The huge Brembo caliper is not just eye-catching, but also delivers impressive braking performance, backed up by conventional ABS. The racing looking stopper is still user friendly and progressive, though.

Engine

The old 900cc machine was a little gutless, and could never have been described as exciting. However, that has been rectified thanks to an 18% increase in power - up from 54bhp to 64bhp. The upgraded engine revs quicker and to 500rpm higher, due to lighter internals. The result of this is a 2019 model that pulls stronger in the mid-range and feels more alive, underneath you.

Although peak torque is identical to the old model, there’s significantly more torque throughout the rev range, noticeable from 3500rpm onwards. Tap back one gear for a fast overtake and the new Street Twin delivers, whereas the old model was a little shy. A dealer fitted A2 licence kit is still available.

Reliability & build quality

Reliability shouldn’t be a problem as the motor is based on the previous model with lighter internals and service intervals remain at 10,000 miles.

Our Triumph Street Twin owner reviews are very positive, with the exception of the standard tyres, which is often the case on new bikes.

Value vs rivals

The OTR price of the Triumph Street Twin has jumped up from £7300 in 2016 to a launch price of £8100 for the new 2019 model. That said, prices remain on par with the competition for the Hinkley designed Triumph, which is actually built in Thailand.

The Street Twin is a rival to the  reliable retro Kawasaki W800, suave Moto Guzzi V7 and British-designed Royal Enfield Continental GT.

Twin test: Triumph Street Twin takes on Yamaha XSR700

First published by Phil West, 27 March 2019

On face value, the XSR is the better-value bike and the new Street Twin the more convincing retro; only it didn’t work out like that. The uprated Triumph is also, surprisingly, virtually the Yamaha’s performance match, is better equipped and, as expected, more charismatic and classy, too. Some of that is due to extras, so needs to be taken with a pinch of salt and there’s also no doubt the XSR remains a great-value motorcycle.

But while a couple of aspects of the Yam can be criticised the only ones of the Triumph that turn me off are its dinky size and cast wheels. And I’ve just realised that’s no problem, either. The equally new, 900-powered Street Scrambler sorts those issues out, too. So it looks like Triumph have got ‘classics’ covered.

Twin test: Triumph Street Twin vs Royal Enfield Interceptor 650

First published 2 October 2020 by Michael Neeves

In an effort to discover whether the 2019 Street Twin really is among the best in its class, we pit it against our Best Retro 2020 - the stunningly cheap yet capable Royal Enfield Interceptor 650. Here's our verdict:

Forget everything you know about old Royal Enfields because the new Interceptor 650 is in a different league. It still oozes old-school Enfield simplicity, but it’s well-built, classily finished and packed with well thought-out detail touches. It’s light, easy to ride, fun and handles incredibly well. At normal road speeds, it’s as capable as any retro roaster, but at a fraction of the price. Slicker, with funkier styling, more equipment, presence and more of a big bike feel, the Triumph is a class act and, compared to the BMWs and Ducatis of the world, decent value. It’s packed with character, superb handling, grunt, speed with easy road manners. It’s worth some of the extra cash over the Interceptor 650 for all its niceties, but for the pure riding experience there’s little to separate the two, which just goes to show what an incredible job Royal Enfield have done and why the 650 is our winner.

Equipment

For 2019, the Street Twin comes with class leading rider modes; 'rain' and 'road', which alter the ride-by-wire throttle map and traction control intervention accordingly. Both modes allow full power and can be changed on the move.

There’s a noticeable difference between the modes, with the rain mode significantly reducing the low to mid-range performance and giving the rear Pirelli Phantom an easier time in the tricky conditions we encountered; wet cobbles for example. Triumph have also installed an optional tyre pressure monitoring system, (TPMS).

Furthermore, Triumph have more than 140 accessories to personalise your Street Twin, and then there are countless aftermarket companies offering parts too.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

The new 2019 Street Twin - Built to make your own. Follow the link in our bio for more info. #TriumphOfficial #Bonneville #StreetTwin

A post shared by Triumph Motorcycles (@officialtriumph) on Oct 3, 2018 at 8:52am PDT