Triumph Motorcycles woke up one day and chose violence of the most extreme kind when it decided to drop the 400s like a set of nukes. Priced aggressively, both the Speed 400 and the Scrambler 400X are impressive motorcycles even when you turn a blind eye towards their mouth-watering price tag. And now, it looks like Triumph Motorcycles is choosing violence again, instead of celebrating the huge success and the dent that they have made in the market with the 400s. The reason why we are saying this is because a certain cafe-racer has been spied testing overseas and it looks like it could form into a Thruxton 400.
The Thruxton 1200 is lauded to be one of the most gorgeous motorcycles of modern times and even though it is basically dead, it still remains one of the most sought-after modern cafe-racers. Thankfully, the Thruxton 400 seems to have retained the same gorgeous lines and design philosophy as the 1200. What can be seen from the spy pictures looks like a half fairing and a different, cafe-racer styled housing for the headlamp unit. We are assuming it to be closer to the Speed 400 than the Scrambler 400X. What will set the Thruxton 400 apart from the rest of the 400s is the set of clip-on handlebar and rearset footpegs. It makes my heart race that Triumph has opted for a set of clip-ons rather than going half-way with a straight wide handlebar. The riding ergonomics although look slightly more committed than the Speed 400, the Thruxton 400 won’t fall into the same aggressive, crotch-rocket category as say, the KTM RC 390.
Adding to the cafe-racer aesthetics is a set of bar-end mirrors. The rear end looks quite similar to the Speed 400 though and this is where, I believe, Triumph should have differentiated both the motorcycles a little more. Even with the added bodywork, we are expecting the Thruxton 400 to be a sleek motorcycle as it is based on the Speed 400. And that brings us to the platform. Given the fact that the new TR series 398cc engine that does the job in the Speed 400 and the Scrambler 400X is a happy puppy down there in the rev range, we don’t expect Triumph to go the extra mile and tune it differently for the Thruxton 400. All they can do is fiddle around with the sprockets to provide the Thruxton 400 with a better top end thrust. Even in terms of cycle parts, expect no changes over the Speed 400 because that formula is pretty versatile and this recipe, if cooked with the same ingredients, can turn out to be as delicious as the other 400s. Color schemes are where Triumph can play it big by using retro-theme flavors of the yore.
Given the fact that the Thruxton 400 was spied for the first time, we can expect Triumph to show its pretty face to the world, officially, at next year’s EICMA 2024. It would land on our shores shortly after that. Hopefully, because this single-cylinder British cafe-racer will be built by Indian hands.
Image source: Autostreet.in
