Triumph BONNEVILLE: BEST HANDLING Used Model (vs. V7, Interceptor)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ก.ค. 2024
- We'll look at why a budget Bonneville from 15 years ago out-handles its more expensive Bonneville siblings and possibly its competitors too.
This is the sixth video in my series comparing my Triumph Bonneville 865, my Moto Guzzi V7 750, and my Royal Enfield Interceptor 650.
We'll look at:
1) The differences in Bonneville sub-models to help you decide what's best for you
2) The science behind why these differences matter on the road
3) How my Bonneville's handling compares to my V7's and my Interceptors
Wheel and tire size is one of the most overlooked things when buying a used Triumph Bonneville. The 17" mag wheel option offers far superior handling compared to the 19" spoked wheel, to the point that a journalist from VisorDown even stated that the 19" spoked wheel "ruins" what is otherwise a great motorcycle.
In comparison to the Royal Enfield Interceptor 650, the Triumph Bonneville 865 Mag Wheel's handling has both pros and cons, depending largely on what the pavement you're on is like.
In comparison to the Moto Guzzi V7 750 I, more testing is needed. At first glance while the V7 has a larger front wheel than the Triumph Bonneville 865 Mag Wheel, it also weighs over 60 lbs less and has a lower center of gravity.
Most of us prefer the looks of a spoked wheel Bonneville, but would you sacrifice looks for significantly better handling?
I'd love to hear what you have to say, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
0:00 Intro
0:46 Which Bonneville is best?
2:08 Why tire size matters
4:58 Vs. Interceptor & V7
7:29 Conclusions
#triumphbonneville - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
Ep. 1: I Bought A Bonneville, An Interceptor, And A V7... Which Is Best? th-cam.com/video/hHD-uyBBezI/w-d-xo.html
Ep. 2: Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 - WHAT I GOT WRONG th-cam.com/video/p4MOxzU_mx8/w-d-xo.html
Ep. 3: Triumph Bonneville: Let's RUIN Our Exhausts (ON PURPOSE)! th-cam.com/video/dXp2vyvECDw/w-d-xo.html
Ep. 4: Moto Guzzi V7: Fixing a STOLEN V7 th-cam.com/video/HNmJ6IjQkHI/w-d-xo.html
Ep. 5: Why I SOLD My INTERCEPTOR 650 - Pros & Cons Vs. My Bonneville & V7 th-cam.com/video/f3lc6tFAWDM/w-d-xo.html
Ep. 6: Triumph BONNEVILLE: BEST HANDLING Used Model (vs. V7, Interceptor) th-cam.com/video/xsnOLvj0V8M/w-d-xo.html
Ep. 7: Triumph Bonneville: $100 Suspension Upgrades! th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
I swapped the shocks on my 2013 SE mag wheeled Bonneville with a set of adjustable Hagon shocks, and mounted a set of fresh Bridgestone tires. The bike is transformed, and the handling, flickability, and stability are simply sublime.
Suspension upgrades do so much for a Bonneville 👌🏻 I'm rocking Bridgestone tires on mine as well. Thanks for your input! 🙂
I made a video today about Bonneville suspension upgrades that I was able to do for under $100... They were... progress but far from perfect. Even though Hagons were out of the budget I had to mention them in the video anyway: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
When I bought an 850 V7 new a couple of years back (which I still have) I opted for the Stone model (satin paint, tubeless mag wheels) over the Special model (gloss paint, much more chrome, spoked / tubed wheels of the same size and actually the same tyre). One of the reasons was the tubeless mag wheels.
My pick too. Easy patch jobs on the side if necessary, less unsprung weight, easier to clean...
I put stone wheels on my 2014 V7 Special...straight swap. Best of both worlds...
Good to know they're easy to swap!
Hey! What a great video that nicely coincides with my two videos on new 17" wheels for the Interceptor. IMHO: handles better, looks better, accelerates better. I am happy, although I spent a ton of money on it!
Lol dude I saw yours on my feed last night right before bed and had a laugh at the timing too! Haven't checked yours out but it's on the watch later list for this evening when I get home. Glad it sounds like it worked out well for you!
I upgraded to IKON shocks and metzler 17” tyres on my 2015 mag wheel Bonnie. Didn’t touch the front end, and it handles just fine!👍🏻
Nice 🙂 👍
I just did a video on three different suspension mods I tried on the Bonneville... All were under $100, and while they did work out ok, they were probably nowhere near as good as your IKONs haha th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
Awesome to see a detailed breakdown like this. The usual norm for content today seems to be 'superficial only'. Much respect for giving us the details we need especially as they are almost impossible to find online anywhere.
Building on the information presented here, what would you say about the '2016-> Bonnevilles - do they achieve the compromise between looks and handling and how do they compare to the air cooled Bonnevilles in terms of handling? Thank you.
Thanks for the kind words! The 18" on the wheel is a definite step in the right direction compared to the old 19" wheel! I don't think they're as perfect as the sexy little 17" mag wheel, but it's a happy compromise. I do really like the liquid cooled Bonnevilles. They've now got some flavor and personality.
Back to the old though: New video in the series is up and it looks at comparing three different options for upgrading the rear shocks for under $100: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
Love your vids mate so thanks heaps!
On mag vs spokes my answer is... it depends.
Spokes are a real pain to maintain if they are chrome but by god do they look fabulous! I ride spoked wheels on my adventure bike, where I can carry tools to change the tyre if I flat but on my city bike I prefer the convenience of being able to fix a flat tyre without having to carry tyre irons and wrenches. As far as handling goes my adventure bike is 21" front 18" rear so anything else feels nimble in comparison.
lol thanks to you for the kind words. You've got a fair assessment. For off-roading, as long as you're prepared for it, spokes are great. For looking pretty, they're great too, but oh man, for the every day commuter, ouuf, no thanks haha. New video for the series up here: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
This is my favorite vid so fare. I agree my Continental GT handles better than my 2012 SE Bonneville. I didn't know there was a rake difference between the Mag and spoke setup that was very interesting to find that out, My Bonneville is a real nice bike to ride, my wife and I love to ride it, the Bonne replaced out Kawi drifter as our 2 up. My Bonneville, it so wallows through the curve at high speed, like at 90 or 100 mph below that its ok, of course I do not ride it that fast with my wife on the back and rarely do I ride it that fast, so it wallows a bit a high speed hmm it was not designed to be ridden like that anyway, so to answer you question about the Bonneville. Because of why I bought the Bonneville (wife and I casual riding) and how I ride it, I would have preferred that my bike was spoked T100 instead of an SE, just the SE came up when I bought it used. Out of the 2 bikes GT650 and my Bonne, when I ride on my own the RE GT650 is what I ride its not as powerful but it does handle much better and you are right a lot of people rag on the suspension on the RE but it seems good to me. I'm very interested in how the rear shock upgrades work out on the Bonneville and if its worth the cost of the shocks and again, I'll stick to what I have been saying that Moto Guzzi is going to win your heart. Cheers Karl
You must be tucked and hanging on tight at 100 mph on the Bonneville! Haha. Are you using a fly screen? Wind screen?
@@YouMotorcycle lol no screen I do have a fly screen kicking around that I was thinking about putting on but i'm not sure it will make a difference, guess I'll find out this summer thanks again for the vid always fun to watch them. Cheers.
Hey Karl, got a new one for ya: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html - PS: I sent a couple of my videos to Classy Chassis, I think they recognized your name from the comments section haha
Hey Adrian, one of the mods I did to my Street Glide was replacing my stock tire and rim to a 21 inch mag with a low profile tire. I really notice the difference in handling especially when riding the twisties at higher speeds. The smaller wheel does give the bike better handling and is more responsive, but the larger wheel does look better. LOL Slow down a bit and everything is ok. Cheers
Looks, price, handling.
Pick any two out of three lol.
Thanks for stopping by Dave!
That's really interesting about wheel/tire size and handling - and now I'm patiently waiting for the next video, where you do the suspension mods!
Sorry I kept you waiting so long. Life got very... life-ish lol
@@YouMotorcycle No worries, man ... I've been pretty busy myself LOL!
I see that! John's down to only 5 videos this week hahaha
@@YouMotorcycle Well, let's see... M/T/T/W/T/F/S... that's 7 this week, across the 2 channels ;)
And I already have a backlog on the 2nd channel, and 16 more uploaded, ready to go on the main channel. Good times. Not much left to edit, though, so there's that? 3 or 4 in editing now.
@@RoadReality wait, back up, you have two channels?!
Owned the mag wheeled 865 Bonneville and a 18 inch wheel Thruxton 900 (865) and the Thruxton was much more stable in handling between the tire size and the bars. The mag wheeled Bonnie was a little twitchy and because of the leverage on the bars and the small tire. To clarify I clocked over 6,000km on both... And my Moto Guzzi V7 850 has the best of both Bonneville and Thruxton. The Guzzi is the best motorcycle I have ever owned (Bonneville SE, Thruxton, W800 cafe, V7 850) also remember the Guzzi has an old racing frame the Tonti frame is legendary.
Hey thank you for the input. Always really cool to hear from people with first hand experience on the same motorcycles! I had a section about how the steering geometry if pushed too far could also result in twitchiness, but I concluded it by saying to me on the highway I didn't notice any problems with that. Then when I was editing I thought maybe the whole point would be redundant so I just cut it out completely lol. I haven't picked up on any twitchiness, just rear shocks trying to launch me into orbit 😔 I wish I could have gotten my hands on a W800 for this series!
You only notice the mag wheeled Bonnie wallowing and twitchy when pushed hard on a twisty country road. The Thruxton does require more input due to the style of bars (more counter steering pressure) but was much more stable and true once turned in. Again 17 mag vs 18 laced (spoked) alloy.
can attest to the awful rear shocks on the bonneville. ( I refer to them as scock transmitters) I upgraded mine with Ikon's, then got a deal on some öhlins (thruxton lenght - adds 20mm height) and also upgraded forks with Ricor valves. A huge improvement in both ride and handlling
Still have those Ikons by any chance??
@@YouMotorcycle
still got them somewhere - but I suspect shipping from here would be stupid expensive
I made a video I put out today about 3 different ways of upgrading the Bonneville suspension for under $100... but... well, you'll see lol th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
I'm following your bike-comparisons with interest (always fancied a Guzzi and an RE Conti-GT ) I prefer wires because that's how my bikes all were back in the-day . I'm now leaning toward mags for all the reasons stated plus less-maintenance . I always fitted Koni Dial-a-ride shocks to my old Brit-bikes , made all the difference but modern Bonnies should have come-out with good shocks for the price they cost . My W650 still has factory-shocks @ around 16,000 miles and they are holding-up remarkably-well . I usually set rears up very hard but this one handles-best one-up from the-softest-setting (who'd have thought) and I push the bike far-harder than it was designed-for . The 19" front definitely gets twitchy when it's pushed , I think an 18 would be better but it is what it is . I'm seriously-considering changing my entire front-end on my old 82-XV1000 yamaha , for a USD 17" set-up . At my-age (69) it's becoming hard-work pushing-it through the twistys , the upgrade should make all the difference and really transform the bike (plus i am struggling to find new/replacement fork-tubes) Dave nz
Hey Dave, thank you for the kind words and for sharing your experience. I dont' know what kind of shape you're in but an '82 XV1000 seems like more weight than I'd want to deal with when I'm 69 years. Maybe rather than putting the money into a front end swap, looking at something else might be time and money well spent?
At any rate, speaking of suspension, new video of the series just came out today and looked at Triumph Bonneville rear shock upgrades for under $100. You can check it out here if you're bored: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
For comparing these machines, aesthetics is also a huge factor. None of them are race bikes and are basically show ponies with better capabilities/all of the character (or more) of a V-twin cruiser. While the FI bonnie variants have a bit better fueling than the earlier carbureted machines, they also have what I view as a rather bulbous fuel tank. My mate with an '03 Bonnie goes so far as saying he has to look away. I fitted SE wheels to my '04 Thruxton before going full dark side and installing '97 Honda F3 wheels. The SE wheel did improve handling/front end turn in, but was not dramatically better than the alloy 18" Thruxton front wheel. Both Thruxton and SE front wheels were markedly easier to turn in than my '01 Bonnie with the 19" steelie up front. I also have a '14 V7 w/ alloy wheels and feel it handles about the same as my Thruxton did before fitting mags. The V7 is prettier than both my Triumphs, which makes perfect sense if you know anything about Italian motorbikes...
Thanks for sharing your experience on the different wheel/tire size swaps. It's cool to hear from someone who's done that. Seems like 19" to 17s" or 18"s are a significant improvement, but not much of a jump between the 18s and 17s.
Also, fun fact: I love the bulbous tank of my gen's Bonneville much more than the current sleeker liquid cooled T100's tank, and I think it looks better than the V7 as well haha.
Aesthetics are always subjective :)
PS: new video went up today: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
I can sacrifice some handling over looks ;) as I'm a rather conservative rider. I must admit I got wide LSL flattracker handlebars, front & rear suspension, Beringer front brake and most important for me a Burton DS 003 seat.
Nice mods! Suspension upgrades make such a difference. Wasn't aware of the front brake mod but I'll look into it, thank you!
Small update - I was able to upgrade the rear suspension for under $100, but only by a bit: th-cam.com/video/cz011K-Ixfc/w-d-xo.html
Can you share the link for the bar end mirrors?
I have 2012 se
I don't know if they're made anymore. Look up Napoleon bar end mirrors. I don't think that company still exists.
I’m going the other direction. On my Interceptor I’m swapping the 18” front for a 19”. Why? I’m building a scrambler and will be riding dirt and gravel a lot.
Nice. Good choice for the riding you're doing. You might want to check out the channel @thesundayrides he has an interceptor as well, does great videos about it, and the most recent two he put out are about having custom rims made. Some of the info from his experience might be handy for you, or at least interesting to check out. Cheers 🍻
@@YouMotorcycle ya, I seen that video. I’ll make a full video of the 19” project while I’m at it.
Sweet. I've subscribed @@BlackdogADV
"Mag wheel": Magnesium wheel
The correct way to state this is "cast alloy" or simply cast wheels.
Upgrades are forged aluminum, forged magnesium, or carbon fiber. I seriously doubt anything is available in the aftermarket outside special order.
Fair point! But all the Triumph folk call them mag wheels, so, for the sake of this video, mag wheels! 😂
@@YouMotorcycle Makes sense, as the senior citizens called wheels on their old muscle cars the same thing. It's really where that started.
Didn't know that, cool 😎 thank you
the guzzi has higher centre of gravity with high up pod sticking out
Have you ridden both?
No Honda Shadow 1100 content? Bro
Nah sorry man. V-Rod is the only 1100cc cruiser for me :)
I made it before all the "But retro!" comments, lol
I like the T120, but it's a massive torque pull bike, & is hefty in turns. It's no where of being a flickable sporty type bike.
That being said, the engineers being forced to design RE to be acceptable in India did help it's smooth riding. But it's polar opposite in how slow it is from such that is T120. I prefer a motorbike that is fast enough to stay on expressway here & not be roadkill.
Also! Keep up your pros/cons break down! You describe way more into these bikes than most anyone, and it's awesome dude
@@Confedyank thanks for all your support brother. Glad we crossed paths👌🏻
Odd that. 1960s Bonnevilles are renowned for being some of the best handling motorcycles in history. And all of them had 19 inch front rims.
Lol, a 1970s Bonneville also weighed 100-140 lbs less than my Bonneville does and the two bikes have little in common. Moral of the story, time waits for nothing and we all pick up some weight 😂
@@YouMotorcycle 1980s sports bikes were all coming out with 16 inch fronts. All the GPz, GS, and Honda Inteceptor. No bikes have 16 inch anymore. So smaller front tire isn't necessarily better. But truly, I don't know---- I haven't ridden both the smaller wheel and bigger wheel Bonnevilles so I never could compare it. Have you?
@@dirkdiggler5164 not just ridden both, owned both. There is such thing as too small. Yes. Try a Vespa with 10" wheels. As always, balance in all things, like Goldilocks: not too big, not too small, just right.
Interceptor is the cheapest In India. A used one with 5k on meter for 3000 US DOLLARS
Yes, because they are domestic there. No international shipping, international customs, duties, brokerage fees, etc. Way more expensive in Canada. Here, brand new with taxes it's about $11,000 Canadian for a new one, or about $8,120 USD.
Bonnies looks best on spokes.....who cares if it steers better.
The people who value function over form care lol
I suppose some do.....maybe they need to choose an other machine.@@YouMotorcycle
Hence the mag wheel Bonnie lol
Really there should be a 17" wheel option with spokes and tubeless tyres. For some reason spoked tubeless is only offered on adv bikes and such - they would also be great for retros like the Bonneville.
@@varmastiko2908 agreed. Best of both worlds
Bonn-E-ville ffs! Not BonnVille.
Cry louder. It'll change things.