Motorcycle Review The 2008 Triumph Bonneville Black

I have owned my Bonny Black for a few months now and have taken a 500 mile camping trip with her. On my trip which was interstate combined with parkway she handled great and gave me not one problem. I have noticed that gas with ethanol kills the fuel mileage by 20%. Outside of this it is my third Bonny having on a 60's model followed by a 79 model. My third Bonny and the absolute best ever. By the way I have owned a Cushman Eagle, Yamaha 305, 650, Honda 360, and one 1200 AMF shovelhead Superglide 1972 (HARLEY)which was a pure lemon. Triumph is back and better than ever.

How much did they charge extra for the centre-stand?

Centre stand $343 plu sany fitting charge - quote from Peter Stevens M/C Adelaide pty ltd today 5 Decv 08

I am glad to see Triumph, a true motorcycle ledgend
return, not with some outdated model, but better than ever. I have a restored 73 bonny which is
a joy to ride down long twisty roads.

The center stand is a waste of $$! It does very little, & if you go bigger tire in the RR as I did & many others, it wont work!Get a Sears jack- the most useful tool ya can get for ANY bike!!
Yup the new Bonne's are great! Reliable as ANT Honda I ever had!! Its true ethanol will cut MPG. The new Bonne's- I prefer 03-06. Made in England & better made, less plastic etc.. In 04- mine was 7 G's OTD. Still pretty much tha same? Ride one- you cant resist the urge to get one after!!

http://blackiebernal.webs.com/blackiesforum.h...

My '09 Bonneville Black is a pure joy to own, I ordered the centerstand and installed it myself in about 15 minutes. To me, a centerstand is absolutely necessary for easing chain maintenance and for parking on asphalt parking lots in the South Carolina summertime. If you've ever walked out and found your sidestand sunk into the asphalt surface about an inch before tip over, you'll never want to be without it again. Of course, I use the stock sized tires as they seem to get the job done no matter what the lean angle I take. I don't ride my bike like it's a CBR but have scraped the peg feelers on more than one occasion.

JDubya wrote:

My '09 Bonneville Black is a pure joy to own, I ordered the centerstand and installed it myself in about 15 minutes. To me, a centerstand is absolutely necessary for easing chain maintenance and for parking on asphalt parking lots in the South Carolina summertime. If you've ever walked out and found your sidestand sunk into the asphalt surface about an inch before tip over, you'll never want to be without it again. Of course, I use the stock sized tires as they seem to get the job done no matter what the lean angle I take. I don't ride my bike like it's a CBR but have scraped the peg feelers on more than one occasion.

CAn you get a centerstand for the standard '09 black Bonneville? I heard they were only available now for the '09 older style T100 models?

i want to buy a new bonnie. for me it's hard to pick between the 09 bonnie se or t100 i like the lower seat of the se and the shoter wheel base with less rake and trail for riding around town. the t100 has the longer wheel more rake and trail for the hwy. i have seen broken spokes on the some of the new models (whats that about?)the se cast wheels are easy to clean and the bike is lighter. ilike the looks of the t100 but i think may be the better all around bike. which bike will riders see as the bike to have as time goes on? love to have a thruxton but at 58 yrs. old i need to seat more upright. what do you guys think?

i meant to say i think the 09 se most likey the best over all bike.

sorry can't read or write! you can ride and go to school at the same time.

alfabike wrote:

i want to buy a new bonnie. for me it's hard to pick between the 09 bonnie se or t100 i like the lower seat of the se and the shoter wheel base with less rake and trail for riding around town. the t100 has the longer wheel more rake and trail for the hwy. i have seen broken spokes on the some of the new models (whats that about?)the se cast wheels are easy to clean and the bike is lighter. ilike the looks of the t100 but i think may be the better all around bike. which bike will riders see as the bike to have as time goes on? love to have a thruxton but at 58 yrs. old i need to seat more upright. what do you guys think?

I have got the bonnie se in blue and white recently and I am smiling every time I take it for a ride on our limited island malta. it handles like a much smaller bike and this is mainly due to the 17inch front (from 19 inch previously which ist still used on the actual T 100).

so my choice would always be the SE or the 2009 standard model ... still waiting for a centre stand but,the one of Triumph fits only on the T 100, they are working on a new one, I was told.

alfabike wrote:

i want to buy a new bonnie. for me it's hard to pick between the 09 bonnie se or t100 i like the lower seat of the se and the shoter wheel base with less rake and trail for riding around town. the t100 has the longer wheel more rake and trail for the hwy. i have seen broken spokes on the some of the new models (whats that about?)the se cast wheels are easy to clean and the bike is lighter. ilike the looks of the t100 but i think may be the better all around bike. which bike will riders see as the bike to have as time goes on? love to have a thruxton but at 58 yrs. old i need to seat more upright. what do you guys think?

Saw a man having a whale of a time on a track day at Snetterton England with a Thruxton the jap 4s were flying past it was like seeing an old dog whezzing trying to keep up with the pups but what a wonderfull sight and sound a good time was being had by all!!

If you like the Bonnie and want the ultimate in comfort...look at the Bonneville America. Lowered seat...stretched out....forward controls....etc.. Power, comfort and smooth handling. Still way under 10 grand and turns heads in a crowd of Harleys and Jap wannabes.

thanks guys, i'm going to wait for next year to see what triumph come up with. the america sounds nice but i don't forward controls

I'm new to Triumph bikes. Our local dealership in San Antonio sent me an invitation to come test ride. I picked out an America and rode for thirty minutes in various areas. It was an absolute blast! I'm interested if there are specific things anyone has noticed which would possibly present problems. Love at first ride, just don't want to be disillusioned later. Thanks