Coming Soon | Triumph Tracker 400 and Thruxton 400

Launched with the Speed 400 and Scrambler 400 X, Triumph’s new generation of 400 singles is aimed directly at younger riders restricted in budget and power output but not wanting to compromise on style or fun. And it’s been a hit, both in terms of sales and attracting a new generation of riders to biking, women included. And now there’s even more choice with the addition of two new and harder-hitting options riffing on flat-track and café racer style.
At the heart of both is an uprated version of the 398cc single-cylinder engine developed especially for the 400s, power up a couple of horsepower to 42 horsepower but now delivered at a higher peak of 9,000rpm, up 1,000rpm from the Speed and Scrambler. Which should mean a decisively sportier character, even if outright performance isn’t dramatically different. Crucially it keeps both bikes within the power cap for the restricted A2 licence younger riders graduating from L-plates and a basic CBT are limited to. Pricing looks competitive as well, the Tracker 400 coming in at £5,745 and the Thruxton at £5,995. A chunk more than single-cylinder rivals like the Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 or less powerful Honda GB350S, the Triumphs arguably justifying their premium billing in terms of their quality and image. Keep reading for more details of each of the new bikes…

To go with the harder-edged tune to the engine the Tracker 400 also gets a decisively sportier riding position than even the Speed 400, with lower and flatter bars and pegs positioned 27mm higher and 86mm further back. While the fundamentals of the frame and suspension are as before everything has been tweaked and adjusted, new wheels also featuring. The racy look is set off with a Scrambler-style twin exhaust, number boards, a seat cowl and fly screen along with multi-surface Pirelli MT60 tyres.

Traditionalists mourning the departure of the previous Thruxton probably won’t like this new one, but it opens up the café racer style to a whole new audience and, specifically, a younger one than ever before. Which is what motorcycling needs if it’s to attract new blood. The Thruxton 400 gets the same revised peg position as the Tracker, this time combined with clip-on bars set a whole 246mm lower than the Speed 400 for a much, much sportier riding position set off nicely by the bikini fairing and bar-end mirrors.