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Bought a Triumph Trident 660: Purchase decision & initial impressions

25th October 2024, 11:32 by Deepankar Sadekar

The smooth engine with great handling puts a smile on my face every time I ride this beauty of a bike, it looks neat in every way.

BHPian AkhilAftab recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Many months ago I wrote a post about "how lots of choices have made my decision to get my first bike difficult" I got a lot of responses from other Team BHP members, 'Get a lower cc bike,' 'Start on a 150, 250, or the ever-so-loved 390.' Even though any of these small-capacity bikes would've made me just as happy as I am now, the thought of riding a multi-cylinder bike always had me excited. So what I ended up getting as my first bike at the age of 22 is a Triumph Trident 660 and this bike makes me feel happy in every way.

As someone who always aspired to own a vehicle, coming from a lower middle-class family where owning an Alto 800 would've been seen as a luxury, the thought of getting a 10 lakh rupee bike still makes me feel grateful every time I start the engine.

Why did I end up with a Trident 660?

The top reason for choosing Trident 660 was the newly opened Showroom in our city, Jammu (J&K). I got to see the bike in person, and they were willing to give test rides as well, unlike Kawasaki, who blatantly said, 'We don't do test rides.'

(I was a fan of Zx4RR and used to comment on every Kawasaki post to bring it here in India but sometimes you get the things that even you didn't know were tailor-made for you)

The anime "Super Cub" which sparked my flame for motorcycling, led me to choose something that will take me far away, a perfect bike that will let me explore the extra mile I never thought about taking.

When I saw the Trident 660 in a matte jet-black finish, it was an instant click! It radiated something which many bikes lack nowadays, not so over engineered, no flashy colours or stickers, just a bike that speaks class in every way. The triple cylinder sound was music to my ears and made my decision to choose it over any twin that much easier. I did consider Street Triple R as well as the price gap between them wasn't so much, especially after loading lakh+ worth of accessories. I asked myself what I needed and what was enough for me, starting on a 660 triple isn't a very common thing in many countries let alone India. I am really happy and grateful that I was in such a position to get one.

The delivery:

Triumph Jammu handled everything pretty well in terms of delivery of the bike as it was their first big bike sale they hired a videographer for a separate video during the delivery. Even though I am a very calm person who likes to prefer lowkey deliveries where I can just grab the key and run out of the showroom floor as quickly as I can. I still gave in to the usual business. I had already prepared myself and purchased
an MT helmet (I am planning to get an Arai soon, brain surgery is more expensive than a helmet as they say), Alpinestar x Triumph shoes (from the showroom), Rev'vit riding jacket, Rynox gauntlet gloves, Rynox riding jeans with armour .

I was ready to take off.

The first ride to a nearby cafe 'Pitstop' was intimidating, as I wasn't used to riding a bike in heavy traffic, the contributing factor was the delivery time which took place around 5 pm.

The smooth engine with great handling puts a smile on my face every time I ride this beauty of a bike, it looks neat in every way.

In the past two months of ownership, I have ridden almost 2000 kilometres. (In those 2 months I was out of town for 3 weeks, so I wasn't able to ride).

The first service was done at 850kms, only oil was changed, and lubing and cleaning of the exposed parts were done. It was around 4-5k approx. I also installed the Triumph officially bar end mirrors that set me off around 13k approx, including bar end finishers (around 3.5k) and labour. (I don't remember exact figures but it was around in the same ballpark of the given value)

Other accessories that I installed OEM + Aftermarket:

Triumph Heated grips - 26k
Triumph Scrolling indicators - 28k
Triumph shift assist (Quickshiter) - 45-50k approx
Triumph Bar end mirrors 12k
Triumph Underseat usb - 3k
Thunder aux lights - 25k (extremely useful)
Android Auto/ Apple car play infotainment - 14k
Puig frame sliders - 20k
Evotech Radiator grill - 11k
Puig spools - 4k
Tank pad - 4k

The Ride:

I regularly ride my bike, up to 20-30 kilometres city + outskirts, since I live in Jammu and Kashmir, there are many beautiful roads to ride on. The quickshiter has been a God send, it's buttery smooth both up and down and sometimes you don't even realise that you have shifted a gear. The average economy up till now has been around 15-16kmpl. On highways it averages around 19-20kmpl, these are according to my riding style. These numbers can vary from rider to rider.

I also did a 240 km weekend ride with some experienced riders, it was a great experience riding on the highway and the Trident feels like a great tourer, the handling and the grip are confidence-inspiring. The seat might need a little more padding for longer rides though.

Comfort and Riding position:

Being a naked bike, it's one of the most comfortable bikes I have ever ridden, but during long rides, which take more than 2 hours can make your butt a little sore, the cushioning is done right but I believe it could've been a bit better and tuned more for comfort. I am 5'11 and I can easily flat foot the Trident and I never feel cramped while riding alone. A simple 2-minute break after riding for 2-3 hours is enough to make me want to continue without breaking my bottom. The riding triangle is not aggressive but makes you lean a bit forward, which puts you in a sporty yet not very committed position, and the foot peg position is, what I think is 'the perfect spot.' The story changes if you are riding with a pillion, it's not made to ride with a pillion and one glace at the Trident will make you understand why is that the case. They get the narrow end of the seat and there isn't enough room in the pillion seat. Even though the narrow tail section does look clean and appealing but at the cost of pillion comfort. The peg position also makes a tall person feel miserable riding as a pillion for even the shortest of distances. But if you are under 5'4, it won't feel as cramped and uncomfortable as someone with 5'8 height. It is best suited for solo riders.

Handling:

I am not an experienced rider but I have ridden Pulsars, Yamaha 150-200cc, Honda CB 350 and even though Trident is definitely a cut above all these commuter and budget cruisers. I can't tell you how confident aspiring the Trident is. At first, I was very cautious with the brakes, and the throttle. After a day or two, I got accustomed to it. The first time handling a bike with twin rotors and so much torque makes you over cautious every mile you ride, but I have to give it to Triumph for offering Michelin Road 5's as stock tyres. They are the best and I have ridden in the rain as well, the braking, and the ability to flick the bike without any worry that your rubber will lose traction, make for a stress-free ride. I also researched about motorbike tyres and found out these are pretty much best in the business tyres and even many higher capacity bikes get worse tyres than one offered on the Trident. The brakes in the front and even the rear brake are great, dual-piston Nissin callipers at the front have a good strong bite and progressive braking always stops you exactly where you anticipated. I had to pull my brakes pretty hard 2-3 times and they never failed me, especially when you use both rear and front together. The non-adjustable Showa suspension keeps the bike planted during higher speeds, I have seen many people complain about how it is on the stiffer side but it's not like it's uncomfortable. It gives you great feedback and if you are taking a sharp turn while braking, it never rebounds in a way that might make you lose traction. Overall a perfect bike for my type of riding.

The Heart:

The inline triple sings the song that pleases my ears but also is refined like how you expect a Japanese engine to be. It is very smooth across the rev range but vibes creep in at the end of the revs. I have nothing to complain about here, the engine is very tractable and in heavy traffic, it's very easy to maneuver as the torque on offer even in second gear is enough to pull the bike from idle without any knocking. It heats up well in traffic but since I am always wearing thick riding pants I don't feel much heat on my legs, plus this amount of heat is expected from a middleweight bike. It doesn't heat up to the point where it's unbearable.
The best thing about this engine has to be its torque availability, you can be any gear and there is always enough torque to overtake and it requires minimal gear changes. It gives the sense of, 'there is so much more it can deliver.' A perfect symphony of sound and design.

Features and electronics:

I am a very techy person in general, I read articles about the latest and greatest things and always prefer newer things compared to something outdated even if it means that I would lose in price to performance graphs. Trident has many things over its competition in India, ride by wire (Z900 doesn't have it, Z650 and Ninja 650 also have cable throttle) Traction control, riding modes, 'rain and road.' (Even though I keep it on Road mode most of the time) Traction control has saved me from slipping off many times and you don't even feel it unless you look down on the dash as it flashes 'TC.' I believe any bike under 400cc doesn't benefit much from TC as most bikes don't have enough power to spin the wheel while you are already rolling, but middleweight to litre class does benefit from it if it's executed in a way that does not intervene with your riding experience. That's exactly where Trident excels. Another great thing I like about Trident is its minimalist approach. When I switch on the heated grips, a small icon appears on the TFT which shows the level of heating the grips are on. TPMS is also an accessory which integrates into the TFT and you don't have to worry about checking on your phone or whatnot. The heated grips are so helpful during winters, I used to ride my Activa 125 during winters and my hands would turn blue because of the cold. This was an absolute necessity for me and having an OEM add-on which works so well that you don't even feel there's something added makes it more worth it. Auto cancelling indicators are also there, basically, if you keep them on the "auto advance" setting, they will turn off automatically after 8 seconds plus 50 meters distance after turning them on. The distance is used because many times we tend to turn on indicators on signal, so it remains on until you haven't covered at least 50 meters. In addition to this is the 'lane change indicator,' which blinks 3 times when the indicator switch is pushed gently, just like a car. And yes I use lane chane indicator a lot, it's actually quite helpful. You can also customize the shift indication and set it to whatever revs you desire. I have kept my rev indicator to 9k RPMs, so that I don't have to see flashing lights every time I pull for an overtake. Another plus point was the steel braided brake lines. It's quite impressive to see such high-quality components in a middleweight bike. All these small features does make it feel 'extra special.' I for one welcome all of these features.

There is also a parking light, where if I turn my key from lock to 'P' it turns on a small LED under the headlamp and brake light, without you needing to put the bike on ignition. I think it can be useful in certain situations where you would not want to deplete your battery and still need illumination. From what I have read, it is because of some laws in different countries where you need to keep them on while parked, plus you don't need to keep the key inserted once it's on.

The Dash:

Okay, I do want to talk about the dash. I think it is one of the best dash on a street bike ever. It is round, has no lag at all, shows all the information you need, is easy to navigate, well-integrated accessories, it can also show turn-by-turn navigation, calls, can control GoPro, music and any headset directly using the navigation buttons on the bike. Even though I haven't opted for the TPMS and Bluetooth module yet, I am tempted to. (both will cost around 60k so yeah that's a lot) It is an absolutely packed unit and I much prefer the combination of inverted LCD and TFT than a round TFT with funky UI, it's minimal yet modern. It very easy to read even under direct sunlight and you can adjust the brightness accordingly.

What I like:

The Handling
The exhaust note
Tech it offers
High-quality components
Unique features
Design
Power delivery
Overall build quality

What I don't like:

The headlamp is almost useless in the dark, especially on Indian roads.
Non-adjustable clutch lever. (like why? The brake lever is adjustable but the clutch isn't for some reason, call it cost-cutting)
Useless mudguards. (You get completely battered in dirt and grime during rains)
Plastic Tank. (It is metal from the inside, but having a plastic outer shell forces you to buy separate tank locks that attach to the tank bag, I went with Hepco and Becker. I could've gotten two saddles plus a tank bag by Rynox at the same price that I paid for the small bag and lock).
Low ground clearance. (I have scrapes the belly so many times over speed bumps that now I have to be cautious whenever I encounter any)
The Price, a 7.8 lakh ex-showroom price would've been best suited since you will be spending at least 60-80k on the add-on accessories anyway. (The 2025 Trident 660 was just announced and added a Bluetooth module, quick shifter, cruise control, sports mode and a 6-axis imu for cornering ABS and Traction control, without increasing the price and I think now it has become an even better package).

In conclusion, I am quite happy with my Trident and will be doing a Jammu to Delhi ride on the 30th of October and I am absolutely thrilled to do so on my trident. It will be the first time that I will ride almost all day. It is a beautiful bike and I feel content with what it has to offer. Thanks for reading, happy riding.