One of these things is not like the others... But it's not the Triumph Scrambler 400 X!

The Scrambler 400 X has an immediate sibling in the form of the Speed 400 roadster, which shares its engine and frame but uses more road-biased suspension, wheels and tyres. But there are other spurs on the family tree, too; the Scrambler 900 and the big daddy of the group, the Scrambler 1200.

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Styling cues run through all three retro soft roaders but how deep can the resemblance truly run when the bikes are so different? To find out, I took all three for a spin.

Origin stories 

The patriarch of Triumph’s modern Scramblers is the 900. It started life all the way back in 2006 as a Bonneville with a rugged glow-up. With its polished, high-level exhaust and faux-military green paintjob, it stole the hearts of many a Steve McQueen wannabe.

Triumph Scrambler 900 ridden on the road

Fast forward 18 years and the most recent middleweight follows the same formula but takes the Speed Twin 900 as its base bike.

Keeping the family metaphor going, the overgrown and boisterous teenager of the group is the Scrambler 1200. Unlike the middleweight, the 1200 was built from scratch using the torque-laden and silky smooth parallel-twin Thruxton engine at its heart and a freshly designed tubular steel cradle frame.

Despite its coffee shop styling, the Scrambler 1200 has genuine off-road chops (a James Bond stunt rider once overtook me on one down a sludgy, wet forest trail… on its rear wheel).

Triumph Scrambler 1200 X ridden on the road

Which leaves us with the 400 X, a surprise late addition. Built to a price, the baby Scrambler is the only single in the range and has the potential to feel like the black sheep of the family. But does it? 

Strangely, the one that feels the least like it belongs in the clan is the 900. Despite being 800cc, 50bhp, over 20kg and more than £6k apart, the 1200 and the 400 X feel the most similar in attitude.

They have the roomiest riding positions, the best handling and throatiest exhausts. But I think the biggest similarity is their feeling of put-togetherness. They feel like they were made on purpose whereas the 900 feels like a tarted up road bike.

Triumph Scrambler 400 X ridden on the road

Triumph have given the Speed Twin 900 an update so perhaps there will be a refreshed version of the Scrambler 900 on the way, too. It will be good to see how that shapes up.