2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 Gets a Sporty Makeover

Cycle World

When we think of classic British bikes, most of us instinctively default to Triumph. This pervading sense of the manufacturer’s rich history of cool and rebelliousness is one solid reason why its recent generations of Modern Classics have been such a success story. From the “new” Bonneville and Thruxton to the Scrambler, Bobber, and Speed Twin range—not to forget the entry-level Speed 400—every new retro design manages to tweak enough nostalgia glands to make it a sales success. That Triumph logo, some old but carefully updated styling cues, and a dash of cleverly engineered soul combine with some meaty performance, bang up-to-date handling, and electronic technology to do it time and again. And for 2025 the new Speed Twin 1200 looks set to carry on this proven formula.  Check out the story at https://www.cycleworld.com/motorcycle-reviews/triumph-speed-twin-1200-rs-first-ride/  Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6CLI74xvMBFLDOC1tQaCOQ Read more from Cycle World: https://www.cycleworld.com/ Buy Cycle World Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/cycleworld

Transcript

00:00Welcome to Cycle World, welcome to Spain, welcome to the launch of two models from

00:04Triumph. These are the new 1200 Speed Twins. We've got the RS and we've got the

00:09standard model and I wish Triumph had given it a different name rather than

00:12the Speed Twin standard model. Maybe it should have been stock or retro but

00:18anyway I digress. What Triumph have done for 2025 is just improve the bikes in a

00:22few areas and given us two different variants. So firstly the engine, it's

00:27familiar, parallel twin 1200 as you'd expect but now it's got slightly

00:31different engine cases, it looks a little bit different but more importantly

00:35they've added a little bit more power so it revs a little bit more and we've got

00:38around five brake horsepower on top of what we had before. Torque remains the

00:42same. In terms of looks I think it looks absolutely stunning and Triumph have put

00:48some real attention and detail. It's got a lovely little new brushed aluminium

00:52fuel cap, new headlight, new Bluetooth connectivity clocks, the single rather

00:57than the twin that we've had before. The engine still looks retro, it's still got

01:01the air-cooled fins even though it's obviously got a radiator. They've got the

01:05really swooping beautiful exhaust, it's a little bit shorter than it was before

01:09and that's an incredibly difficult job because you've got to remember that's a

01:12Euro 5 category exhaust so all the catalytic converter and all the bits

01:16that keep people in Parliament happy that this isn't polluting the world is

01:20all hidden so it still looks like something from the 70s. The side panels

01:24are all new, it's all brushed aluminium, it looks very high-end, it looks very

01:27neat, it looks very well finished and I love the fact that despite this now

01:32having cornering ABS, despite it now having cornering traction control and in

01:37there is an IMU and lots of rider aids and sensors, it's all hidden. There's no

01:43huge plumbing from the radiator, there's no wires hanging around and sensors, it's

01:47very neatly and very well done. Then what Triumph have done is given us two

01:51variants rather than just one variant so we have the standard which is Marzocchi

01:56non-adjustable front, Marzocchi twin shock on the rear, two rider modes,

02:01cornering ABS and traction control, no quick shifter and a very relaxed riding

02:06position. Then we've got the very stunning beautiful RS which is fully

02:11adjustable Marzocchi, fully adjustable twin shocks on the rear, the standard

02:15Triumph branded brakes and now Brembo Stylemas. We get an extra mode, we get a

02:20quick shifter and that extra mode is a sports mode, we can play a little bit

02:24more with the traction control because there's three options rather than two

02:27options. Before you ask, you can't put the quick shifter from that one onto that

02:31one because the riding position where the pegs are further back gives you more

02:36room to add the quick shifter so you can't put the quick shifter on the

02:39standard bike sadly. You can only put it on the RS that's got the pegs further

02:43back and the bars slightly lower. In terms of power, torque, both the same. In

02:48terms of wheelbase and rate control, they're near enough identical, the same

02:52frame, it's just suspension, brakes and a few more electronics. Started off the day

02:57on the Speed Twin 1200, instantly you feel that it's a different bike, it feels

03:01very soft, it feels very comfortable, it feels very relaxed but it's not a

03:05Bonneville. So the Bonneville is really soft and it's quite easy to get to the

03:10limits of the ground clearance, it's quite easy to get to the limits of the

03:12chassis because it's not designed to be a sports bike. This is very different, the

03:16Speed Twin is much more agile, it's got more ground clearance, you can have a lot

03:21of fun, the road biased Metzeler tyres warm up well, work really well, it's an

03:26excellent all-round road bike and after riding it for two, three hours I was very

03:32comfortable, the suspension is very soft, it's very manageable. You can get towards

03:36the limitations if you're braking really heavy into second gear like hairpins, you

03:40have to use four fingers on the lever and if you start to push it, it does feel

03:43a bit soft but then you jump on the RS and the RS feels very different to the

03:49Speed Twin even though it's the same power, it's the same torque and near

03:52enough the same wheelbase and everything, it's just that this feels way more

03:56sporty. It shouldn't do because they've got the same power but when you're on

04:00the RS, the pegs are higher, the riding position is more aggressive, the chassis

04:04is much more sporty, the tyres are much sportier, they're track ready Metzelers.

04:08The ground clearance is even more, even though I never touch the pegs down, it

04:12just feels like you can throw it into the corner, really lean it on its side

04:15and have some fun. It is so much more fun and so much more agile and the brakes

04:20are really stronger. I did get to the limitation of the standard brakes on a

04:24few occasions where I never got to the limitations of the standard brakes of

04:27the Stylemas. I did get to the limitations of the handling of the

04:31standard bike when I was pushing it beyond its design parameters but I never

04:35got to the limitations of the handling of the RS. I think the only way you're

04:38going to get towards the limitations of the RS is if we take that on track and

04:42that might sound crazy but it's more than capable of going on track. I think

04:46that would be a great fun bike, it'd be interesting to see what switches down

04:50first, the pegs or the exhaust. In terms of what that bike can do, it's hugely

04:55hugely enjoyable. Negatives, it's a shame you can't put the quick shifter on that

05:01bike. You can't trim the rider aids, you've either got the traction on in one

05:06of the modes or the tractions off so I can't go like plus 7 or minus 7, there's

05:10no engine braking control, it's pretty limited or basic electronics,

05:16there's nothing too sophisticated, it's pretty simple but then I guess a lot of

05:19people are going to like that because the clocks are pretty simple, the switch

05:22gear is pretty simple, it's kind of bread and butter, it's nothing too fancy, it

05:26does what it says on the tin. In terms of looks, I think it's one of the best

05:30looking bikes in this segment, it looks absolutely stunning, especially in the

05:34orange. In the US the prices are going to be $13,595 for the standard, $15,999 for

05:40the RS. If it was my money, I'd want to go RS because I've ridden both bikes and

05:45the RS is substantially better than the standard bike for me who rides

05:49aggressively and rides sporty. If you don't ride aggressively, you don't ride

05:53sporty, you've got no interest in going on track, then just go for the standard

05:56model but if you do buy the standard model, don't try the RS because then

06:00you'll feel like you're short-changed because you want the

06:03extra rider mode, you want the sporty suspension, you want the grippy tyres

06:06and you want the quick shifter. So it'll be interesting to see which way the

06:09market goes. What's also going to be interesting is to see where this goes in

06:13the competition and how it goes in the US market. I think it's such a cool

06:17looking bike, it's going to be a hit just on looks alone and in terms of

06:21competition, that's a little bit difficult because there are other retro

06:24naked bikes on the market like BMW, the Scrambler, the XSR from Yamaha, Kawasaki

06:31with a Z900 range but I think people who want a Triumph want a Triumph. I think

06:36they want that history, I think they want the brand, I think they want that air-cooled

06:40looking engine even though it's not air-cooled, I think that's what they want.

06:44I don't think people who want a Triumph Speed Twin 1200 are looking at an XSR,

06:50a Yamaha or maybe a Z900. I think they want something retro and individual and

06:55that's what they are. I think the biggest question that most people are going to

06:59have is do I go standard or RS? If it was me, it'd be RS.

07:12So I hope you enjoyed the watch, I hope you enjoyed the viewing, it's been a really

07:16good fun ride. It's one of those bikes that you want in the back of your garage

07:20that you can just throw on jacket and jeans, have some fun in perfect safety

07:24with that cornering ABS, cornering traction control, easy power, easy handling, nice

07:28and easy to ride but still agile and fun. It's the bike that you want in the back

07:33of your garage for those sunny days when you just want to rip it up down a canyon

07:38route. But if you've got any more technical questions about Evo bikes

07:41please find them below and please don't forget to subscribe.

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