Cologne Show: Triumph Street Triple RX

• 675cc inline-triple
• 105bhp / 50lbft
• Daytona 675 tail unit
• Quickshifter as standard
• Seat cowl, belly pan & fly screen

The naked middleweight market has been dominated by Triumph’s Street Triple ever since it first launched in a maelstrom of surprise and giggling back in 2007.

The R model only added to the depth of the naked’s talents, and both models continue to attract a seemingly inexhaustible stream of new buyers.

For 2015 they’ll have even more temptation to try and resist, as the firm adds an X to the model designation.

Blending the brilliance
This isn’t just a bit of paint and a new decal, the headline change for the RX is the junking of the old tail unit, to be replaced by one from the Daytona 675R. It’s such an obvious mod that you have to wonder why they didn’t do it earlier.

The sleeker new silhouette is accentuated by the new Matt Silver paint and deep Diablo Red colouring of the lightweight race inspired wheels. Triumph’s accessory seat cowl, belly pan and fly screen are standard fitment, and complete the aesthetic overhaul.
 
The heart RX remains Triumph’s signature 675cc triple, a 12-valve unit derived from the Daytona sportsbike, which has been mildly retuned to deliver a punchy 105bhp and 50lbft of torque. There’s still nothing wrong with the motor, and being wisely conscious of that Triumph have left it well alone for 2015. 

The new Street Triple RX will be available in dealerships from January 2015. Prices are yet to be confirmed, but we would expect only an incremental price increase over the existing R model’s £8149.

Engine
Triumph have not messed with the existing Street Triple R unit, meaning a 105bhp 675cc inline-triple, which is more than capable of tempting you and the RX into plenty of mischief.

Chassis
The front end of the bike is unchanged, while the rear subframe and seat unit are stolen directly from the Daytona 675R, giving the RX a sharper and sleeker rear end.
 
Electronics
The only new addition to the RX is the provision of the accessory quickshifter as standard fitment – making it even easier to get through to sixth on the back wheel.

Brakes
The R’s Nissin radial 4-piston calipers carry over to the RX, also with the switchable ABS system – all biting on to a pair of 310mm floating discs.

ORIGINAL STORY

If the decal on the side panel is to be believed, this is the new Triumph Street Triple RX, which MCN expects to be unveiled at the Intermot show in Cologne, Germany, tomorrow.

Spied undergoing a test at Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire two week’s ago, the model is clearly an interim update or special edition, rather than a new version of the massively popular triple.

Already a sales success for Triumph, the Street Triple has featured in the UK’s top ten best sellers consistently since its launch in 2007, and subsequent 2013 update.

This new version will only help it stay there, with its aggressive R styling, and the addition of a new subframe and tail unit, seemingly directly lifted from the Daytona 675.

Fitted with a flush-mounted cowl, it almost looks like a single seat unit, but the rear pegs reveal that there is a pillion perch hidden beneath.

Also visibly different is the colour of the Nissin radial brake calipers, while the units themselves appear to be identical to the existing Street Triple R’s. Triumph declined to comment on the existence of the RX, leaving us guessing about any further specification changes and price – until tomorrow.