The 2017 Triumph Street Scrambler Is Everything I Want A Scrambler To Be

For 2017, Triumph has completely reworked its Scrambler. It gets a new engine, new chassis, new wheels, new seat, new handlebar, new everything. More importantly, it performs like an entirely new motorcycle. And a good one at that.

It was a big gamble on Triumph's part, as the outgoing Scrambler fell into fashion and was a big hit despite the fact that it wasn't an exceptional motorcycle. Triumph is the only brand I know of that refuses to pay to place its bikes in movies, TV shows, and magazines, but that doesn't stop it from popping up in movies like Jurassic World or TV shows like Doctor Who because it's just. so. damn. pretty.

When Ducati launched their Scrambler in 2014, the Italians got the jump on Triumph and won many a shootout with a bike that was smaller, lighter, more powerful, and much more manageable. From my point of view, I felt like the Ducati was the clear winner if you wanted something that was fun to ride and the Triumph was the clear winner if you wanted something to look at. That isn't to say that Ducati looks terrible or the Triumph performs terribly, and both are completely acceptable reasons to love a bike (don't be a snob, they really are), but simply that you should choose according to your taste and desire.

However, with the launch of Triumph's new 2017 Street Scrambler, all of that is about to change.

The new Street Scrambler is powered by the same 900cc, eight-valve, sohc parallel-twin with 270-degree firing interval as the Street Twin and Street Cup. It does get a slightly different tune than the other current Street models, making peak torque at 2,850 rpm with 59 pound-feet and peak horsepower (54 hp) at 6,000 rpm; which is the same peak horsepower and torque as the Street Cup and Street Twin just delivered slightly lower, and 28 percent more than the outgoing Scrambler.

Throttle is ride by wire, and there is switchable traction control though no variable riding maps. Triumph has also fitted a torque-assist clutch, which makes clutch-pull lighter.

The chassis is all new, as well, giving the Street Scrambler a drastically different feel from the other Streets. The new model is shorter (85.7 inches instead of 87.1 inches), lighter (claimed 454 pounds dry instead of 472), has steeper rake (25.6 degrees instead of 27.8 degrees), and more trail (109mm instead of 105mm). It also gets new suspension, with a 41mm KYB fork and twin KYB shocks that are adjustable for preload. Both ends of the bike offer 4.7 inches of travel.

More importantly, seat height is lower at 31.2 inches (instead of the outgoing's 32.5 inches) and the center of mass feels as if it's been moved lower in the bike, both of which greatly improve rider confidence.

The Street Scrambler gets the same brake setup as the Street Twin: A single 310mm disc and floating Nissin two-piston caliper up front works with a 255mm disc with floating two-piston caliper at the rear. ABS can be turned off when things get rowdy.

The wire-spoked steel wheels (19-inch front and 17-inch rear) come wrapped in Metzeler Tourance tires to help give the bike grip in unpaved situations, although the feel much more street oriented than they look.

Triumph didn't have official release dates for the US, but says that the black Street Scrambler will retail $10,700, green will be $10,950, and red will cost $11,200.

To test the new Scrambler, Triumph took us to Seville, Spain. Unfortunately, and for reasons unknown to me, the ride they planned was only about three hours and only a mile or so of it would be off-road.

The route started with some highway stretches, then we hit some incredible twisty bits before ending up at a fire road that we climbed until we hit ice, where we turned around and headed back.

We'd spent two hours the previous day getting a first look at Triumph's new Street Cup, a bike that I never felt quite at home or comfortable on. However, it didn't take much longer than the first roundabout or two to realize that they'd found a magical recipe in the Street Scrambler.

It feels like an entirely different bike than the outgoing Scrambler. The center of gravity feels feet lower, and this new Street Scrambler never feels as if it's about to tip over. It's incredibly nimble and agile, allowing you to flick to side to side with ease and composure.

Paired with the same incredibly smooth fueling seen in the rest of Triumph's revamped modern classic range; everything from picking our way through busy, cobbled streets to pushing the bike's limits of grip in the twisty stuff not only easy, but incredibly fun.

On the Street Cup, I found myself entering corners too slow simply in an effort to give myself some leeway should the corner take a turn for the unexpected. I just never really found confidence in the bike or trusted my ability to alter my line on it mid turn when pushing harder. On the Scrambler, though, I found myself howling with laughter in my helmet and screaming at our ride leader to go faster and faster—all as I could feel the woosh of the air between my knee and the pavement as I carried far more lean on these "dual sport" tires.

To be clear, this is not a fast motorcycle. But, it is a dependable and predictable one with good feel, which means it's a not-fast motorcycle that you can ride pretty damn fast.

Off road, this is not an exceptional motorcycle. Ground clearance isn't great at 6.2 inches (adventure bikes are closer to 10), the suspension is stiff and doesn't soak up much, the high exhaust pushes your right foot to the outside of the peg, and the bike doesn't move easily under you while standing. It isn't terrible on fire roads, but then again neither are most bikes with a decent center of gravity that let you stand fairly comfortably and perform predictably. It does slide okay, though the bike is far too pretty and far too unprotected for me to want to take many risks with.

Back on the pavement, we only got more comfortable with the Street Scrambler, to the point where I could have been dragging a knee and I was definitely dragging pegs. Every corner an opportunity to go faster, push harder, and scare the crap out of myself as the feelers on the pegs touched down (I don't think that will ever not startle me). I found myself forgetting that I was on a retro inspired Triumph until we slowed for a town where the stares came, especially in chicanes as I flicked the bike back and forth with ease.

The suspension, while not anything to praise for its ability to delete the effects of road imperfections, does nothing wrong and is tuned well for the bike. It's completely predictable and the chassis holds a line well in corners, even as adjustments are made to the throttle or brakes.

Quite honestly, the thing rides sort of like a supermoto bike. A heavy supermoto with a pretty low power-to-weight ratio, but a gorgeous supermoto nonetheless.

On the highway headed back to the hotel, I paid a little more attention to what the engine was doing. Unlike the outgoing model, the Street Scrambler cruises nicely at freeway speeds, pulling along at a mellow 3,750 rpm at 75 mph. While the torque curve suggests a big spike down low, I was actually more surprised by the power surge felt in the 5,500-rpm range, although this falls off just after 6,500.

There isn't much I would change about the Street Scrambler. I wish Triumph had done more to differentiate the way it made power from the Street Twin and Street Cup, like they did with the Bobber, to move the power even lower. I would likely play with the sprockets to gear it for slightly better acceleration.

On the 2010 Triumph Bonneville I owned, I changed the exhaust, airbox, and tune and it made a huge impact on power output. The Street Scrambler makes plenty of power for most, but is so fun and capable in the handling department that I'd want to get more out of the engine and sharpen throttle response a bit. Those changes would be first up if I found a Street Scrambler in my garage, then I'd follow that with higher performance brake pads and steel-braided brake lines, because I found myself wanting more stopping power when really pushing it.

Other than that, I'd pull the silly "Street Scrambler" logo off the left side number plate and make a few other style changes and leave it as is.

I posted a pic of the bike on those social medias the teens are always talking about and asked what your questions were about the bike so I could help tailor the review to what you wanted to know. If you aren't following me on Instagram or Twitter, you really should be. I keep my rants about Westworld theories to a minimum, I swear.

"Is the rack that interchanges with the pillion seat included or is it an extra cost accessory?" - It's included! I know, I was surprised too.

"Are the grips heated or are they just wired for heated grips?" - The wiring harness just has a place for the accessory ones to plug into.

"Is the ABS on/off switchable and does the setting stay resident when you turn the bike off/on?" - The ABS will stay off if you use the kill switch, but leave the key on, but the traction control will turn back on. Both reset to on if you turn the key off.

"What does the optional center stand cost?" - Triumph has yet to confirm, but company info currently says $295

"Could I throw a pack over the seat and tuck my man-bun and scraggly beard (both of which I would have to grow) into my helmet and join the many YouTubers filming themselves riding across the world?" - Not a chance, but you could probably catch some literbike bros in the canyons and let that glorious hair (both head and beard) wave goodbye as you blow past.

"How much for a rear brake relocation bracket for that scrambler?" - They don't have one coming, which is even more reason to keep it on the pavement.

"Does the skidplate protect the oil filter?" Nope, it's behind where the skidplate ends.

"Could you own the new one as your only street bike and not regret the purchase once the initial thrill wore off?" - I'm seriously considering buying one. This thing is so fun and so pretty it's silly, and I don't want to ride anything in the dirt except for a proper dual sport or dirt bike.

"This or the Bobber?" - You, dear sir, are a jerk and have stumped me. I've already spent the better part of an hour going back and forth between the two in my head. This is going to take some more time. And testing, lots and lots of testing.

Ok, listen up gang, I think it's time we had a little talk. I have this theory, and it's not going to be a popular one.

I think we need to stop caring if scramblers are any good in the dirt. Seriously. I believe the term "scrambler," like the term "cafe racer" or "tracker," refers to an aesthetic. This aesthetic happens to come from bikes that were used off road, just like cafe racers were bikes people used to race. Both of them, now, are terms used to describe the style of a bike, because we have the next generation of cafe racers and scramblers in these incredible things called sportbikes and dual sports.

For me, personally, I like to sit more upright. I like my legs directly beneath me because I like to stand sometimes or like to use my legs when the road gets really bad, and I like to be comfortable and ride with more leverage on the bars and to have more visibility. Also, I think they look cool. I dig scramblers and I have absolutely no problem that they can't do what a KTM 350 EXC-F or even what a Honda Africa Twin can do. Partly because the compromises needed to do so would make them less capable and fun for riding and town and being pretty and everything else I want in a daily rider.

However, if you want to take it off road, you can do so and will likely be fine so long as you're careful. I mean, Bradley Adams did it on a Yamaha FJ-09, and the guys at MotoCorsa put Continental TKC80s on a Panigale and took that off road. This new Scrambler is better than the old one at getting dirty, just not so much that you'll ever hear me tell you it's a good idea to do so.

I thought the Ducati Scrambler was a huge step in the right direction, even though I didn't think it actually looked that great and the fueling was a little snatchy and the suspension a little choppy. But, the weight was low, power was adequate, and there was a competency to it that had been missing from bikes offering classic looks for far too long.

Unfortunately, I didn't get nearly enough time to properly test this new Triumph. But from my brief interaction with it, the new Street Scrambler seems like that and so much more. It's beautiful, both from far away and up close. It feels light and nimble, is excellent to ride around town, and is comfy on the freeway. It's confidence inspiring and easy to ride, and more importantly, it's incredibly fun to ride. I think Triumph hit a homerun with the new Street Scrambler, and I think if you want a daily rider that looks classically beautiful and fun around town then there is nothing that comes close.

Helmet: Bell Moto 3
Goggles: 100% Barstow Deus X Machina Goggles
Jacket: Aether Eclipse Jacket
Vest: Crank and Stroker Preacher Vest
Pants: UGLYBros Motorpool
Gloves: Alpinestars Polar Gore-Tex Gloves
Boots: Dainese Motorshoe