Triumph Thunderbird: A British rival to the Harley

published 11 September 2009

"If this is what a midlife crisis feels like, then all I can say is, bring it on," says Simon Roots in SuperBike magazine.

The new Thunderbird is Triumph's latest attempt to derail Harley-Davidson's monopoly on the mid-sized American cruiser market, and it certainly looks the part: a "stylish vision on wheels", beautifully made, with lashings of chrome wherever you look.

And with bikes like this, "the fact that the styling is right almost makes all other questions redundant". But for the record, the bike works "sublimely". The 1,597cc T16 parallel engine delivers "healthy performance and sprightly acceleration". Charging through the countryside on it is an "utter pleasure".

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The Thunderbird is superior to a Harley in just about every way you can measure, says Kevin Ash in The Daily Telegraph. The engine "does everything you'd want from a cruiser", and the handling is better too, with a stiffer frame and improved suspension.

In particular, the steering at low speed is very impressive: most cruisers tend to drop in to corners, and stand up if you brake while leaning, but the Thunderbird "does neither, remaining neutral and, as a consequence, is very easy to handle".

Add this to the comfortable riding position, which is "upright and spacious", along with the generous 4.8-gallon fuel tank, and you have a "genuinely useful motorcycle as a well as a cruiser, a too-rare combination". You "really can go places on this bike", and can choose from a range of accessories to turn it into exactly the machine you're after.

Price: from £9,499.