Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Hi Vicky,
If you are not too worried about the pillion, then I will entirely suggest you go for Kawasaki Z800. You said - the way it gets to 140 kmph - man it gets there so fast that your brain has hard time to cope up with it - that is an amazing feeling.

Having said that, let me tell you that just between 2 traffic lights in Pune in a nearby area - that too riding with my wife as a pillion - I reached 148 kmph on Red Rose after lights went green on 1st signal and I braked my bike without making my wife uncomfortable to bring my bike to a halt at the next signal...These signals may probably be about 800-1000 meters from each other...The way bike leaps ahead and needle rushes towards red-line - it is really something on my bike...

Still Z800 is definitely even faster than this - and probably could have reached 160 kmph on same stretch..Tractability at lower speed on Z800 is better but its weight can be a bother in peak traffic. 1st gear of Red Rose is slightly taller than expected and requires practice initially to run it without stalling in jammed traffic. Z800 will not suffer that I believe due to much shorter gearing. Z800 copes up with tall speed breakers also better.

Brakes of Red Rose are definitely a big plus - they are surely sharper than Z800. Triumph has Nissin calipers at front and Brembo at rear while Z800 has Tokico. Also helping the faster braking is light weight of Red Rose.

Assume that Kawasaki Z800 has similar or higher per service cost as TST. Even then initially there is price difference of Rs 80000/- approx. That will definitely cover about 3 years of servicing costs. In same 3 years, you will end up spending about 10+18+12 = Rs 40000/- more on Triumph.

So despite more frequent service Z800 will be cheaper on service costs.

On other hand, Triumph gives about 17-22 kmpl while Z800 is likely to give about 15-19 kmpl...Triumph recommends ORDINARY petrol while Kawasaki PREMIUM (in fact they say use 95 RON fuel!)...

When it comes to exhaust music - both are well matched - TST with Arrow and Kawasaki with Akrapovic or Arrow or Sparks exhaust sound awesome!

All in all these are nearly evenly matched...you won't go wrong with either. This unfortunately had me confused a lot as well - but between heart and head, finally I went with heart and parted with those extra Rs 80K anyways...

One possibility you need to check towards financial aspect - if you have a home loan, then try to get a top up home loan worth Rs 7-8 lakh...That will be at interest rate of about 9.65% which is cheaper than auto loan which is around 11.75% at least...If this works out, your loan will give you some relief and you can use the savings towards better riding gear...

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Hi All,

Just a small update - as I am opening up the bike more and more, I am discovering how fast it is day by day...

Now I have done close to 1800 km on ODO and today for very few moments I was able to reach 160 kmph on a relatively empty and wide clean tarmac stretch on city road in the afternoon...

Also briefly rode to the India Superbike Festival @ Amanora Town - Pune but will visit tomorrow to get a more detailed look at it.

As such it is basic event but one attraction for me is in the fact that there are stalls from Alpinestars and other riding gear makers and I do intend to hopefully pick up riding boots there.

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Jeevan, the street is extremely capable of keeping up with most of the litre class bikes as well. Have ridden one very briefly. The fact that she is light, nimble and peppy makes it a delight to ride and open her once in a while. It's the right balance between a twin and a 4 cylinder motorcycle. I love mine and hope you discover more everyday.

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Hey Odeen,

Thanks, I agree with you - every day I feel like I am handling it better in every condition whether crowded or empty roads...Surely loving it...

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

I absolutely loved the fact that your wife is so supportive in your passion for bikes. not just riding pillion, but the showroom delivery pics show this very clearly. the enthusiasm was very evident.

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Yes, my wife surely has a lot of credit when it comes to my bike riding...Many of my friends have ended their motorcycling life as "shaadi ke side effects"!

Only because of her support I am able to continue with my passion....

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==============================================
Hi All,

One important update:

Today I have purchased Cortech Latigo Air Riding Boots.

Price: Rs 17000/-
Shop Name: Biking Superstore
Location: Near Balewadi Octroi Post (take the service road), Mumbai-Bangalore Highway, Balewadi, Pune, Maharashtra
Contact Person: Harshal Gala (+91-7028046081)
Current product range available for BOOTS category: Cortech, Sidi, Tourmaster, Icon...
Customer Treatment: Really friendly. For some reason they charge 2% extra for credit cards. But with NEFT/IMPS fund bank to bank transfer they don't charge extra. Other options supported are Cheque/Cash. I used IMPS fund transfer to pay them. They showed sufficient trust in me and let me carry the boots home first. I paid them after reaching home as it takes some time before you can register and start payments to a new beneficiary as per bank norms.

Also as I had already visited them during India Superbike Festival recently and had told them that I would come back to them once I decide, they gave me Rs 500 discount also.

They even do servicing of all major brands of superbikes and charge about Rs 5000-5500 approx. Might be worth checking out for anyone whose bike is already past the warranty.

About Cortech Latigo Air boots:

Size: My normal sport shoes (Lotto/Puma) are of size UK9/US10/EUR43.
But EUR43 Latigo boots were too tight and zipper was nearly impossible to close. So I went for EUR44. They are very slightly lose but in general there is no lateral or forward/backward movement of foot while wearing these. Socks I had were normal thick cotton sport socks.

These are vented medium rise riding boots. These are not necessarily hard core racing boots but should be good for fast street riding, medium touring and occasional track day may be.

These have decent ankle protection, toe protection, fairly rigid sole. The velcro and zipper seemed of decent quality - though I can vouch about it only after some usage. According to Harshal, few people he knows have used these boots in last 2 years and they seem to be lasting well and in general there was no negative feedback from his customers.

These are NOT WATERPROOF. Any waterproof boots that I tried on felt very hot in just couple of minutes. IF this is the situation in Winter, then can't imagine Summer!

They feel fairly comfortable (only when considering bike riding boots - not comfortable like regular sport shoes) and one can walk a bit with these boots on.


One more update:

I also recently bought a cover for my bike.

Brand - RJAY's (it is an Australian brand)
Seller - Bachoo Motors - Mumbai
Mode of buying - Online
Price - Rs 2350/- incl Shipping of Rs 350/-
Size - L
Key feature - This is having a soft inner fleece like lining which minimizes chances of causing scratches on the bike. The outer cover is fairly strong with sufficient elastic in required areas and fully covers the bike. It has a locking belt underneath which, once secured, prevents cover from being blown up in case of strong winds.

One more update:

Finally the SARI-GUARD is removed - yeaaaaah :-)

Currently I am trying to get frame sliders/other bike protection stuff.

I spoke to Triumph showroom @ Pashan, Pune - but currently they don't have stock of this stuff. I got feedback from some staff in the showroom that PUIG and R&G sliders are of good quality and I can go for one of these. Within these two, R&G is a preferred choice according to those guys.

I also checked with Planet DSG (@ MG Road, Pune Camp) but they didn't immediately have it in stock.

I have one doubt - while frame protectors etc are fine, there is no crash guard - something similar to all normal bikes like bullet or any other bike has for Triumph. I checked online and SW-Motech are selling crash-bars (same what we call crash guard) and people seem to vouch for quality of SW-Motech (it is a German brand).

I feel crash-bar is needed because if rider+bike falls then there is nothing to prevent our leg getting locked under the bike - whereas crash guard will mean that there is some gap left between bike and ground and we would not have completely crushed foot..

Any suggestions welcome....

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Hi Vicky,

Recently I have been opening up my Red Rose's throttle and it is really super fast as well... I personally don't like cruisers - but if you are considering them, please keep following in mind:

1) Harley Davidson has recently stopped the Super Low model. They have Iron Sportster model but no super low. Need to check if these do have ABS or not...
2) HD Street 750 doesn't have ABS
3) Triumph Bonneville 2015 doesn't have ABS too - but Bonnie which they will call as Street Twin in 2016 is expected to come with ABS + Traction Control...So definitely wait for it...

But none of the above will give you that zing thing like Triumph Street Triple or Z800. They are good in their own way - but once you zoom on the super fast machines, you will feel like not going for relatively slower and calmer machines unless you are not a speed-lover.

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!


Latest Update:

I had a nice little ride to LAVASA near Pune on my Red Rose.

Started using my Cortech Latigo Air RR boots and some important points about these:

a) Ventilation works fairly alright and my feet remained reasonably cool as long as bike was on the move...My feet didn't get cooked or become smelly after nearly 5 hours of continuous usage - of which nearly 3+ hours involved considerable sun exposure.

b) I was able to walk few hundred meters with these boots on in a reasonable manner without any discomfort..

c) Key thing is how did it work actually while riding - since it was first ever time for me to be wearing such boots, I definitely had starting trouble. My efficiency and speed of doing rapid gear shift was greatly hampered. This obviously might be because I have been riding 2 wheelers for nearly 25 years and motorcycles that require toe-shift since 20 years! All through last 20 years, I never used such thick shoes that restrict the ankle movement so much in my life! So, while I can do really lightening fast shifts in normal sport shoes or even formal office shoes, I struggled too much to get any feel of the gear lever through the thick shoe. Initially many times, I felt like I have shifted a gear because my foot made a considerable move - but actually the gear didn't shift. Most probably I just pushed hard against the inner cushion of the shoe but entire movement didn't reach actual lever and I ended up missing gears.

d) I spoke to some fellow riders who were wearing similar sport riding boots and they seemed to have similar feedback - that with such boots on, it does take time to master the gear shifts as one loses a lot of direct feel in such boots that we get from the gear level when wearing thin and supple sport shoes. This caused me to take many turns in far less aggressive manner than I felt I could have done if everything else remained same but I was wearing normal shoes..But eventually I did take some really good turns while on the way back through ghat sections of Lavasa...Which are really good for learning purpose....

e) With every passing hour of usage, I did get better in shifting gears through this boot. But I am still not satisfied at the level I have achieved - it is not yet even 50% as good as I normally do with my standard boots...On highways, it was easy to use - because I didn't need a gear change every few seconds...For every gear change if you have enough time, then it is no issue in shifting even while wearing these boots - but for super quick shifting, definitely it is not straight forward initially..

f) One thing is sure- these boots surely gave me a sense of security while riding - so some amount of learning curve is ok - as safety is critical...

So, I guess I have to go with age-old fact - PRACTICE makes man perfect!!

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Went for a quick New Year Ride today on 01-Jan-2016 - where else - LAVASA..

This time I had somewhat better control while using the Cortech boots - but still it is going to take more time.

On twisting roads:
As I have started trying harder, I am realizing that I need to learn a lot to properly control Red Rose! Specially I have tough time in 2 situations - very sharp hairpin left hander with inclining slope and longish 180-200 deg turning right hander....I am now taking fairly tight turns on both left and right with some amount of ease and not struggling too much - but I think it will take time to overcome the fear of overdoing something ...In sharp turns of LAVASA I am feeling that I am only somewhat faster on Red Rose than my previous Duke 200 bike - and not as confident...I think surely that is because of amount of time spent...Duke was with me for 3.5 years and it is just below 3 months with Red Rose...

The easiest turns on Red Rose to execute are the slightly long flowing "S" shaped corners which allow you to be leaned on one side continuously for few seconds and then comes next turn that makes you lean on the other side...It is a delight to run through such turns as they are not very scary and the bike makes beautiful sounds when you accelerate out of such turns...for a moment you feel like a racer!

On highways and in traffic it is now a different story...

Within 3 months I am totally comfortable in traffic/highway situation slicing through everything! On highways with just a little bit of empty roads available, I am able to reach speeds of 150-160 kmph with unimaginable ease...Slowing down from these speeds is also easy due to ultra rapid brakes and grippy Pirelli Corsa tyres...On good quality highways, I think 400-500 km in one day without getting overly tired are not at all a big deal on this bike...

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Small Update:

I have got the standard Triumph Fly Screen for my bike. Got it for Rs 6500 (incl shipping) from another Triumph owner who changed his mind about fitting this one. I followed the instruction manual available on internet and did the fitting myself though it did take some time and was not too easy to do as I was being very cautious not to break any protruding plastic parts of the instrument cluster.

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Hi Jeevan, is the second service for street triple on 10000 kms / 1 year. Or just 10000 kms without any time period ?

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Congratulations! I'm planning to buy one in exact same color! Red with grey is an eye candy!

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

the second service should be done either on 10000kms or 1 year
which ever is ealier

im at 7500 kms and crossed 1year mark a month ago
but i will service it at 10000kms , and i made sure warranty isnt void after talking with the dealer
but this depends on the dealer too


but for a peace of mind
its better to get it serviced

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Yep. I will. Thank you so much.

Re: Red Rose - my new Triumph Street Triple 675 RED!

Yes, I would agree...If I hit 10000 km before completion of 1 year from 1st service, then I will get it serviced early...If I don't complete 10000 km in one year, then still I will get it serviced at the end of 1 year.

This is because there are many factors to be considered. If we frequently ride in dusty conditions (in my case that is a "YES" as I ride almost daily in Hinjewadi IT park area where many dusty patches exist), probably we may have to get air-filters cleaned earlier at 5000-6000 km rather than waiting all the way till 10000 km..I am not too sure of that at this point as currently my ODO is around 2800 km..Also, it may be a good idea to get brake pads cleaning done just prior to rainy season every year even if that is not the end of one whole year after previous service unless previous service was less than 3-4 months prior to rainy season.

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Hi Paradoxx,

You should definitely evaluate Kawasaki Z800 and Triumph Street Triple before deciding...But I felt TST is more practical for day to day usage - even though it is not really value for money owing to much higher on-road price (close to Rs 85000 difference w.r.t Kawasaki Z800).

You can read more details on first page of my post - but in short you can choose like this:

1) Triumph Street Triple - if - you don't mind extra cost, expect more comfort not just for rider but also pillion, want a light weight and nimble bike that is easy to ride in peak traffic as it is not too tall also (for me - I am 5 ft 10 in)
2) Kawasaki Z800 - if - you want to save about Rs 85K - which will help you in buying entire protective kit (Fairly high end Helmet, Gloves, Jacket, Pants, Boots) along with the bike, you want max power and are ready to compromise a bit about comfort and day to day practicality (since Z800 is a bigger,taller and much heavier bike - can be a bit of pain in peak traffic though people do use it for commute also). Straight line acceleration of Z800 is definitely more than TST...

There are rumours of Street Triple going towards 800 CC in 2017 - not sure if you have that much patience or not! I certainly didn't have! If you have indeed decided, then don't worry as it is a very good and enjoyable yet practical machine for sure...Long term reliability I can't comment as my bike is still quite new...But on all global forums there is very good feedback about TST...

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Hi Kamlesh,
Hope you have either bought or decided about buying Triumph Street Triple 675 by now...For 2016 there are no changes except colour scheme..In 2017 there is likehood of 800 cc Street Triple..But do you have that much patience In India we don't have Street Triple R version which has all adjustable stuff and higher end brakes etc...So, no adjustable front suspension...Frankly, as I have been using the bike for last 3 1/2 months, I don't really see need of adjusting the front suspension of this bike - of course I am not a champ racer or something
As it is, the bike handles really well on twisties, it is quite comfortable on potholed city roads (at slow speed of course) and patchy cement roads where there are small step like uneven gaps between every two concrete blocks that form the road...

Since my previous bike was KTM duke 200, the comfort of my Red Rose is infinitely more for both rider and pillion compared to that bike....Seat is soft but not overly so - doesn't change shape in 2-3 hours journey, it is spacious and there are rear grab handles which help the pillion (almost non existent on Kawasaki Z800 which has hard seat and pillion space is very less - almost like Duke - nobody can sit for anything more than 20-30 min on that pillion seat I guess - where as I have tested triumph with my wife as well as brother for about 2 hour rides and they have been fairly comfortable...)

I have not yet tested very long rides - but with a break every 1-1.5 hr should make it quite possible to cover about 500 km in one day on this bike..and yet not get overly tired..There are people who are touring on TST..

Regards,
Jeevan