BBC Top Gear India – July 2019

012 JULY 2019 → TOPGEAR.COM

July I 2019

Triumph Scrambler 1200XC

e’ve always had our doubts

about these hipster

scramblers. We just cannot

wrap our heads around the

fact that something that looks built for

a purpose does not do very well at that

same purpose. That was until the Desert

Sled came along and blew our minds.

But now, that distinction is under threat.

Because, the new Scrambler 1200 XC is

WE SAY: THIS IS ONE

SCRAMBLER THAT HAS MORE

THAN ITS SHARE OF GO FOR

ALL THE SHOW IT’S GOT

GOING ON

Ashok George

W

VERDICT: The Triumph

Scrambler XC is the retro

scrambler that will make

modern ADVs shake in

their boots!

SPECIFICATION

8

10

1 0.73 lakh

(ex-showroom, Mumbai)

Like most new

Triumphs, the XC

gets the four-way

toggle to control

the electronics and

information display

here and it is good. Really, really good!

You’ve already read all about the

Scrambler when we rode it in Europe a

few months ago. So, instead of telling

you how great it is and what spec it gets,

we’re going to try and give you some

perspective. And to do that, we’re going to

use the Tiger 800 XCx as a benchmark.

All of you know how much we love

the Tiger. We’ve taken it all over the

countryside and its off-road prowess is

as good as it gets. But what if we told you

that the biggest threat to the Tiger comes

from its own stable? In the form of the

new Scrambler 1200 XC!

We rode the Scrambler on some

intense trails around Shimla right after

spending a whole day with the Tiger on,

pretty much, the same trails. We came

back so impressed that we can say that

the compactness of the Scrambler gives

it more capabilities than you expect. The

suspension works great and lets you jump

the Scrambler off some real gnarly stuff

with nary a thought. Rocks, shale, slush

• no problem! And this while keeping
  you relatively comfortable through it all.
  The tyres too work well despite us riding
  through some of the worst conditions
  we’ve had on a press ride.
  But what really got us going was that
  despite being such an excellent off-road
  motorcycle, the Scrambler is a natural
  out on the black top!
  We could lean the bike over further
  than anything running 21 -inch wheels
  should be allowed to. In fact, we rode
  them so hard that we managed to shave

off almost all of the feeler bolts on the

footpegs. This bike likes to be hustled!

The only problem, and the one thing

that would make us think twice about

owning it, is the heat. On a hot day, the

pipes would singe your calves. A bit of

heat wrap might sort it out, but in stock

form, it would get too uncomfortable on

a hot day in city traffic.

At `10.73 lakh (ex-Mumbai), the

Scrambler is great value. If you want a

stylish motorcycle that will give almost

all ADVs a run for its money, then the

Scrambler is what you need. After

all, brunt hair will grow back, but the

experience a Scrambler gives you off-

road... not a lot of things can deliver that!

1200cc, oil-cooled, parallel twin,

89bhp, 110Nm

Seat height: 840mm

The full colour display can

be customised and also

looks real pretty!

PHOTOGRAPHY

: MANUFACTURER