The Triumph Bonneville refers to a group of high performance motorcycle models from the veteran British motorcycle manufacturer, Triumph. The first The Triumph Bonneville was a 650cc two cylinder engine motorcycle launched in 1959. The fuel system of the bike incorporates dual carburetors with a throttle position sensor and electric carburetor heaters, activated through an inductive type digital ignition.
Encouraged by the success of the Bonneville engine, Triumph has utilized this technology in a number of latter bike models.
I'll admit to a streak of excitement when the Triumph Bonneville SE beat out the Street Triple R and Thunderbird in the Moto Poll for our next long term test bike.
"Hmmm," I thought, "This should be fun."
The Bonneville The "Triumph Bonneville" SE starts at $8,599, and after choosing my color (I went with Pacific Blue/Fusion White over Jet Black), I added the Arrow 2-into-1 exhaust ($1,099), chrome grab rail ($219.99), and bar end mirror kit ($119.99.) Unfortunately, neither Triumph's elegant leather city bags ($349.99) nor the more functional fabric saddlebags ($249.99) were compatible with the Arrow pipes, since their upward sweep interferes with placement. Total price for my Bonnie? Down at the press fleet center in Placentia, California, I signed the loan agreement, snapped a couple of pictures, and pushed the bike out into daylight. I pushed the bike back and, sure enough, it was out of gas. "C'mon, guys!" Once back aboard the Bonnie and aimed north on the congested 5 freeway, it seemed that the bike's rich supply of torque was heightened by the Arrow pipes. Splitting lanes along the 5 freeway, the The Triumph Bonneville felt every part the confident and capable steed, offering a smooth, stable ride, even eliciting a "Nice bike!" comment from a cop who was redirecting traffic around a fender bender.