Triumph Bonneville Reviews

The following applies only to fuel injected Bonnevilles from 2009 on: ECM will not allow bike to crank or run if battery voltage ever falls below 12.5 volts. The practical upshot of this is, if it's a cold morning, and the battery has dropped from 13.2 to 12.7 volts during the night, you're not getting the motor started without jumper cables, as the voltage drop during cranking will cause the ECM to reset. Since the starter solenoid is also controlled by the ECM, you won't even be able to crank the motor over at this point. This has left me stranded a couple of times, not to mention late for work. I spoke to the dealership and to Triumph UK, and the manufacturer refused to admit that there was a design flaw, and simply recommended I keep the battery on a trickle charger all the time. Thanks a lot, guys...

ECM occasionally gets "ghost" trouble codes on sensors that cannot be tracked down, because they apparently don't exist.

ECM has had to be updated a couple of times with new tuning parameters. Gas mileage improved noticeably.

Every time I wash the bike, the Low Oil Pressure light comes on for a couple days, some kind of wiring short. Really freaked me out the first couple times it happened, but now I ignore it.

This is not a cheap bike to repair. Parts are expensive, they sometimes take a week or two to arrive from England, and diagnosing computer problems requires a dealership (there are no aftermarket code scanners or plug-in diags available for your laptop).

It's a beautiful bike, one that turns heads and gets questions, especially from the older crowd. As one reviewer put it, you may not pick up many young babes, but you will definitely meet a few old men, LOL.

Overall, this is a great bike. It's the first all-brand-new vehicle I've ever bought, and aside from the occasional ECM problems, it has proven very reliable over 20,000+ miles. In retrospect, I wish I had gone with one of the earlier carbureted models, but when the fuel injection is working right (which is most of the time), I can get 50 MPG on the highway at 70+mph.

I go on long road trips, 700 mile weekends, and the bike is a joy to ride through the Texas country. Maintaining 90-100mph on rural country highways is quite easy.

The factory banana seat can get pretty uncomfortable after a couple hundred miles. Between that and the "barstool" riding position, rest breaks are a must every couple hours. The unusual stance takes some getting used to, and you will get leg cramps now and then.

As stated above, this is NOT a cold-weather bike. Unless you can store it in a heated place at home and at work, you will have starting problems from time to time.

It is a tough bike. I've laid it down a few times, been hit by flying road debris, and it suffered only slight damage.

Some bolts are prone to rusting. Suggest replacing with stainless.

Found two loose bolts that connect one of the frame's downtubes together. Not good. I reported this to a group of Triumph owners, and no one found theirs loose, so it's a fluke. All other bolts were properly torqued, and have stayed tight.

Battery hold-down strap rotted and snapped (very common).

The stock horn is wimpy, and quit working after 10,000 miles. A louder aftermarket horn works better.

Engine died while riding in heavy rain 4 times in the first 3 years I owned it, but started right back up. The tank vent tube was crimped, causing a vacuum in the gas tank, which basically sucked fuel right out of the carburetor bowls. Once I re-routed the vent tube to the other side of a wiring harness, the problem has not reoccurred.

It is a little hard to start when cold. It starts immediately, but takes a few times to keep it running. I have neglected carburetor maintenance and balancing, however, so it's hard to blame the bike.

After riding Meridian Triumphs (60s-70s), which leaked oil, vibrated, had unreliable electrics, but looked good enough to not care, I find the modern (Hinckley) Bonneville to be smooth, leak-free and reliable. I never worry about breakdowns. I rode the bike around the United States, over 10,000 miles, and I wanted to keep going when I got home.

The stock seat is very uncomfortable. I switched to a Thruxton gel seat, which is a vast improvement and looks good.

The bike is not a powerhouse, but can get you up to freeway speeds at a very satisfying rate. It has excellent roll-on acceleration for passing, best between 3,000 and 5,500 RPM. I rarely approach the 7,000 RPM redline.

Gearing ratios are well thought-out, although I feel like I need a 6th gear with the stock 16-tooth front sprocket. A 17- or 18-tooth sprocket will bring the cruising RPMs down, with only a barely noticeable hit on low-gear performance. This is just a matter of personal preference, as opinions on this vary both ways. With an 18-tooth sprocket, on the open road, the bike seems to like to settle in around 90 mph, and around 75 to 80 with the stock 16-tooth. It will easily cruise above 100 mph, and also behaves very well at legal speeds of 55-70, with plenty of roll-on power in top gear. Only rarely do I feel the need to down-shift to pass, usually only when overtaking more than a couple of vehicles.

I would not recommend sustained high-speed cruising with luggage or in windy conditions, as this is a naked bike, and therefore much more prone to aerodynamic instability. With side and top bags installed, the bike did not feel stable above 90 mph, and even less in side winds.

Handling in the twisties is quite simply fluid. I have seriously out-performed more powerful dual-sport and touring bikes, and even the occasional sport bike, much to their surprise. With good tires, properly inflated, I lean into corners with full confidence on wet or dry roads. The foot peg balls will scrape with plenty of tread to spare (my "chicken strips" are about 1/4" wide, so I don't even push it as far as it is capable).

The bike is a perfect choice for shorter riders (I'm 5'9") who like to plant both feet on the ground at stops. It has a comfortable, nearly upright riding position, which you can adjust with bar risers and/or different bars. Long-distance riding can feel a little cramped, though. I use highway pegs on trips for relief.

A commonly reported issue is that the shift lever is easy to bend if you drop the bike on its left side. This happened to me, and I had to also replace the shifter shaft and the left side cover. Triumph or after-market crash bars will prevent this (or just not tipping the bike over, but it happens).

Engine and tank styling is very reminiscent of Meridian-era Bonnevilles, and the two-tone paint schemes on all years are simply gorgeous.