2024 Triumph Street Triple 765 R/RS Review - First Ride

A significant engine update combined with further chassis refinement

For the previous week, I’d anxiously checked the weather reports for updates. Sandwiched in between swaths of little sun icons were two little black clouds spewing raindrops. Naturally, those were the scheduled dates for the US press to ride the 2024 Triumph Street Triple 765 R and RS on the Andalusian backroads and the famed Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto in southern Spain.

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And my wishes were granted. The rain plowed through the night before the first ride day, leaving drying roads and temperatures gradually rising from the mid-40s to the low-50s through our street ride. Once the day’s photography was done and with the tarmac finally dry – if a bit dusty – the pace picked up to the point that I felt, rather than tiptoeing around the wet spots, we were really getting to sample the engine’s new power delivery and chassis’ refinement. The roads, though bumpy in places, were an intoxicating mix of extended sections of high-speed sweeping corners with brief, more technical portions to feel the chassis’ sprightliness. In a short series of esses, I aggressively rolled on the throttle at the exit of a second gear, 50 mph left hander, my ears full of the seductive growl of the 765cc Triple, a smile growing on my lips, and without warning, the front end folded…

2024 Triumph Street Triple 765 R/RS

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From its 2007 inception, the Street Triple has been extremely popular among journalists and riders alike. With milestone models in 2008, the introduction of the R; 2013, the introduction of ABS on a new chassis; 2015, the release of the RX model plus the inclusion of a quickshifter and Daytona subframe; 2017, introducing a new 765cc engine in a three-model family (S, R, and RS); and 2020, highlighting 9% more midrange along with Brembo brakes, Öhlins suspension, and up/down quickshifter. With each update, the sporting credentials of the Street Triple were sharpened without compromising the upright, naked-bike riding position. To date, Triumph has sold over 130,000 units around the world.

While the rest of the world will see the newest Street Triple as a 2023 model, the US will see the same bike, at the same time, as a 2024 model due to some bureaucratic nonsense. Regardless, Street Triple fans around the world have something to be excited about. In a true trickle down of race technology, Triumph has applied the knowledge gained from its Moto2 development of the 765cc Triple spec engine to the street. Additionally, the rest of the bike’s capabilities have been sharpened to match. Finally, while a Moto2 version of the Street Triple was on hand for journalists to look at, we were not allowed to ride them since the limited run had already been snapped up by the public.

From Moto2 to the Street

Triumph deems the upgrades made to the engine bay significant, and by the time we’re done here, you’re likely to agree. Let’s get the party started by looking at the combustion chamber which was altered to give a 4.7% bump in the compression ratio to 13.25:1. To achieve this lofty number, the formerly cast piston crowns receive the benefit of machining. Deeper valve cutouts and careful reshaping of the pistons mate to a cylinder head that is machined to these closer tolerances, while the 78.0 mm bore and 53.4 mm stroke remain unchanged.

The result of this machining of the heads is higher flow intake ports with a larger cross-sectional area. In fact, the ports are only lacking the final hand polishing when compared to the Moto2 engine. Astute readers will suspect that the deeper cutouts in the piston crown mean that the valve lift has also increased. Naturally, the same logic would follow that the cams and cam timing were also massaged. In order to accommodate the larger forces generated in the combustion chamber, stronger rods and pins were utilized.

The increased flow of the combustibles and the byproducts wasn’t just handled inside the engine. The intake trumpets in the airbox were shortened by 20mm (0.79 in.) for better top end, while the exhaust flow rate was improved by utilizing a single catalyst instead of the two previously incorporated. A nice side-effect of the single catalyst is that it saves weight, too.

Now, we get to the differences between the R and the RS in power output. From the dyno charts below, we can see that the R gets significant horsepower gains from 5,000 rpm up to peak hp. In fact, the R’s power curve looks quite similar to last year’s RS, though at 118 hp, it has a slightly lower peak. Triumph claims that the only difference between the two models’ power output is in the tuning, not the hardware. The tuning that delivers the increased top end power (128 hp!) also adds a modicum of power in the midrange, but this slight increase would be hard to feel from the saddle. However, the improved smoothness of the curve is noticeable. Similarly, while the torque peak grew to 59 lb-ft, its improved smoothness from 4,000 rpm to the 9,500 rpm peak plays a key role in the ST’s exciting acceleration.

Newfound power is always good, but the source of the most noticeable change in the Street Triple’s acceleration gets credited to the shorter gearing. While first gear is slightly taller, the snappy throttle response owes a lot to the shorter ratios in second through sixth gears. Additionally, the final drive was shortened. When combined with the silky-smooth fueling, the Triple leaps out of corners with a ferocity that suits the sexy engine growl.

Quickshifter, IMU, and ABS – oh my!

For the first time, all Street Triple models receive quick shifters as standard equipment. Utilizing the sensor module from the Speed Triple 1200, the quickshifter is more than an on/off switch to aid in shifting gears. The technology has advanced to the point that the pressure on the shift lever and the speed at which it is being moved are added (in addition to the usual factors of speed, engine speed, throttle position, and rate of throttle change) into the algorithm that dynamically determines the changes to the engine’s power to facilitate the best up-/down-shifts.

But in the interest of a transitional paragraph, I have buried the lede about the Street Triple’s electronics. An IMU is finally included in the package, allowing for cornering ABS and lean-sensitive TC – features that were quite noticeably absent from the 2020 update. For this change, Triumph turned to Continental for IMU and ABS technology. The ABS modulator utilizes a built-in six-axis IMU for compact packaging. The result is what Triumph calls Optimized Cornering ABS and Optimized Cornering Traction Control.

Both the Street Triple’s ABS and TC have separate settings that are linked to specific ride modes and are predictive, thanks to the IMU, rather than reactive, as they were with the previous generation. This is a very big deal. The R and the RS both have Rain, Road, Sport, and Rider modes (for user-programmable settings), and the three standard modes all have bespoke cornering ABS and TC settings, with the most restrictive being Rain. (As an aside, Rain mode limits the power to approximately 100 hp, while the others deliver full power with varied throttle mapping.) Another interesting note about these modes is that the ABS module links the front and rear brakes in that when the front brake is applied, a small amount of rear brake is used to settle the chassis. The reverse is not true, and the rear brake application has no influence on the front.

The RS also has a Track mode, which bears some discussion. In Track mode, Cornering ABS is discontinued, as is the link between the front and rear brakes. Additionally, significantly more slip is enabled in both braking and acceleration before software intervention. Riders who charge corners with the front brakes at the limits of the tire’s adhesion will benefit from these new settings, which unlike with the previous generation, require the tire to be actively sliding before ABS kicks in. While all modes have wheelie control (except Rider, which is switchable), Track allows for front wheel lift, to a point, under acceleration. Since Track mode is designed to let the rider squeeze the most performance possible out of the bike, wheelie control is retained to support maximum acceleration, since lifting the front wheel more than slightly above the pavement only serves to limit acceleration.

Chassis changes

The changes from the previous iteration of the Street Triple to the 2024 version are slight but important – and they differ for the R and RS. For example, the R’s rake is shortened to 23.7°, which is steeper than last year’s RS 23.9° measurement. The same goes for the trail, which is now 3.85 in. versus 3.94 in. The RS’ numbers are even sportier at 23.2° and 3.82 in. Additionally, the rear of the RS was raised, resulting in a 32.9-in. seat height, 0.4-in. higher than the R’s 32.5-in seat. Aiding in the sporting feel of the riding position, a 12 mm (0.5 in.) wider handlebar was lifted from the Speed Triple 1200. Both models put the rider in an aggressive, upright position for attacking corners. Wind protection, as before, is practically nonexistent but doesn’t really become an issue until around 120 mph.

Braking is another area where the R and RS diverge. While both sport 310 mm discs up front, their calipers and master cylinders differ. The R receives a set of the venerable Brembo M4.32 4-piston radial monobloc calipers and a Nissin axial master cylinder, while the RS receives the calipers of the moment, Brembo Stylema 4-piston radial monoblocs, actuated by a slick Brembo MCS radial master cylinder. The only brake complaint echoed by any of the riders that I heard concurred with my gripe about the MCS’ adjustable lever still being too far from the grip when in its closest position.

Following the trend between the two models, the suspension of the R is of a lower spec than that of the RS. The R’s suspenders consist of a Showa 41 mm USD Separate Function, Big Piston fork in the front and a Showa piggyback reservoir monoshock out back. Both are fully adjustable. The RS benefits from a higher-spec Showa 41 mm upside down Big Piston fork and an Öhlins STX40 piggyback reservoir monoshock. While the forks both have 4.5-in. travel, the R’s shock allows for 5.3-in. travel. Surprisingly, the RS’ rear wheel travel is 5.2 in. Finishing out the 2024 Street Triple’s rolling gear is a set of Continental ContiRoad tires on the R and Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa SP V3 tires on the RS. Both versions are sized 120/70 ZR 17 and 180/55 ZR 17, front and rear, respectively.

Putting the changes to the test

When we last saw our hapless protagonist, the handlebar had folded all the way to the stop, leaving him with little option other than letting the laws of physics run their course. But let’s rewind the tape to a place where we can actually discuss the performance of the Street Triple’s capabilities and not the rider’s shortcomings.

Day one of the introduction was a street ride on the Andalusian backroads near the Jerez circuit. Because of heavy rain for most of the night before and morning temperatures in the low 40s, the initial pace was quite sedate on the still-wet roads. I was happy to wait for higher temperatures and drier conditions before hustling the RS into the corners, because Supercorsa SPs are not traditionally known for their wet-weather grip. Fortunately, the bikes were outfitted with accessory heated grips, which made a huge difference in the early stages of the ride.

On the street, both the R’s and the RS’ engines feel virtually identical, despite the difference in the top-end power. This is to be expected on the street. With both mills, the fuel mapping was glitch free, allowing for careful modulation of the throttle on the sometimes quite wet pavement. As the day dried out and the temperatures warmed up into the 50s, the pace did, too.

I noticed the biggest difference between the bikes in the brakes. The Brembo MCS master cylinder, despite the slightly long reach, delivered immediate braking at the initial move of the lever. This was not abrupt but rather gave me the ability to vary my braking power over the largest possible range. Additionally, the lever ratio could be altered over three clicks from 19-21mm, with 19 mm giving the most feel and 21 mm a firmer lever. In the dodgy conditions, I opted for 19 mm. From the first corner with the RS, I felt immediately comfortable with the brake system, trusting it to give me the modulation to brake deeply into corners.