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Review: My Triumph Street Twin Gold Line Edition

20th July 2021, 16:37 by Rahul Nagaraj

Inside the helmet, you can't help but grin as you start appreciating the power available on tap.

BHPian GreaseMonkey recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Finally getting to experience the joy… of writing a ‘Buying Experience’ (and planning to continue with ‘Ownership experience’ in the times to come) post on the forum after reading dozens over the years!!! Also, to share with fellow members the roller coaster journey of coming to a decision to invest in an (almost) 1000cc class bike.

Just to get a perspective, the past 18 months have wreaked havoc globally. Almost everyone has been impacted indirectly or directly with hardships, losses & pain of personal nature. At 46 years of age, one gets a chance to reflect on your life & I decided to take charge of at least something in my life & pursue things that really mattered to me!!

"No regrets" is an epitaph that would adorn my resting place, has always been a wish!! But for that got to "Live" a life first!! And what better way to do it by getting back to 'Riding bikes'!!! It's been a gap of almost 20 years since I had to give up on serious riding because of a freak incident that resulted in Bell's Palsy (temporary paralysis of one side of face)!! Then the usual circus of life took precedence ... kid growing up...job.... a supportive better half and so on!!

My ride before the Triumph came home (Actively searching for a new home now - as no dedicated space for parking 2 bikes!!)

Cut to May 2021...

Factors considered before the final decision:

Aspirations to resume active riding after a hiatus of more than 2 decades (I am 46 this year)
A ride that suits the occasional touring urge but is also a practical bike for daily city use
A ride that suits the age & doesn’t make me seem like a “wannabe” and most importantly should be able to compliment the growing age (just a personal opinion of the wife!!)
Comfortable seat & ease of getting on the bike for both rider & pillion (a.k.a the Mrs.)
A bike that has an old school charm but new age technology for reliability. I am a Royal Enfield enthusiast having owned 3 Bullets (all pre 1990 – preference being for Cast Iron block engines)
A sweet ‘Sounding’ firing that makes the heart go hmmmm….
A bike that should offer enough opportunities to customise the ride over the years to enhance the riding pleasure & ownership experience (incentive to plan & budget!!)
Robust after Sales support & availability of spares & access to trained service personnel (A big shout out to Mr. Atul Kamath (Service Head) at Shaman Triumph for patiently answering all queries!!)
A riding fraternity to interact & get that community rider bonding.

Best Practices (Based on Team–BHP readings)

Took a test ride of the exact version of the bike finalised.
Took the wife on the test ride and sought her inputs too (Personal Best practice!!)
Inspect the bike in the stock yard (Requested & got permission to visit the stock yard once the bike was delivered from the company)
Being a CBU, was very keen to be present to do the “Un-boxing” and shoot a video. (Details later in the post)
As with the marquee brands, the accessory list was comprehensive. However, prioritized the ‘Safety’ parts over the aesthetic ones. (Also helped keep the accessory budget under control!)
Requested & was allowed to be present in person for the PDI at the service centre

The Journey to the final decision of choosing the ride:

The initial contenders: Kawasaki Versys 650 & KTM Adventure 390. Went and saw both the bikes. Great machines in their own merit. But as mentioned earlier, guess I am an “Old school” guy. Didn’t think the fit was right. Though got to agree that was smitten by the Versys 650. The lack of color options was a dampener and also the bigger size would be challenging for a daily ride in my opinion.
Being an avid reader of Auto magazines & forums, was following the launch of the Triumph Trident 650 very closely.
The details of the ‘In line 3” engine was enticing enough to keep a follow up with the dealership for the test ride
The overall design is a nice confluence of modern & classic
Went for the test ride and when I saw the bike in person was hugely disappointed. Primarily on account of the driving posture (slightly more lean-in for my comfort) and the pathetic excuse of the pillion seat). Wife just refused to climb on to the ride saying she hates seating on “The first floor” not to mention the small seat size!!!
The lockdown meant that the Triumph showroom was closed and we were doing the test ride from the workshop. That was a huge advantage as they had just received the latest consignment of bikes which included the Street Twin 2021, Speed Twin, Bonneville & the mind-blowing Rockets in the inventory for us to see.
In the interim, I had been tracking the Street Twin “Limited edition” (1000 pieces worldwide & approximate 30 in India as mentioned by the dealer). My phone calls a month back had got the reply that all bikes were ‘Sold
Out’ (Thanks to a recent thread we know how that works!!)
On a whim, just asked the sales team member about the Goldline. And he was like well we have 2 coming in next week but one is spoken for!! He moves into the rows of bikes just delivered and brings out a Goldline that was scheduled for delivery (Added pic below)
Just the sight of that matte black beauty with the special painted stripe & hand painted ‘Gold lining’ was giving the right flutter in the heart.
First encouraging signal was the look on the wife’s face!!! And you hear the words “That’s a very nice one”. We immediately request a test ride and a Street Twin was arranged.
I sit on the bike & wife follows. One simple swing and she is sitting comfortably on the seat (For reference, I am 5’9” and she is around 5’ 6”) “Now that’s an easy ride to mount & alight” another encouraging sign!!
We fire up the bike and the sweet sound of firing is already sounding like music.
Take her out for a spin and you immediately get a sense of the power with the torque experienced as you spin the throttle. At almost 190 kgs the weight of the bike does not overwhelm you. The handling is nimble. Initial impressions are very very enticing.
Post the test ride, first reaction of the wife is that it’s comfortable.
For me, I am already thinking there goes the budget for a toss. The Street Twin - Goldline edition is approximately 30% more than the Trident 650!!
The journey back home & dinner discussion that night was intense!!!
Deal clinchers: Limited edition, 2021 specs & the right tick marks on almost all the checklist items mentioned earlier

The bike that we saw at the workshop when we visited for the Test Ride:

The ‘Actual Buying’ process (made super smooth & comfortable by Team Shaman Triumph !!):

A challenge perceived was the sanctioning of the loan amount. I had just joined a new firm and had only 2 months of salary slip. I was assured by the sales team that they will talk to their preferred banking partners & revert.
The dealer recommended Axis Bank but I also wanted to evaluate ICICI bank since I have been banking with them for almost 2 decades
Huge learning in the loan saga. Axis have an Auto loan product customized for bikes above 5 Lacs. ICICI bank were lost when I shared the quote from the dealer and asked for 50% funding
Axis guys visited my home, got forms filled up, took the supporting documents and reverted with a sanction in 3 days flat. ICICI were completely at sea as even after 5 days they were trying for ‘Approval from seniors’ as it is an expensive bike!!! In the end just decided to go with Axis!

Pricing Information:

Ex showroom pricing: 8,25,000
Registration charges & taxes: 1,65,000
IMV charges: 3,250
RST: 3,300
Delivery & documentation: 20,000
Insurance: 28,933
Extended Warranty (2 years): 19,609

TOTAL: Rs 10,64,992

Timelines:

Test ride: 29th May
Booking Amount paid: 31st May
Loan applications completed: 1st June (for both banks)
Loan sanctioned by Axis: 4th June (ICICI finally reverted on the 11th of June!!)
Down payment done: 9th June
Loan Disbursed to dealer: 10th June
Bike delivered at stock yard: 15th June
Unboxing at Stock yard: 17th June
Papers sent to RTO for registration: 18th June
PDI done at Workshop: 23rd June
Installation of all the accessories: 1st July
Final Delivery date: 4th July

The story in Pictures:

The Stock Yard visit for Unboxing

The Actual Delivery:

I have always had a name for my rides!!! (cliche ... I know!!)

This one is "Her Majesty" ....and she is now home!!!!

The Accessories (ALL OEM parts): A big Thank you to Rajendra at Team Shaman for being understanding & flexible thru the whole finalisation!!

The Riding Experience (First 200 Kms)

The biggest tip for new bike delivery that I can share is regarding the "Keychain"!!! (Sounds silly I know... but trust me follow it and you will save yourself from lot of heartaches!!!)

Please opt for a soft leather or Silicon rubber or any soft material with respect to the keychain pendent. I realised from past experience when you insert the key in the ignition the pendent keeps moving rubbing across some part of the bike near the handle & tank resulting in micro scratches. Also the chance of damaging the paint when you operate the fuel tank lid!!

OK ... first lessons from moving to bigger bikes:

The heat signature from the engine will be a new realty!! Each bike will have it's intensity. It will be a slight discomfort for the thighs. I took the delivery at the Andheri showroom and navigated thru the JVLR traffic till the Eastern Express highway!! At IIT signal I was having full empathy for the 'Roasted leg' experience!!!

As time progressed, one realises it's just a re-orientation exercise and it soon is factored in by our brain!! Once on the highway though all the heat sensation goes off so to say due to the wind.

The bike itself is very nimble to handle. You are absolutely not in awe of any 'heft' that is usually associated with litre class bikes.

Highway riding on the free flowing Eastern Express highway lets you enjoy the relaxed riding posture, a good secure feeling courtesy the wide tyres and the sheer torque available thru the range! Inside the helmet, you can't help but grin as you start appreciating the power available on tap.

The stock exhausts have a decent gruff for those of us who like the audio experience!! However it is not the 'soundgasmic' type that the car guy is going to turn as you pass him

The user interface on the Analog Speedometer & Digital MID is very intuitive to use. Screens include choice for RAIN / ROAD mode, Distance to empty, Trip A, Trip B, General Odometer & RPM. Navigation on the controls is straight forward and I like the fact that there are no complex 'sub-menus'

The full sweep of the arm on the speedo and all the illumination on the MFD when you start the bike is a nice touch.

The Fuel gauge is a digital line stack. The first time I filled up it took a good couple of minutes for the lines to top up on the display. I will admit it did cause a flutter in my heart... praying that it shouldn't be a faulty sensor

The stock tyres are Pirelli (100 / 90 - R18 in Front & 150/70 - R17 in Rear)

The rubber compound I am told is 'Medium Soft' (sounds sweet to a F1 fan!!) and usually gives around 10k to 12k of running before replacement.

One feature I really appreciated was the 4 stage adjustment available for the clutch and front brake levers. Very handy so to speak for different sizes of the fingers and traffic fatigue

Given the retro / classic design of the bike the stock rear view mirrors are the round shape ones. Very happy about the visibility and the area it covers. Though I got to admit I did flirt with the thought of opting for the 'Bar end' ones!!! I may still go for it, but given the price point (16 K for the OEM accessory) I will be scouting for other options for sure!!

The step up to a litre class bike also means that the protective gear should be adequate. Gloves, helmet & jacket with armour are essentials. While all of us would surely love to go in for the 'best in class', my realisation is that serious budgetary provisioning needs to be done. I had done my research and realised that approximate 10% of the bike value (and also considering the type of usage intended city/touring/off road) is a starting point!!!]

Realised thru online research & biker groups that lots of reliable options are available in Mumbai to try out the gear & various brands!!!

Immediate agenda items:

The bike has complete Matte finish with the hand painted striping. Exploring options for paint protection.

The biggest bummer is the lack of a 'Center Stand'!!! Not only does it provide a peace of mind when your bike is parked in the society parking lot and you have someone plonk their dearies on the seat, as against when it is resting just on the side stand!!

Oh well why I mention this, trust me this will be a true jewel for 'Her Majesty' (given the pricing of almost 23K for the OEM part!) I mean Triumph seriously..... (Wish I could add the sound track "Duniya mein agar aaye hai toh jeena bhi padega.... centre stand agar zeher hai toh peena bhi padega!!!)

But then again... isn't this the 'Bike Bike' experience we yearn for!!!

Looking forward to ease the bike into the break in (800 kms) by this month end.

Staying true to the forum norms, will try & keep updating the periodic ownership experiences!!!