Quick Snapshot
- Price: INR 9.72 lakh (ex-showroom)
- Engine: 660 cc inline-triple, 95 PS @ 11,250 rpm, 69 Nm @ 8,250 rpm
- Kerb weight: 201 kg (wet)
- Chassis: Showa SFF-BP 41 mm USD fork, preload-adjustable monoshock
- Electronics: Ride-by-wire, Rain/Road/Sport modes, switchable TC, optional bi-directional quick-shifter
What It Is – and Isn’t
Forget the razor-sharp Daytona 675 you grew up lusting after. Triumph’s new Daytona 660 is a different animal: a sport-tourer designed to live Monday-to-Sunday rather than just one blistering session at Madras or BIC. It shares platform DNA with the Trident 660 and Tiger Sport 660, but arrives with 17 % more power, a 20 % higher redline (12,650 rpm) and 9 % extra torque thanks to new pistons, crank, bigger throttle-bodies and revised exhaust routing.
Styling echoes the outgoing supersport—twin LED projectors, slim fairing, high-tail—but the dimensions are compact and the plastics unfussy, keeping kerb weight to a manageable 201 kg. Ergonomics sit halfway between café racer and commuter: clip-ons below the yoke, moderately rear-set pegs, yet a sensible 810 mm seat height with an optional 795 mm low seat. You lean forward, not fold yourself in half.
City & Highway Manners
Triumph’s triple remains the star. Eighty percent of peak grunt lands by 3,100 rpm, letting you roll through traffic in sixth at 40 km/h without chugging. Vibes are well-damped and the 3-into-1 underbelly can lifts a pleasing rasp past 7,000 rpm. Heat management? Better than the Trident, yet the fan still toasts calves when ambient temps rise.
On the open road the Daytona cruises at an effortless 140 km/h with the fairing taking the sting out of windblast. Whack the throttle in Sport mode and 150-plus flashes up quickly, but the outright rush feels middle-weight modest rather than super-sport savage—exactly the brief. Fuel economy during our mixed sprint hovered in the mid-20s (km/l), respectable for a near-100 PS triple.
Ride, Handling & Brakes
Showa’s SFF-BP fork and 130 mm-travel rear shock are tuned more for imperfect Indian asphalt than apex carving. The ride is plush—so plush, in fact, that hard trail-braking elicits noticeable fork dive and the underbelly can kiss ambitious speed-breakers. Ground clearance is the bike’s single biggest real-world gripe; hit a tall hump two-up and you’ll wince.
Michelin Power 6 rubber (120/70 R17 front, 180/55 R17 rear) offers predictable grip, while Nissin twin-pot calipers clamp 310 mm discs with progressive feel. Just remember the soft fork before charging into hairpins. Switchable traction control and three ride modes tweak throttle aggression, but ride-by-wire calibration is refined enough that most will leave TC on and forget about it.
Living With It
The familiar TFT + LCD dash is clear but looks dated next to Ducati’s or Yamaha’s latest offerings; the optional Bluetooth module salvages some tech brownie points with turn-by-turn nav and music control. The seat, on the other hand, is superb for long stints and pillion grab rails pop out neatly from the tail. Service intervals remain a wallet-friendly 16,000 km.
Verdict
Purists mourning the track-focused 675 may scoff, yet the Daytona 660 slots into a modern sweet-spot: sport-bike theatre without sport-bike compromises. It costs far more than a Kawasaki Ninja 650 but delivers character, electronics and a premium badge the twin can’t match. Equally, it undercuts a ZX-6R by a hefty margin while being far easier to live with daily.
If you want a motorcycle that can commute on Monday, tour on Saturday and occasionally flirt with 200 km/h on a controlled circuit—without numbing wrists or cooking calves—the Daytona 660 serves up a balanced, melodious package. Just watch those speed-breakers and accept that “Daytona” now means fast grand-touring, not grand-prix replica.
Also read: 2024 Triumph Speed T4 – First Ride Review