Triumph Sprint ST

[mfletch69]

My goal is to tour the country with my two sons (currently 16 & 14.5 yars old) as soon as the younger one is ready...so I have a couple of years. I am imagining them on DL650s for that trip. My wife & I on the FJR.

I bought an '05 Ninja 250 and the 16y has been practicing and just passed his Basic Rider course this weekend and yesterday me and my older son went on our first ride together! :yahoo:

So now I want to take hime on a ride this summer and I am not sure the Ninja would be up to it, even with the saddle bags and touring windscreen, so I am exploring inexpensive options. 2000 - 2004 Triumph Sprint STs keep popping up in the $3000 range. They seem smaller than an older Concourse and my son is 5'8", 130lbs.

Do any of you have any experience with these bikes? Any other suggestions?

I was even thinking of an old GL500 Silverwing.

 

[user 6393]

Just sat on one yesterday in fact...

Light, good ergos, BUT, clip on handlebars and a very sportbike "on your wrists" seated stance. Would not be suitable for long days in the saddle. Well, not for me anyway.

I seem to recall some chatter about headlight issues with some older years. Other than that? awesome bike.

If you go on sport-touring.net there is a lot of good Sprint ST info/feedback. A lot of dedicated Sprint riders there.

 

[HotRodZilla]

One of my good friends had an '06 (I think) Sprint that I rode before I got my FJR. It was that bike that actually tipped the scales in my decision to buy. It was a great bike. Good power, excellent handling, Hella fast with great torque and even nice to look at. The reason I did not buy a Sprint was because it was a little cramped. I'm 5'9" and built pretty thick. After buying my FJR, my friend who is about 5'6" was having comfort issues and we put 1.5 inch (I think) risers on the bars. It took us about 20 minutes to instal them and they made a TON of difference. Honestly, back then, if the first time I had ridden the Sprint, it had been equipped with those risers, I may have bought one. I think you'll have a hard time going wrong with one. Good luck.

 

[Tyler]

Given he's a newer rider, have you considered the SV650 standard? I had one and rode it on longer trips and found it to be just fine for those purposes. B)

 

[user 213]

The Ninja 250 will do fine. A couple of guys have ridden the IBR on them. If he's comfortable on it, and packs light, the bike will hold up just fine.

Are you worried about the bike, or the boy?

 

[SPORT]

2000 - 2004 Triumph Sprint STs keep popping up in the $3000 range. They seem smaller than an older Concourse and my son is 5'8", 130lbs.

I don't know your son's ability to manage risk, somuch is assumed here.

I bought a new '02 Sprint ST and put 25,000 miles on her. 2002-2005 are the Gen. II ST, and as such are the 955 FI engine. There is PLENTY of go-go juice and can move through the 6 gears quite quickly. I raced an '05 RC51 and we were neck-n-neck till about 130mph when the Sprint began running out of steam.

They are a bit heavier and takes a bit more pressure to negotiate corners, but they will do so on command. Never scraped a peg, but I have scraped lower fairing after compressing the front struts on some rough corners.

Comfort wise, they are the cats meow for the SPORT touring side of a touring bike. Still leaned over, but not as bad as the full-on sport bikes.

The only concern I remember having was...well...I dont recall any. 25,000 miles of pure fun.

Sport

 

[rnees]

not a sprint, but I went cross country twice on a 98 speed triple. same basic setup (I think) minus the plastic. Gads, I loved that bike. Sometime wish I still had it. Had soft bags (saddle and seat) and a tank bag. enough to go camping for three weeks at a time. As mentioned, great oomph and a good riding position, for 400-500 miles a day. And the triple is a wheelie monster...(just what you want for a new rider...)

Ahh the memories...

 

[eg23232]

I currently own an 06 Sprint ABS and had an 01 Sprint before that. I put a lot of miles on the 01. I didn't have hard bags (and don't on the current one either) but use(d) soft luggage instead. For me (5'08" 180) both fit me very well. Personally I like the lower bars. The 01 could be fitted with risers and later 06 and on Sprints came with higher bars and windscreens standard (along with the luggage). The Sprint (both the 955 and 1050 are torque monsters). Both very comfy for me on long rides. I've done BC, North Cascades, Laguna-Seca, Sonoma and many other long rides. Great gas mileage on both. Never any mechanical issues with either. The 05's and newer can be found with the benefit of ABS too.

I was going to sell my 06 but every time I ride it I fall back in love with that 1050 triple all over again. So I'm keeping it. Now, I have the luxury of the FJR for "touring" so the Sprint is my sportbike.

 

[MotorToad]

I'm a huge fan of the ST, I think the 955/1050 triple is my favorite motorcycle engine ever. The bike is light enough to be ridden very sportily but can still cover miles... think VFR (I've read that it was half-jokingly called the "TFR" in development). Having said that, I also vote for the Ninja... why buy something else? Erm, thinking about that... If you really think you must get another bike, I might go with a nice VFR-750 if I could find one I trusted. Carry a voltage regulator and they're a real miler.

 

[mfletch69]

My main worry is the braking on the Ninja...but a lot of that is due to it's ****** front suspension. I decided to beef up the springs and let him ride the 250 for a while. Those Sts look pretty nice though.....

Thanks for the input.

 

[reecebike]

I guess the ninja 250 is better than walking I guess????

 

[Yamma Jamma]

Personal opinion...

Would never purchase any motor vehicle of any kind mfg in UK.

 

[user 6393]

Personal opinion...
Would never purchase any motor vehicle of any kind mfg in UK.

I dunno, if I had the $ I could be swayed by this...

 

[RAVENRIDER]

I test rode a Gen II Sprint a while back and it had the worst suspension ever. Could have been that particular bike's setup but it left a bad taste in my mouth. It also caused me to get down on my hands and knees and really, really look close at the bike.

Once you get over the gah-gah effect of its stunning looks at distance, you will find those triple pipes are actually pretty cheaply made, as is the single sided swing arm, as is a number of stamped metal parts.

I just found the build quality was nowhere near Japanese standards. In contrast, the Triumph Tiger was much better built. Probably the result of a whole new design vs cannibalizing the parts bin.

 

[kolonial72]

Seems like you already settled on the Ninja 250, which is a good choice (with the improved suspension you propose). If not, the idea of a Silverwing with fairly low miles is a pretty good one. That 955 may be a little much for most youngsters. Wait...can you put a rev limiter on one? Maybe a remote kill switch?