The electric-start Triumph Trident offers classic riders a wail of a time
WORDS & PHOTOS BY Chris Rooke
SEVEN YEARS AFTER the first Triumph T150 triple was launched, its upgraded successor, the T160, came onto the scene.
Enjoy more Classic Bike Guide Magazine reading every month.
Click here to subscribe & save.
The British bike industry was on life support but somehow Norton-Villiers-Triumph had made more than 200 improvements to the original triples in an effort to keep up with the Oriental opposition.
The T160 boasted a three cylinder ohv engine slanted forward in a sexy, aggressive style; an electric start (which actually worked); a four-into-two exhaust system so it looked vaguely like a four-cylinder powerplant; that slanting engine like the BSA Rocket 3 which looked so much sportier than the upright Triumph T150; a five-speed gearbox, a left-side gearchange and disc brakes front and rear.
The T160 featured classy and classical styling in the true Triumph tradition. It produced a fabulous exhaust sound and offered a top speed in excess of 120mph. The three-pot engine had a 120° crankshaft which let it rev higher with less vibration than the over-stressed big twins of the time.
Read more in January’s issue of CBG
