Bonneville Loaner

[rayjay]

Just had 500mile service...When i ordered the rocket i also ordered some triumph accessories including a chrome oil tank, unfortunately the oil tank was on back order and wasn't ready at the time i collected the rocket and the plan was to fit it at the first service...which is what happened... i guess being an old harley guy..i need to have chrome to polish Anyway it's all done and the bikes going really well...gear change has improved I seem to have found a good dealer..
Because the oil tank takes a couple of hours to fit and plus the service..they offered me the use of a bonnevile Can't remember the last time i rode a bonnie..i was a young man. Well the memories came flooding back and i was back at the ACE cafe.
What a blast this bike is to ride...it's nimble and agile...makes decent power and it's all usable. I found myself filtering through traffic within minutes of being on it and riding the twisties faster than i thought...and comfortable as well. The only downside i could find..is that it felt small..but i guess it will. But what a great experience and for a couple of hours i was 18 again. Returned the bonnie and the rocket was sitting there waiting for me and i was glad to see it. Triumph make good bikes

ray

 

[xhdskip]

No arguments there Ray.
18 again huh?
dang, maybe I need to find an old bonnie to restore.
Been at least 35 years since I rode one...
Of course, my preference was always the Hurricane.
That was the first Triumph I fell in love with in ,,,
was it 73 or maybe 74. Nope, had to be 73, joined the service in Feb of 74.
Man that fast lookin orange aerodynamic bodywork on that thing blew me away.
Way ahead of its time.
Yea, Triumph makes a good bike.
Glad you had fun.

 

[Sidecar Flip]

I still have my Bonnie (among others) so I still ride it. It's a tiny bike (compared to the R3) but it's a fun bike nonetheless.

It amazes me that the Bonnie with the 40 inch displacement it has, hauls me and the sidecar around with no problem. Even adding a passenger really don't tax it plus I'm one tooth up on the countershaft.

You are absolutely right, Triumph builds good bikes. Even the Bonnie has teething problems. All machines do.

 

[KingOfFleece]

I also have a Bonnie and a Rocket. Sold my first Bonnie to3 and missed it so much I bought it again! GREAT bike and a ton of fun to ride.

 

[Sidecar Flip]

Candidly, if I was ever in a situation financially where I had to choose one bike to keep of all the bikes I own (not that, that would ever happen as they are all paid for and only cost insurance and maintenance), I'd most likely keep the KLR and sell the other 2 simply because the KLR is like the Bonnie, it's simple and reliable as a rock plus it gets close to 60 mpg. Everything about the KLR reeks of cheap. It even likes cheap motor oil and cheap gasoline. It's the longest running model Kawasaki ever produced so it's had all the bugs worked out long ago. It's the Volkswagen of motorcycles.

I'd sell the Bonnie just because it's the only 02 in existence that has a chair on it and because it's very marketable.

The R3 would be hardest to part with on one hand and the easiest on another. Hard because it has a personality and it exudes excess, not just power but looks and physical mass but easy because I've never formed a bond with it. It's merely a conveyance tnat has balls and travels up and down roads with little input, unlike the Bonnie or the KLR.

Having spilled my guts, I'll just keep them all and probably add another this winter.

 

[RocketDaryl]

I don't have a Bonnie, but I did have a Speedmaster. I currently have a R3T and a Tiger. I'm in the same boat with Flipper (own my bikes). *If* I ever had to sell one, I wouldn't have to think about it for one second. The R3T would be gone. The Tiger does everything the Rocket can do and more and is 10 times more fun doing it.