Side profile
The Triumph Daytona 675R is available in India at a price of Rs. 11,29,140 (Ex-Showroom Delhi).
Development of the Triumph Daytona 675 started in 2000 following the launch of the TT600 which was Triumph’s first modern middle weight sports motorcycle which was powered by a four cylinder engine. The Triumph Daytona 675 is a 600cc class supersport motorcycle built since 2006, to replace the Daytona 650. The Triumph Daytona 675R is specially developed for the track, as opposed to the Triumph Daytona 675. The 675R is focussed and committed to the race track and Triumph is trying to deliver a faster, better handling and easy to ride bike with the 675R.
One glance and even an average Joe can point out that this bike belongs to the supersport category. Although, it does not match the scale of the litre class bikes just in terms of overall presence, the Daytona 675R is visually spot on in the race track oriented looks department. We cannot exactly call the front end to be sharp, but still, it does have its own character. Dual headlamps, one of which serves as a DRL and an air duct between the two headlamps take care of the front head on view. A small pilot lamp is positioned above the air duct. The front windscreen has a small bubble like effect and helps in better aerodynamics when on high speeds. Rear view mirrors do not get the fancy turn indicators mounted on them; rather they are conventionally placed on either sides of the fairing. The instrument cluster is a digital + analogue unit with carbon fibre panels around it. The mirrors can be folded back but have a single locking position, which means that to adjust the viewing angle; you have to move the mirror section inside. From the side, it is evident even without a rider in place that the bike sports a very aggressive riding position. Be warned, if you are upgrading from the likes on a sports tourer like a Ninja 650, this riding position is going to leave you with a sore wrist during the initial phase. The rider crouches forward significantly in the regular riding position, apart from crouching further down when riding enthusiastically. Another deterrent is the hard compound seats. Long rides will leave you with a sore bottom. The fuel tank has ample space carved out for the rider to wrap his legs around it. When it comes to pillion comfort, as is the case with all supersport bikes, the seat is small in size and indicates clearly as to who you should be tagging along with you. A pillion on the heavier side will not be very comfortable being seated here for a long time. Triumph has been generous with the grab rails for the pillion which are very user friendly and are easy to hold. LED tail lamps are the back and turn indicators mounted on the tail unit along with the number plate housing wrap up the looks department. Also, from the side, some parts of the framework are exposed, which well, adds to the sporty character. Front mud guard and the tyre hugger on the rear is a carbon fibre unit and looks fantastic along with being light and strong. The exhaust pipe is a stainless steel unit, which is a 3 into 1 system with under engine silencer incorporating a valve. For track days, one can remove the rear number plate mount by removing just three screws.
The Daytona has a lap timer, two trip computers, gear change indicators, shift lights (programmable) and a clock. It also shows fuel gauge, tyre pressures (where optional Tyre Pressure Monitoring System is fitted) and ABS switching.
The engine is a 675cc liquid-cooled, 12 valve DOHC in-line 3-cylinder unit producing 128 PS of power at 12,500 RPM and 74 Nm of torque at 11,900 RPM. The Daytona 675Rs engine is built it with a new shorter stroke and wider bore dimensions for more useable power and acceleration. The cylinder block is now cast separately from the upper crankcase to cope with higher pressures, more torque and more power. In addition to the 675, the 675R now comes with a quickshift gear change, reprogrammed to give you even faster, smoother shifting. With twin injectors per cylinder the Daytona can draw more fuel quicker when you open the throttle fully and demand more from the engine. A first for a production Triumph, the 675R is fitted substantially lighter titanium valves to cope better with the higher revs. This also means lighter valve springs can be used, reducing valve train wear and friction. The weight reduction was enough to give Triumph space to add some more metal to the valves without compromising the valve train, so the top of the valve ‘mushroom’ heads were reshaped to improve gas flow around the valve and into the combustion chamber. This means better efficiency and a boost in torque at low and medium revs. Also, with a shorter stroke on the 675R, the bike now revvs 500 RPM higher, till 14,500 RPM allowing you to wring the throttle a little longer.
The bike can be chucked around in the 6th gear at speeds as low as 60 kmph. We were riding in Mumbai on less than perfect roads, and the bike manages to cruise comfortably in the top gear on 60 kmph. This makes the bike immensely practical to be ridden in cities plagued with traffic issues. The Triumph’s triple cylinder is all about the torque low down and it shines when compared to the other supersport motorcycles in the class. It is just about perfect for city riding with enough mid-range punch to pull away from the traffic when the need arises. Also, with a wet weight of 184 kgs, it is not exactly heavy by the supersport standards and proves to be very manageable in the city.
Triumph has enlarged the through-airflow headstock so that the intake mouth is positioned in the highest pressure zone centrally at the front of the bike. Improving flow efficiency, so that air passes in a straight line through the centre of the headstock to the airbox giving you even more of that distinctive three-cylinder intake snarl. It depends what you like, the typical Triumph Triple ‘whistle’ or the exhaust note on high revvs. We loved both, but on low speeds, this whistle covers the engine and exhaust note, which might not be welcomed by all.
The new Daytona 675R frame is made from eight castings which mean fewer welds and a lighter construction with no loss of strength or stiffness. The swingarm pivot position is adjustable so that one can tailor the handling to suit their riding style and conditions. The 675R comes with Ohlins NIX30 forks at the front with a wider range of adjustability compared with the standard equipment. On the rear, it has an Ohlins TTX ’twin tube’ unit that is easily adjustable for spring preload, ride height and rebound and compression damping. The Daytona also gets a new rigid aluminium swingarm.
The 675R comes with the latest Brembo monobloc front brake callipers in place of the standard bike’s Nissin units as they are especially resistant to heat fade. At the front you get twin 310mm floating discs and a single 220mm disc at the rear, with switchable ABS. Stopping power is adequate, but be sure to apply the front brakes moderately when riding with a pillion, a sharper bite will result in unsettling the pillion rider. The bike comes shod with Pirelli Dragon SuperCorsa tyres with a 180/55 ZR 17 rear section and a 120/70 ZR 17 at the front.
Features like the steering damper, mass centralisation with the under engine silencer, ABS, slip-assist clutch, quickshifter, programmable revv lights make riding a lot more easier. But don’t get turned off because of ABS, it has a track setting (On, Off and Circuit) which allows slight rear wheel drift. Engine immobiliser detects the microchip in the key body and tries to avoid switching on the bike with a copy of the key. Optional TPMS (Tyre pressure monitoring system) lets you know the change in tyre pressures on the instrument cluster.
The Daytona 675R has a 10,000 km service interval. The bike comes with a two-year unlimited mileage warranty. Triumph also provides a 12 month unlimited mileage warranty on replacement parts.
The Honda CBR1000RR is available at a price of Rs. 15,21,479 (Ex-Showroom Delhi). What would you buy, a 600cc class bike at 11.3 lakh or stretch a little more and get a litre class bike for additional 4 lakh?
Click here to check out the Triumph Daytona 675R photo gallery.