Any motorcyclist worth their salt is aware of the fact that Triumph makes some of the most desired motorcycles in the world. They have been at it for a long time, and they certainly have not slowed down. However, for the most part, their motorcycles have been out of reach for a lot of people. That all changed when Triumph came with the 400cc TR range. And fortunately for us, that very prolific range has another member now. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the Triumph Thruxton 400 and here’s our review of it. Man… what a time to be a biker!

Backtracking a little, when Triumph announced that they were going to enter the entry-level market, we were overjoyed. Even then, we did not expect Triumph to price their motorcycles so aggressively. We expected a premium because, well, it is a Triumph for God’s sake. 

But the Speed 400 and the Scrambler 400 X, in addition to being stellar motorcycles, knocked it out of the park with their price. Then came the T4 to make matters even betters. Ignore that, please. 

Then came the announcement that there was going to be another motorcycle in Triumph’s 400cc Modern-Classic range. A legendary name, no less. Thruxton. Now, when manufacturers use the same platform for many models, things tend to remain… not too distinct, to put it mildly. 

So when the Thruxton 400 was announced, we thought it would be a Speed 400 with a fairing. But Triumph, despite using more or less the same underpinnings as the Speed 400, have managed to create a motorcycle that is so distinct that the Speed 400 feels like a very distant cousin to it… in a good way, of course. 

As always, we will start with the looks. The initial reaction to the Thruxton 400 was polarising, to say the least. Some people liked it, some found it okay, and some did not like it at all. Social media became a warzone with people bashing heads, sticking to their opinions. 

So, it is clear that this is a subjective matter. In our opinion, the Thruxton 400 looks quite nice. Compared to the Speed 400, the tank is narrower (same capacity), the subframe is different, and it has that old-school fairing bolted on. 

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Now, we say bolted on because it looks that way. The gaps between the tank and the panels are a tad bit much to make it look coherent. Another thing we did not like was the rear. It could have been done better. Finally, the colours. They are all alright, but we wish there were some solid colours on offer as well. 

In essence, if you take a look at the overall silhouette and leading lines, the Thruxton 400 looks closer to a Speed 1200 RR than the OG Thruxton. That puts it in a bit of a limbo where it is stuck between those two in terms of the design. 

That said, we’d say you look at the motorcycle in flesh before forming an opinion. It looks better in real life than it does in photos. Overall, Triumph has done a decent job with the Thruxton 400, but it would have really torn the roof off with a few tweaks. 

Now, time for a loaded (heavily) opinion. The Thruxton 400 is the first motorcycle in a very long time where we’d say looks do not matter… or at least, one can look past that aspect. And we say that because in terms of performance, the Thruxton 400 is simply stellar. 

It has the same 398cc, liquid-cooled, single-cylinder engine as the Speed 400. So, it was bound to be pretty rad. But on the Thruxton 400, you get that same engine with extra spice. It makes more power at 42 PS and the same amount of torque, but at higher rpms. So, it revs higher and has shed two teeth from the rear sprocket. That means a top speed of over 160 kays an hour. Pretty rad. 

On paper, it all seems impressive, but in the real world, the Thruxton 400 blows you away. The top-end grunt has not come at the cost of lower-end shove. The Thruxton 400 is still very tractable and torquey. It does not stutter even when pulling from lower speeds in higher gears. The fueling is immaculate, which makes the throttle response smooth and sharp. 

The engine is also very refined, and NVH is well in control. This results in a motorcycle that you want to ride hard all day long, and the engine loves that. It likes to rev, it does not feel out of breath at any point, and it just keeps going on and on and on… It is addictive. The Thruxton 400 may have the same engine as the Speed 400, but the character is so distinct and suited to the cafe-racer aspirations of this motorcycle. 

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The handling is just as impressive. The Thruxton 400 has clip-ons, footpegs that are higher and more rear-set. So the riding position is that of a properly committed sportbike. In addition to the narrow tank, the clip-ons are also narrow, making it possible to be in a proper tuck. The suspension has also been tweaked quite a bit. The Thruxton 400, even with the same hardware as the Speed 400, feels like a very different motorcycle in the corners. 

It offers proper support during hard braking, and you have the confidence to attack corners like you mean it. And despite that, they absorb nearly all sorts of bumps and undulations you might encounter. We also loved the brakes as they offer a lot of bite and feel. Though we did not get a chance to really rip it, we are confident that the Thruxton 400 is going to be an absolute treat on winding roads. Only if it had a quickshifter… but greed is a sin. 

For those who’d like to ride it hard, the Thruxton 400 comes with switchable traction control, torque-assist clutch, and ABS. So in case you are overzealous with the throttle, or too aggressive with your downshifts, or too rough with the brakes, the electronics have your back. 

To be honest, we were not expecting this. We are still trying to shake the feelings that the Thruxton 400 invokes when you give it the beans and even more so, how different and distinct it feels despite sharing the platform with two other motorcycles… Very well done, Triumph! 

The Thruxton 400 has been launched at INR 2.74 lakhs (Ex-Showroom), and it is a steal at that price. No motorcycle around that price comes close to the Thruxton 400 in terms of what it offers. Could it have looked better with solid colours and golden USD forks? Of course. So, an R variant in the future can fix that… Triumph, you listenin’?