Thunderbird 1700

[Cleaver]

Has anyone rode with a Triumph Thunderbird?  If so how did they compare.  I had a chance to test ride the limited edition which is the 1700 at Daytona during bike week, but didn't have any thing to compare it with as it was a guided test drive.  The bike I rode had the factory Tor exhaust and sounded good and was quite peppy. The factory numbers for hp and torque are great, claiming 98hp and 115 ft lbs torque.  They are releasing the Thunderbird Storm for the new year, blacked out mods and the Big Bore (1700) kit installed from the factory.

Marty

[highcountry]

I haven't read anything about the 'Bird but when I was considering either a Rocket or Valk, I found a UK Triumph owners forum.  The horror stories were amazing about the Rocket.  Many had Rockets that would spontaneously accelerate and others just die when riding down the road.  The dealers had no idea how to fix the bikes and owners were just screwed.  Made my decision easy.

[Thatch]

Has anyone rode with a Triumph Thunderbird?  If so how did they compare.  I had a chance to test ride the limited edition which is the 1700 at Daytona during bike week, but didn't have any thing to compare it with as it was a guided test drive.  The bike I rode had the factory Tor exhaust and sounded good and was quite peppy. The factory numbers for hp and torque are great, claiming 98hp and 115 ft lbs torque.  They are releasing the Thunderbird Storm for the new year, blacked out mods and the Big Bore (1700) kit installed from the factory.

Marty

I stumbled onto this thread and felt I should put in a bit of information on the topic. I do not now, nor have I ever owned a Valkyrie, however I have owned a tbird (with the big bore upgrade to 1700 ) for nearly a year and a half now. I was one of the first delivered pre-order birds in the US (I have since moved to and had the bike shipped to Germany). So while I can't provide comparison data I do know a bit about the bird itself.

The bird is by far the best bike I have ever owned. I've had faster, more nimble, more economic, etc but for what the bird is it fulfills it's job better than any other bike I have had in over 25 years of riding. It has good power and handles very well for a cruiser. It's weight is very neutral and can be tossed about in the corners very easily. It is however a cruiser so you do run out of clearance well before you run out of grip.

As to reliability, there have been very few problems with the birds since their release. Considering it is a brand new bike with a brand new power plant the problems have been negligible. That said there have been a couple issues. With the very early bikes there was a coolant leak on the back side of the engine. It was an easy fix and once a new gasket set was released the problem doesn't exist for new bikes. That is really it for any sort of wide spread issue. There have been a few people that have had some shared issues but it will be 2 guys here or there with the same issue. Not much else. There was a recall on the pillion bracket (a 5 min fix) and a few folks had an engine light issue. All in all it has been a very clean rollout. Personally I had the seat bracket recall and that's it. I rode the bike for 6 months as a 1600 then got the bb kit installed (I ordered it with the bike but it's release was delayed till then) Even with having the engine opened up I've had no significant issues at all (they did leave a hose loose that had to be sorted after the install)

I do know that the R3 did have some early issues one of which did required the case to be broken into and some rather extensive work. However, these plants are completely different and there have been no incidences like this that I am aware of (I've been on the two major Thunderbird boards since before the bike was released) nor is there any indication that there is some lingering problem out there. Personally I'd be hard pressed to think of a more successful bike launch than the bird has had.

Is it the right bike for you? That I have no idea about. It works for me and many others. I bought mine sight unseen, never rode it until after it was bought and paid for and I have never questioned if it was the right thing to do. I have had nothing but great service from my Triumph dealership in the states and they were very convenient to me. If service is an issue for you you might want to look into how close yours is.

If I can answer any specific questions please don't hesitate to ask. I would suggest if you want a whole groups opinion on things you could head over to http://www.thunderbird1600.com for the largest discussion group on the bird available. Lots of good information there. (not trying to pull members from here at all, just thought in this case it might be good to share)

Best of luck with your decision what ever it is. Just wanted to drop in and give an enthusiastic thumbs up for the bird and for Triumph.

p.s. I don't recall the members name but there is a former Valkyrie owner at the t1600 site as well. So if you wanted to ask there I'm sure he'd pop up.

[Cleaver]

I am not seriously looking for anything at the present time.  Just wondering if any one has rode with someone on a 1700 Bird.  It was the closest thing to my Valks that I have ridden so far.  I like the crusier style bike, but with the present choices I will probably go with an 1800 Wing after the Valk.
A friend of mine bought a Rocket III and now has 36,000 miles on it.  He did have to replace the computer (under warrenty), then he had problems with it not idleing properly (engine would rev to 3000 rpm at idle). He installed a Jardine exhaust which eliminated the cat and 2 o2 sensors.
I personally would have welded in the bungs to have the sensors put back in. Computers have to moniter lots of info to act correctly.  A Dealer installed a different tune which seemed to correct the problem, but he had it to about 4 different dealers before he found one that did it right.  Most would just reinstall the factory tor tune which worked for their test drive, but after the computer reprocessed the info it received it would screw up again.

Thanks for the imput
Marty

[SANDMAN5]

The bird is by far the best bike I have ever owned. I've had faster, more nimble, more economic, etc but for what the bird is it fulfills it's job better than any other bike I have had in over 25 years of riding. It has good power and handles very well for a cruiser. It's weight is very neutral and can be tossed about in the corners very easily. It is however a cruiser so you do run out of clearance well before you run out of grip.

Yeah, that's pretty much the way we feel about Valkyries. Different strokes as they say. There's
only one Triumph dealer I'm aware of within at least 100 miles of me. That's one of the main reasons
I didn't get a Rocket 3 when I totalled my first Valk. Got another Valk instead and still loving
every minute of it!!

[Thatch]

Well I've heard nothing but good things about the Valks but they never tripped my trigger. (as you say, different strokes) Interestingly Tim Prentice who designed the Honda Rune also designed the new Tbird. So, at least there is a bit of a connection.

As for dealers, I was lucky in having a dealer right in town when I bought mine. (though I would of traveled for it)  The local combined Honda / Suzuki dealership gives of NO confidence whatsoever though. I'm surprised they sell anything in there (it's pretty bad).

Anwho, like I said I just stumbled by this thread and thought I'd help if I could.

(here are two pics of my slightly modified bird in case anyone is interested)





Enjoy, whatever you ride..... and be safe.

[croaker]

I'm going to jump in here, not because of my experience with the TBird, but with other recent Triumph products.  Triumph has great ideas, great looking and good performing bikes.  That said, their quality control and build decisions are not on par.  I've had two very different Triumphs in the last ten years and both suffered from premature corrosion and instrument failure.  My last bike, a Bonneville, presented me with a number of problems, not the least of which was the very ugly corrosion under the clearcoated hub.  To their credit, they did replace the first one under warranty, but when the second began to do the same, they tried to blame me.  That didn't go over too well.  Personally, I think the Tbird is a good looking bike, although its clearly another HD knockoff, but my other Triumphs looked good on the showroom floor as well.  Not going to go thru that again.

[iliveforcurves]

Whenever I look at a Triumph Thunderbird what I see is the world's largest Honda Rebel.
I talked to a BMW (car) salesman a couple of weeks ago when I was on the Valk and he said he rides a T-bird and loves it.

[bigvalkriefan]

Personally, I think the Tbird is a good looking bike, although its clearly another HD knockoff, but my other Triumphs looked good on the showroom floor as well.  Not going to go thru that again.

Ummmm don't HD's have V twin engines?

[Hoser]

"The factory numbers for hp and torque are great, claiming 98hp and 115 ft lbs torque."
Factory numbers are at the crankshaft, rear wheel makes 84 hp according to rider magazine dyno run, still purty good.
Hoser

[f-Stop]

Worked on a Nationwide Insurance commercial earlier this year and Triumph brought one of their show trucks to provide a couple of bikes...


I thought the Thunderbird was a nice looking bike...


Other than a Valk, I'd probably only consider a Rocket III...parked next to one at my favorite bike shop and it made the Valkyrie look small!  I have heard some pretty alarming stories about quality control, though.

[Dogg]

rocket III is the worst thing triumph ever built.IMHO. so many problems not worth investing in. the Tbird is absolute perfection in its design. I want one so bad I can taste it but, alas, I cant buy another bike right now. BUT, I will buy one once I get thru this crunch. I took a ride on one and fell in love. I was as comfortable on it as I was my valk(LD) without the wieght. even tho we all know a valk is extremely nimble for its size, the Bird was just as nimble tho, I dragged the peg sooner thatn on the valk.
  Hardly a knockoff of anything. this is a great bike and Thatch, I love what you done with her...looks like she would give a Yamaha Warrior a run for the money!! Im glad I read this thread...thank you

[f-Stop]

Yo Dogg, if the Rocket III has insurmountable quality control problems, what makes you think the Thunderbird would be any better?  I mean...they're both designed and built by the same company with the same quality controls in effect...same suppliers, etc.

I post this as a legitimate guestion...unless...of course...one is built on Mars and the other built on Venus...then it would all make sense! ???

[Thatch]

I've not owned a R3 so I can't speak to that bike much. All I can say is that the Thunderbird has 0 quality control issues. The fit and finish of the bike are excellent. It is far superior to any asian bikes I looked at (I always understood the valk to have a different level of finish compared to other models) and was on par with any Harley you'd see (I don't like harleys but they tend to have good quality.

As stated before I have had effectively 0 problems in 1.5 years of ownership and as an originating member of 2 separate discussion boards I have seen few real problem posted. This isn't to say it's perfect, nor is it to suggest it's the right bike for any of you. I didn't post on here to seek converts. The uniqueness of the bike is a significant draw for me, an  aspect of ownership I suspect Valkyrie owners would fully understand.

Anywho, I'll leave you guys to it. If you've got questions I'll be around. I just don't want to come across as the Amway salesman.

Enjoy.

[Dogg]

When I first read of the t-bird coming back, I was kinda leary just because of the r3 abomination. BUT....The more I researched, the more I found the t-bird was subjected to alot more rigorious testing than the r3 because they NEEDED that big bike on the market...this bike was thought out very well. planned very well.

 Then honda dealer in NJ where I bought 1 of my valks ( who is now out of business) was also a triumph dealer. In many of my wanderings up north to visit freinds and family, I was able to ride this bike. I spoke to many many owners who, love the bike. so, I believe triumph actually pulle dthis one off as a REALLY good product...