Triumph Daytona 675 April 2006
Slight and light. Triumph's Daytona 675 offers a fascinating middleweight alternative for the sports bike nut. Guy Allen reports on a brief ride...
It's no secret that the middleweight 600-750cc sports bike class is easily the
most viciously competitive in the world. Triumph has had a couple of goes at it
with the TT600/Daytona 600 four-cylinder series, with mixed fortunes. Early
versions had some injection flaws down low, which were subsequently fixed.
Generally they handled very well, but it was asking an awful lot for this
relatively small (albeit rapidly-growing) factory to take on the might of the
big four Japanese makers in a class where they're fighting for world
championships. Let's face it - you have to be spectacularly brave to take on
the likes of R6 and CBR600.
In a broader corporate decision that saw four-cylinder engines disappear off
the range altogether, the factory went back to the drawing board with a new
middleweight based on the factory's signature engine configuration - the inline
triple. And, like
If
some whinged about the low end response of the 600s,
Getting back to the overall
width, or lack of it, combined with a really sharp steering set-up that tips
and turns in quickly and predictably, makes for a very sweet cornering package.
The steering is top notch.
Suspension seems well up to the task, and there is a wide range of adjustment
on tap. Ours was delivered in track mode and we gradually made it more
street-friendly over a couple of days, discovering in the process that the ride
height and damping adjustments make a real difference.
Braking
from the 4-spot radial mount front brakes is strong and predictable - pretty
much one the money for this class. When it comes to comfort, tall people will
manage on it and the overall ride position is very much sport oriented. Don't
go looking for generous pillion accommodation. Instrumentation is fairly
typical of the breed, with analogue tacho and digital everything else. Overall
finish is good. Fuel consumption hovered around the 14-16km/lt around the city.
Expect less if you're up it for the rent.
Overall it offers something a little different for a middle weight sports bike,
with no sacrifice in performance. Well worth a look, in our view.
Alongside
the desire for a strong, torquey engine, a key part
of the design brief for the brand new 675cc power plant was to make the
water-cooled, three-cylinder, 12-valve unit extremely compact and narrow,
contributing to the overall slimness of the bike. The stacked six-speed gearbox
considerably shortens the engine and is the first from Triumph to feature a
truly close ratio set-up for all six speeds, maximising the engine's power and
torque perfectly. Bore and stroke is 74.0mm x 52.3mm and peak power of 125PS is
delivered at 12,500rpm, with 72Nm torque at 11,750rpm.
A great deal of work went into refining the Daytona 675's new engine without removing any of the triple's innate character. While it may perform like a racing thoroughbred, there's typical Triumph toughness engineered into every part - this motor's meant to be used, and used hard again and again.
The Daytona 675's Keihin closed-loop fuel-injection system uses a trio of 44mm throttle bodies and three 12-point multi-spray injectors. Air is drawn from a port between the headlights and passes directly through the headstock to the airbox. An electronically controlled flap in the front of the airbox optimises both acoustics and performance at low, mid and high rpm ranges. The free-flowing exhaust features an under-seat silencer and utilises a secondary valve to boost torque low down. The engine meets stringent Euro-3 emission regulations.
Designed
around the Daytona 675's engine, the spars of the fabricated, open-back,
aluminium cast frame wrap over the top of the motor, accentuating further the
benefits of the narrow three-cylinder design. Rake is set at 23.5°, trail at
86.8mm with a wheelbase of 1392mm. The Kayaba 41mm upside down forks are fully
adjustable for spring preload and rebound and compression damping, as is the
Kayaba piggyback reservoir rear shock. The aluminium swingarm
is a two-piece casting and measures 574mm from rear wheel spindle to pivot
point, greatly improving suspension and rear wheel control. Dry weight is 165kg.
The front brakes use a radial master cylinder and twin radial four-piston callipers.
The fully floating 308mm front discs are matched by a 220mm rear disk. The new
wheels are a lightweight, five-spoke design and wear super-sticky Pirelli
Dragon Super Corsa Pro tyres. Front tyre size is
120/70 ZR17 and the rear is 180/55 ZR17.
The Daytona 675's digital instrument console has the usual trip functions as well as displaying average fuel economy. Also featured is a 99-lap memory timer - useful for comparing successive laps on a circuit as well as average and maximum speed for each lap. Gear position and programmable gear change shift light indicators are also included. Stylish twin projector beam front headlights (one for dip and one for main beam) give an excellent spread of light and are matched with a lightweight LED rear light unit.
Specifications:
- Engine Type: liquid-cooled, DOHC, in-line 3-cylinder
- Capacity: 675cc
- Bore/Stroke: 74.0 x 52.3mm
- Compression Ratio: 12.65:1
- Fuel System: multipoint sequential electronic fuel injection with forced air induction
- Ignition: digital inductive type - via electronic engine management system
- Swingarm: braced, twin-sided, aluminium alloy with adjustable pivot position
- Suspension: 41mm USD forks, adjustable preload, rebound and compression damping;
monoshock adjustable for preload, rebound and compression damping
- Seat Height: 825mm
- Wheelbase: 1392mm
- Fuel Tank Capacity: 17.4 litres
- Maximum Power: 125PS (123bhp) at 12,500 rpm at crankshaft to DIN 70020
- Maximum Torque: 72Nm at 11,750 rpm
- Price: $14,890 plus ORC.