Triumph Bonneville Black reviews

This bike was bought for my wife. We both liked the looks and it was one of the few bikes she felt comfortable on since it feels small, has a standard riding position, lightweight and low seat. Even though this bike is for my wife I can't stay off it. This is my favorite bike I have ever riden, period! I've ridden and owned a lot of bikes, have a Speedmaster (awesome bike as well) and am a very experienced rider. Obviousely it's no race bike but it's more than capable of serious canyon carving with sportbikes and fits in with the cruiser crowd as well. The engine is amazingly smooth as well with a perfect torque curve. Fit and finish is great. I noted the 4 for comfort because the seat is hard and the rear suspension is a little harsh but I'm being overly critical though. Triumph does make a gel seat and not much they can do with the suspension to keep the look. I've read a lot of reviews on this site where people say "can't go wrong with this bike" but with this Triumph, you really can't go wrong. No matter what type of rider you are, I promise you will love riding the Bonneville. Show less

Easy To Handle Love at first ride. I hadn't ridden in 20+ years, and this was a great fit for me. It's like a gentle hybrid of sportbike and cruiser, with sporting footpeg position and quick handling, but relaxed power delivery. Basic bonnie with 17-inch wheels feels amazingly easy to maneuver at all speeds. The engine is docile but strong enough to stay ahead of most 4-wheeled traffic. I can roll on throttle at 35 in fifth gear and it pulls smoothly with lots of torque. A little buzzy, I think it might benefit from a 6th gear, but maybe Triumph has good reasons for using 5. The rear suspension seems a bit harsh; I need to ride with slightly arched back and pay close attention to bumps and dips in the road, but that's OK; helps keep me focused. Although a new set of shocks might be the first upgrade I get. Either that or some new exhaust pipes; don't want to sound like an outlaw but the stock set is almost too restrained and polite. Overall, it's a very good bike for commuting, occasional longer trips and winding roads. Show less

Had my '09 T-100 for a year now. 70% daily ride to work/runabout/around town driving and 30% longer rides. Clocked thousands of miles. It's a pleasure to ride, has a predictable, even power curve (which I like), and has great handling characteristics. The brakes are fantastic and have saved my life at least once in the past 12 months. Tons, tons, tons of admiring looks, but if you're hoping to attract hot 20 year old girls, you're out of luck.. If you're into 50 year old guys surrounding your bike and reliving their youth, you'll have plenty. Reliability has been great, not a drop of oil has leaked. The chain is very good quality, and with proper maintenance, my chain hasn't needed any adjustment whatsoever. Loves high revs, and feels very spirited 4k but the power feels controlled enough for a new rider to find their way. Best value at the price-point on the market bar none. Can't sniff a HD with similar styling elements for the price, and the Sportster 883 which compares directly only runs about 47hp while the Bonnie makes nearly 70. My only gripes are the plastic, stick on badge, and the plastic front fender, but they are minor issues given the overall fit, finish, quality, performance and "fun to ride" positives that make this what I consider to be the nicest bike on the street. I rated performance at 4 star because it won't set the world on fire, which is perfect for me and why I don't ride a sport bike, and comfort at 4 since the stock seat has about a 2 hour duration before you need to stretch your legs, again fine with me given it usually coincides with pit-stops for gas. All in all, an excellent bike with a very competitive price. This is the bike I'm going to keep forever. Show less

This is the motorcycle I focused on when I got my license. But I did the practical thing and bought a Suzuki 250 to learn on, and was ready to make the move to Bonneville one year later. The ride is balanced and strong - I don't have to white-knucke it when a truck passes or I'm doing 55 mph. The bike has power to accelerate and pass, yet does not get out of control. On my first trip home after picking the bike up from the dealership, I did not hesitate to take on the highway - I felt that confident in the bike. The second day I was stopped at a traffic light, and a Harley pulled up next to me and said what a good looking bike it was and wanted to know the make and model. It is classy, has a history - Steve McQueen rode one - and maintains it value and good looks. Show less

I rode Triumphs back in the 70s and early 80s, and really loved a lot of things about them, but the faults got to me, so I gave them up, and started riding Japanese bikes in 1983. Then my brother bought a brand new Triumph Thunderbird in 2000. That started me looking at Triumphs again. Last summer, I rode a 2002 Bonneville that a friend of mine picked up...and I made up my mind that I needed to have one. Last week, I bought a 2008 Bonneville T100, with less than 600 miles, and I am one happy camper! What a truly WONDERFUL motorcycle! It's everything I loved about the old Triumphs, without ANY of the faults! Each time I ride this bike, I'm a kid again! Smooth...good power, excellent brakes, and outstanding handling. The icing on the cake is that it has the classic, timeless good-looks of the old Bonnevilles. Often times our memories of machines we've owned make them better than they were in reality. The new Bonnevilles make those gilded memories a reality. I feel like I've come home again! Thank you Mr. Bloor, and all the Triumph team for not just bringing back a great old name, but, making it better than ever! Show less

The T100 is by far the best bike I've taken for a ride. It looks beautiful and handles great. Everything about this bike is great. All accessories and upgrades available for the bike make it an endless project. The only downside... it sounds like a scooter if at all. Very quiet, almost too quiet. But again, that upgrade is available as well... and fast approaching. Show less

I bought my 2008 T100 new last Spring. The 2009 models were out but I preferred the looks of the 2008. And 2008 was the last year for carburetors on the American version. I felt that a minor problem with carbs might make the bike run poorly while a problem with EFI might stop the engine completely. In over 4K miles I haven't had a moment that I wasn't thrilled with this beautiful machine. It has the looks of a classic Triumph and engineering like the best Japanese bikes. The 2008 has more plastic than preceding models but that helps keep the weight down. The bike is the size and weight of my old 1974 Honda CB550 but with an 865cc DOHC twin engine. Sweeeeet! It has more torque than any other vertical twin I've ridden plus a plenty of pep when you get the RPMs up. This bike is a blast to ride. My favorite kind of riding is way-back twisty and not very well-paved roads and my Bonnie loves them. No bagger, cruiser or crotch rocket could keep up with us on my favorite bad roads. The one drawback to this bike is that it draws a lot of attention and comments. Every time I stop I risk having to talk about the bike with some admirer. Many riders complain about how quiet the mufflers are, but I like a silent bike. And there are lots of complaints about the rear shocks. Mine were back-breakingly stiff at first but after a couple of thousand miles they seemed alright. Some people remove the air injector, but in case I ever move to California (which is possible) I'd better leave the emissions equipment alone. With louder pipes and a removed (and louder) airbox I could wring out a couple more horsepower. But I don't need a couple more horsepower. This thing already has more hp than my 1972 Karmann Ghia did. that's plenty for me. Stock, the T100 goes from 0-60 in five seconds flat. I'm not often in THAT big of a hurry. Show less

My 2009 Bonneville Black is a very early model. It came from England built looking like a 2008 model but with a EFI motor. I have the T100 spoked wheels, peashooter silencers, and tank badges instead of the Triumph stickers. There are numerous little differences between the same model within the same year. My Triumph twin has been dead solid perfect, in every way and as reliable as the Japanease brand it replaced. My bike is garage kept and isn't ridden in the rain. I have performed all my maintainance and kept the gastank filled when needed. It usually averages between 48-50 miles per regular gallon of gasoline. The terrain I ride in it around 80 feet above sea level and is low lying coastal plain. As a testament to the Triumph Bonneville, If it were stolen today, I would buy another model of the same bike to replace it with, as that's how much I have enjoyed riding this machine over the last 14 months! Thanks for reading. Show less

We have #91, and this bike is way too much fun to leave on a pedestal. This is my wife's bike, and it's hard for her to keep me off it. [She learned to ride on a 25th anniv Bonnie, so this is like homecoming for her.] It is really stable in the corners and plenty quick -to say nothing of how many comments you get riding this beauty around! People are really impressed by the color scheme and how true to the original look it is. Show less

I've been into the Bonnie since I rode a 10 yr old '73, & was excited when they were reintro'd in '01. Had to have a new Magna for 5 yrs first tho. No regrets on the new Bonnie; no excuses anywhere I ride, lots of great comments, & perfectly entertaining at 10 over. Not bad on dirt roads either. The seat could be better, but it looks right and gets better as it breaks in. The stock tires look right too, but tend to cause shimmy (the ME880's are much better; I hear Avon Roadmasters are too). Cool that the rims are made by the same firm that made 'em for Meriden, but wish they were tubeless. My g/f loves the big back seat & low pegs. It makes me spell like a Brit, right down to the aluminium paint. I made mine a sportstourer; now I want a second one to make a bobber! Show less