The year 2017 is a pivotal year for motorcycles: compliance with the new Euro4 standard has forced brands to review their entire range. Some of the less popular volumic machines have been scrapped, while the bestsellers have been renewed in priority, more or less deeply.
As medium-displacement roadsters are particularly popular with European bikers in general, French bikers in particular, manufacturers have logically redesigned their model on this juicy segment. At Triumph, we just put the triple mouthfuls …
This year to recall, three versions of the new Street Triple 765 – “bye bye” the 675 cc – land in the concessions of the English brand. First to be released from factories – Thai – British: the high-end model dubbed RS.
This model “super sport” was presented to us last February, on the demanding Circuit of Catalunya as well as on its surrounding Barcelona roads and turning … and just drying! A test program copious therefore, of which very brilliant outlet Street Triple RS.
As good and good as it was, the little Englishman was not without weak points: at the end of his test, MNC regretted mainly that the 3-cylinder of 765 cc continues to whistle – not as much as the 675 or The 800 certainly, but still too much – that his wardrobe is not more shimmering, and that its price climbs to 11 600 € …
We can not compete with the new “maxi-mid-size” nippon roadsters, all carefully placed below the 9000 euros mark (re-read our Comparo MNC Kawasaki Z900 Vs Suzuki GSX-S750 Vs Yamaha MT-09). No, this mission is on the Street Triple S!
Arriving at the Triumph concessions in April (one month after the Street Triple RS and one month before the intermediate R model offered at 10,200 €), the “Stritesse” aligns itself with the price of its Japanese rivals: Currently displays at € 8,900 all round.
To do this, Hinckley realized some savings on the peripherals (brakes, suspensions, dashboard basically) and mounted a motor slightly less efficient than on the two frangines: 113 horses and 73 newtons meters for the S, against 118 ch And 77 Nm for the R, 125 hp (and 77 Nm as well) for the RS.
Common to the three machines despite their different equipment: their weight, estimated at 166 kg dry. Those pesky Englishmen who never do anything like the rest of the world do not communicate the full weight of their motorcycles. However, the French gray card indicates a mass in service of 187 kg …
The Z900 to test the Street Triple S, “Watt else?”
However, the weight shown on the gray card of the Z900 corresponds exactly to the one announced by Kawasaki: 210 kg. Despite this difference of 23 kg and a – big! – difference of 183 cc in terms of cubic capacity, MNC still selected the “Zed” for this new duel
To gauge the performance of this Street Triple S 2017, Moto-Net.Com was really trying to put him in the three-legged, the most tough and homogeneous roadster of the moment. The newspaper Moto du Net has therefore chosen the Z900, a new reference in the segment …
It is not MNC that places the Zed on a pedestal, but the French who “elected” best maxi-mid-size roadster in the first half of 2017: Kawasaki has flown to 1529 copies on our territory, Against 1462 immats for the MT-09 and 1005 for the GSX-S750 …
However, the Z900 intends to remain in power until the end of the year, then remain at the top of the sales (behind the MT-07, Z650 and Tmax in the scratch however) for at least a quinquennium. For the record, the dominance of the Z750 in France had lasted an entire septennate: from 2005 to 2011!
Heavier than the Street of about 12%, we just saw, the Z900 takes advantage of its big 4-cylinder (only 5 cc less voluminous than the engine of the first Z1000 …) to fill, on paper, its Weight handicap: its maximum power of 125 hp is 11% higher than that of the Street S. One everywhere therefore, the ball in the center?
The Kawasaki wants to be parallel besides bestial: unlike its rival English – and its two compatriots – the Japanese is devoid of electronic aids! No driving mode or anti-skid: the driver is the sole master on board.
After all, Zed and Stressesse are not meant for young sailors, let alone for mosses, since they are not accessible to new licenses. It should be noted that Kawasaki did not renew the “e version” model proposed on the Z800 with the Z900, the Z650 fully fulfilling its role as a “school” motorcycle.
At Triumph, on the other hand, a Street Triple S “A2” will land next October at the announced price of 8500 €. The dedicated declination of the 3-cylinder cube 660 cc will not develop more than 95 horses, in order to be able to be restricted to the regulatory 47.5 ch (or 35 kW).
But back to our confrontation of the day, a “duel to the heights” since it contrasts the bestseller of Kawasaki (best sale of “maxi-mid-size” in France) to Triumph (the first roadster brand ” , Hum).