Sprint ST1050. Bye bye competition! (Triumph Sprint ST)

Member Name: Jonny_L

Product:	Triumph Sprint ST
Date:	13/06/08 (2358 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Comfortable, balanced, incredible engine

Disadvantages: Soft front suspension, headlights glare at car drivers

I'll review the later model Sprint ST 1050, which is the current one. This really is the best sports tourer out there in my opinion. It's less cramped than the VFR, it's faster than the BMW F800ST, and it handles better than the (now discontinued) Ducati ST3.

So what do you get? Well you get a 120bhp, 1050cc inline triple, the one that triumph is famous for. It's not all that different from the 955cc model, just a bit more power and torque. Heated grips are an option, and the display will tell you everything, giving you a fuel gauge that works, a fuel trip, a standard trip and a MPG display. The models from 2007 onwards have started to come with free colour coded hard panniers, which makes for a great investment seeing as these are around £500 on their own.

The first thing that you notice is the quality of this bike. You put a leg over the Sprint and you instantly feel comfortable and balanced, yet with a slight sporty edge (think CBR600F, but with higher bars and more comfy seat). The gauges look impressive and informative, and the switchgear is of good quality.

Fire up that wonderful triple, and the sound it produces is beautiful. Once warm it'll pop and fart on the overrun, which really gives the bike some character. They say the triple gives you the grunt of a twin, with the all out power of an inline 4, and I've gotta be honest, they're right. Anyone who's ridden a triumph triple will probably agree, you don't get engines much better than this. Instant midrange in any gear, beautifully smooth pickup and it'll absolutely scream in the high revs. If I could only have 1 engine for the rest of my life, this would be the one.

Once you get moving, you really get tuned into it's suspension right away. The front end is a little on the light side, and does tend to lurch you forwards under braking, but to ride it feels planted, smooth and agile. Motorways are nice and easy too, thanks to the comfortable riding position and the ample fairing.

Under braking, the triumph also feels solid, if you can get over that soft suspension it'll stop very quickly and give you lots of feedback, and ABS is available if you want to stop even quicker.

Looks wise, I think it's gorgeous to be honest. The triple theme is carried on throughout, from triple headlights, triple exhaust and triple clocks, right down to 3 chrome screws on the fairing either side. Attention to detail is great, it's certainly a bike to go and gawp at occasionally.

Overall then, the sprint is a brilliant sport tourer. You can take it down the labourious continental motorways in comfort, head off for a trackday in the foothills of the pyrenees and blast it's nuts off, then cruise home. You can't ask for much more than that!

Summary: If you want a sport tourer, you really can't get better.

Processing/Quality:
Reliability:
Driving comfort:
on skiddy terrain:
on dry terrain: