Triumph SA invited the local bike media to the launch of their much anticipated and totally revamped new Rocket power cruiser. Revamped, is, in truth not accurate, as the latest Rocket from Triumph is an entirely new motorcycle which shares only its name with the bike that it replaces. The old Rocket was a brute of a bike. A shade smaller than your regular Supertanker, the old Rocket sported the largest engine in production motorcycledom, at a staggering 2300cc’s. Again, like a supertanker, it made torque like nothing the world has ever seen from a motorcycle engine. Horsepower was not shy either. Well, to be frank, that all fades into insignificance when we eyeball Triumph’s latest rendition of the Rocket!
The unveiling was aptly held at Rockets in Bryanston. The stars of the show were covered by bespoke black covers emblazoned with the Triumph logo. One was “onstage”, where Bruce Allen, Triumph’s bossman gave us the rundown on the design brief around the new Rocket, as well as some Triumph news in general. The other two were outside where they could be properly scrutinized, sat on and just generally drooled over. The first bike to be unveiled was the special edition [only 750 bikes built by Triumph] TFC version, which was unveiled by its new owners. It is dripping with carbon fibre trim which hints at the enhanced running gear and more potent motor than the regular models. There really is only one word to describe it. Spectacular!
The covers were then removed from the other two bikes, one being the Touring orientated model and the other the more aggressive R model. Holy smoke! These bikes are beautiful! The finish exceeds Triumph’s already extremely high standard with little design touches everywhere.
An example of which is the passenger footpegs. The pegs fold up into what looks like a beautiful bit of aluminium detailing. Fold them out and, Voila!, a foot peg!. Wild. I am not going to regurgitate what is already common knowledge from publications that reported on the world launch and on social media concerning the detailed specifications of the bikes. What I want to rather do, is give you a sense of what these bikes are about.
What blows my mind is firstly the 40kg’s of weight that has been paired off the bike. An aluminium frame replacing the old steel unit and an engine almost 18 kg’s lighter lead the charge. Ally that to more horsepower, at 133 Kw, more torque, at 221Nm, [eish] and engine capacity bumped to 2,500cc’s.
Power cruiser indeed! Tossing 40Kg’s not only improves an already staggering power to weight ratio, but it also improves the dynamics of the bike when rolling down the road and through the bends. Any other offering, from any other manufacturer, simply pales into insignificance by comparison. I cannot wait to sample this bike on SA roads.
The bike comes in two variants, the GT and the R. With the model designations being pretty self-explanatory. The GT is the more laid back riding position for touring, whilst the R is the ripper. Power is the same, so fact is, they are both going to rip. Prices start at a little over R299,000 and up, depending on model and spec. The public unveiling happens this Saturday at Triumph’s dealership, so get your butt down there and see this bike in the “flesh”. I am sure that you, like me, will be blown away. Watch this space too, for riding impressions when we get the opportunity, probably early in March, to ride these incredible beasts. In the meantime, you can feast your eyes on some images of these Power Cruiser game-changers from Triumph.
For more information visit – www.triumph-motorcycles.co.za
