Wehadaprettyintensesandloopwith
abunchofjumps,logsandwater
crossingstoplayaroundon.When
hoppinglogsitfeelsjustlikeadirtbike,
alittledouble-bliptechniqueandthe
bikewillrocketupintotheair,
remainingbalancedandincontrolat
alltimes.Thefirmsuspensiondoesn’t
allowittodiveorbottom-outwhen
smashingintothelogs.
Itcrawledcomfortablythroughwater
atlowspeedsandploughedthrough
thesandwithouttoomuchtank
slapping,providingyoukeptthe
throttleon.Whenlaunchingtabletops
(yes,theyactuallyhadtabletopsforus
tojump)youjustneededtomakesure
youweren’tcrossedupbecause
correctingsomethingthislargecanbe
detrimentaltoyourhealth.IfIkeptthe
bikestraightithandledthelanding
withease,neverbottoming.
Ittooksomeconvincingthatthe
OhlinsshockswouldworkbutonceI
smashedintoabunchofsquare-edged
bumpsIwasconvinced.Sureitisa
littleheavierandtheexposedsprings
couldcomeintocontactwiththe
groundifyoucrash,buttheheavier
rear-endactuallyhelpskeepthebike
trackingstraight.Youcanalsomake
quickadjustmentsmanuallysoifyou
knowyou’regoingtotackleacertain
terrainforthedayyoucanadjustthe
shockstoexcelinalmostanycondition.
WHO’SGOINGTOUSEIT?
ThestandingpositionontheScrambler
XEfeelsjustlikeadirtbike.Youdon’t
needtobendyourbackasitpushes you
forwardandoverthefront-end.You can
almostrideitlikeyouwouldadirtbike,
but,wouldyoutakea$22k,207kg
machineintothebush?Iguessit
dependshowmuchmoneyyou’vegot.
Italsowouldn’ttakemuchtoturn
thisintoadecentadventurebike,all it
needsisascreenandabiggerfueltank
(mostridersgotbetween 3 to5L/100km
fromthe16Ltank)butifyoudidthat it
mightloseitsdirtbikeprowess.
Ithinkmostpeoplewhowillbuy the
ScramblerXEwillprobablynevertake
itwhereitcango.You’llseeitat
countrypubs,inwineregionsand
commutingbackandforthtoworkbut I
doubtyou’llcomeacrossoneinthe
bush,whichisashamebecauseitis
capable.Ifyou’relookingforaweekend
adventurebikeforridesthatdon’t
includelongbitumenstretchesthat
needascreen,butyoudofancythe odd
ripthroughsingletrack,thenaddthe
Scrambler1200XEtoyourshortlist.
Gotsomethingtosayaboutthisyarn?
[email protected]
More images and info at adbmag.com.au
LAUNCH REPORT | TRIUMPH SCRAMBLER 1200 XE
The punchy
throttle allowed
me to jump
step-ups, launch
over logs and
wheelie across
holes and ruts
All the tech
Bikes like these are loaded with
tech you’ve heard of. Here’s a
shortlist of the fruit you get:
- Rider modes
- Traction control
- ABS
- Keyless ignition
- TFT display
- Torque-assist clutch
- Ride by wire throttle
- Heated handgrips
- Cruise control
- Turn-by-turn navigation
- Bluetooth phone control
GoPro
connect
The Scrambler 1200 XE comes with
GoPro connectivity which allows
you to activate a helmet camera
from the TFT dash (below).
Triangular Triumph logo mimicked in stoneguard
It sounds horn despite Euro 5 emissions gear
90 |MAY 2019 http://www.adbmag.com.au