Total Motorcycle Community Forums

so, if all goes well this weekend (and I have real mixed emotions about it) my wonderful VTX will be sold, and if all really goes well, I will be picking up a late nineties 900 Trophy. For a commuter/lugging my "O Ring" to school/sporty/touringish bike it's really what I've been looking for. Are there any downsides to this bike that I'm missing? Reliability issues? It's a triple, and from what I know, they're pretty damn reliable, I'm just going to be putting a ton of miles on this the next two years (one of the reasons I'm getting rid of the big fella, the resale value of a VTX with 50000+ miles on it has got to be about nil), but are 60000 miles + unthinkable for a 900 to last? (it's got a shade under 30k on it right now - commuting miles).

Big B wrote:so, if all goes well this weekend (and I have real mixed emotions about it) my wonderful VTX will be sold, and if all really goes well, I will be picking up a late nineties 900 Trophy. For a commuter/lugging my "O Ring" to school/sporty/touringish bike it's really what I've been looking for. Are there any downsides to this bike that I'm missing? Reliability issues? It's a triple, and from what I know, they're pretty damn reliable, I'm just going to be putting a ton of miles on this the next two years (one of the reasons I'm getting rid of the big fella, the resale value of a VTX with 50000+ miles on it has got to be about nil), but are 60000 miles + unthinkable for a 900 to last? (it's got a shade under 30k on it right now - commuting miles).

Suggest you join the Trophy group on Yahoo Groups. It's the biggest single source of Trophy knowledge in one place on the planet, AFAIK.

The 1200's have had issues with coils, not sure if this affects the 900's. 1200's also have issues with cracked vacuum lines, and other plastic parts on the carbs. The 1200's use Mikuni's, not sure about the 900's. Suggest you go through the bike with dielectric grease on every electrical connection you can find. But these are just quibbles. Those early Triumph modular engines were overengineered - Bloor put heavy emphasis on reliability - they will run and run and run.

The only serious issue we've had was a problem with the head gasket not seating - occasionally 1200's (Daytona 1200's also) are subject to this. The head gasket on our 1200 was replaced under warranty, and there's been no more problem. I believe this issue does not affect the 900's.

Good luck with the bike. Trophy's aren't the most nimble bike in the world, but they are fast, smooth, and comfortable like a Cadillac - ideal for fast, long-distance running.

Be careful at first. I imagine your VTX has a pretty low CoG. Trophy's have a high CoG - it can bite you until you get used to it.

well, nimble can be really relative when comparing anything to a vtx, seems nothing short of a boss hoss or a tow truck isn't nimble compared to one. I'm pretty convinced that if the stars do align right for me this weekend I'll pick it up, seems about perfect, reliable, comfortable, and something I'll feel comfortable leaving in a public lot (which I'm never comfortable doing with the VTX, too much shiny chrome and nice paint). And if it's sold before I get a chance at it, the search continues (crosses fingers).