BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

I know this is an BMW RT forum but did anyone consider the newish Triumph Trophy SE ? A friend of mine bought one and is very pleased
With it ! Maybe not the same quality and I believe the controls are a bit of a faf but nearly 5k cheaper compared with the BM
Stuart

yep, this was my first choice as I had an Explorer and wanted to stay with Triumph, I took the trophy for a blast and it had a dodgy engine so it obviously spoilt the ride, I tried it for an hour as I wanted it to be good and at times when it was firing on all 3 it was amazing.
I was fed up by the time I came back to the dealers and they gave me no confidence and did not seem bothered that it was not working correctly, so reluctantly pulled into BMW on the way home (just did not want to be a me 2) but after a ride on the rt then the K1600 I was sold and the grin on my face from the RT told the salesman all he needed to know!!!

Its always been an RT clone.  Back in 2006 the factory bought an RT to do back to back testing with the Trophy during its development. And they used to buy things like panniers for their development department.

I've just heard this afternoon that triumph
Has ceased making the trophies because of new eu laws

Boroboystu wrote: I know this is an BMW RT forum but did anyone consider the newish Triumph Trophy SE ? A friend of mine bought one and is very pleased
With it ! Maybe not the same quality and I believe the controls are a bit of a faf but nearly 5k cheaper compared with the BM
Stuart

My brother has a 2015 Trophy, I own a 2016 RT.  I have been able to ride both as we tour together.  Both are capable bikes, but there are definite differences, price being one of them.  That old adage, "you get what you pay for" applies here.


I like the engine of the Trophy, it is strong and smoother than the boxer, so you get much less vibration in the hand grips.  But my "likes" about the Trophy end there.  It is about 130-140lbs heavier than the RT, and that weight is up high.  It feels *very* top-heavy compared to the RT, and is not nearly as nimble in the turns.  The feel of the clutch is much stiffer, my left hand aches after a long ride on the Trophy.  The electronics on the Trophy are clunky and not intuitive at all, especially the radio controls.  The handlebars are set back further, and feel at an odd angle to me.  It seems to be built with straight-line touring in mind.


Being an RT owner, I might be biased, but I think the Trophy is a less-refined, clunky version of the RT.  The biggest endorsement for the RT actually came from my brother.  After a 4-day weekend of riding through the mountains in the Pacific Northwest, with him on my RT the whole way, he said "I sorta wish I would have bought one of these".

Test rode the Trophy, K1600 and the RT. Bought the RT and I was not a Triumph or BMW owner. Enough said  8)

I will say, Triumph makes a good bike, I just don't particularly care for the Trophy.  If you are into cafe racer style, the Bonneville T100 and T120 are awesome bikes, and a lot of fun to ride.  Honestly, I think Triumph did a better job with the styling than BMW did with the R Nine T.  I'm planning to buy the new 2017 T120 next spring, it's going to be my "city" bike for just tooling around and having fun.

Boroboystu wrote: I've just heard this afternoon that triumph
Has ceased making the trophies because of new eu laws

Yes, I also heard that snippet. Short lived, bit like the BMW K1300GT bike!

Difference is the 1300GT stopped because it was replaced by the 1600GT.
Wonder what Triumph will come up with.

Triumph have cancelled the trophy because it dosent meet with the new emission laws set by the eu , triumph told me that there would be a great number of bikes being pulled because of that

Boroboystu wrote: Triumph have cancelled the trophy because it dosent meet with the new emission laws set by the eu , triumph told me that there would be a great number of bikes being pulled because of that

...and what about the more popular Explorer?


They must have spent a fortune developing that engine, chassis and electronics. 

Boroboystu wrote: I know this is an BMW RT forum but did anyone consider the newish Triumph Trophy SE ? A friend of mine bought one and is very pleased
With it ! Maybe not the same quality and I believe the controls are a bit of a faf but nearly 5k cheaper compared with the BM
Stuart

I had one. They are great while they are running.
the wind management is the best in the sport touring genre. A comfortable seat which is non existant in other models


the electronic is not a bit of a faf, its a freaking full blown nightmare. Last year I checked it had like about 8 items recall. The brakes are horrible...reminded me of a front single disk fatboy I once had. The valves were a clatter like I never heard before.


I would do some super critical research among current owners with caution on the brand loyalists who always defend their beloved brand ragardless.


I would never buy another. I traded in under 12,000 miles.

When it came time to replace my 2008 R1200RT, I really, really did not want to buy another BMW bike (after the clutch had died at 18,000 miles and BMW UK were just plain useless). So I had a long hard look at the Triumph, it is a great bike which I loved, but the dealership only put in enough fuel to get me to a filling station on each test ride, which did not endear them to me. But the clincher was the lack of after market city lids for the panniers and Hill Assist.
I know these are two very minor points, however for me they were the tipping point items. Discussing with the BMW dealership they said the Triumph was a very good bike but about one or two development steps behind the RT hence the difference in price. I think they hit the nail on the head.

When you say BMW UK were useless do you mean they wouldn't replace the clutch after 18K.

RTman10 wrote: When you say BMW UK were useless do you mean they wouldn't replace the clutch after 18K.

No, I mean the first letter they sent me had; my name wrong, quoted the wrong dealership and did not answer any of the 3 simple questions I asked!!!

Having owned a 1993 K75RT, 2001 R1150RT and then the 2008 R1200RT all from new, I thought that BMW UK should at least have got my name right (they got BOTH my Christian and Surname wrong!) when writing to me, answer the questions I asked and perhaps offer something towards the bill (even the dealership offered £200 off my next bike). Clearly my customer service expectations were set too high and BMW UK failed on all counts!

The clutch failed within 100 miles of its 18k service and I was hit with a £1k bill for a new one because apparently the design of the bike meant that the whole thing had to broken in half to change the clutch. Given that I sold my 2001 R1150RT at 44k on the clock and the new owner also not having any issues for the next 15k (up to the point of my letter to BMW UK) I was not (and still to this day) convinced that the clutch had worn out from normal ware and tear. I could not understand how BMW could design a bike where the whole frame had to disassembled into two halves just to change a clutch and that could be every 18k miles!

Long story short - If the Triumph had been closer to the water cooled RT I would have had one, but the BMW offering was just better for me and I stayed BMW despite their lack of customer service