Triumph Tiger 900 Officially Unveiled

Triumph Motorcycles has officially unveiled the new Triumph Tiger 900 at a special event at the Triumph factory in Hinckley, UK. The new Tiger 900 features an all-new 900 cc, in-line three-cylinder Euro 5-compliant engine, new full-colour TFT instrument console, riding modes and heavily updated design. Instead of the XR and XC range of the outgoing Tiger 800 range, the new Tiger 900 range is broadly divided into three variants with a Tiger 900 Rally with off-road adventure capability, Tiger 900 GT with touring and mild off-road capability, and a base Tiger 900 model. Both the Rally and GT models also feature a top-spec Pro variant which has more features and capability.

New 888 cc, inline three-cylinder engine makes 94 bhp at 8,750 rpm, 87 Nm at 7,250 rpm

The biggest and most pertinent change to the Tiger 900 is a higher-capacity, 12-valve, inline three-cylinder engine that produces 10 per cent more torque than the outgoing Tiger 800. The power output of the 888 cc engine remains the same as the outgoing model - 94 bhp at 8,750 rpm, but with a stronger mid-range and 10 per cent more torque, with peak torque of 87 Nm kicking in at 7,250 rpm. The new engine also has a different firing order - 1-3-2 - compared to the 1-2-3 firing order of the Tiger 800. According to Triumph, this gives the bike more responsive delivery, improved character and a meatier intake howl, and the revamped firing order is said to replicate the strong throttle character and feel of an inline twin at lower revs, while retaining the stronger mid- and top-range power of a triple.

All variants of the Tiger 900 feature a TFT dash, with a bigger 7-inch screen on the GT and Rally variants

The new Tiger 900 now features inertial measurement unit (IMU), which in turn, powers the ABS and traction control systems on the GT, GT Pro, Rally and Rally Pro variants. Like the old Tiger 800, the new Tiger 900 includes a host of riding modes that adjust the throttle map, traction control settings and ABS settings across the modes. The top-spec Tiger 900 Rally Pro features six modes - Rain, Road, Sport, Off-Road, fully customisable Rider and Off-Road Pro modes. The Tiger 900 GT Pro features five modes, missing the Off-Road Pro mode with Rain, Road, Sport, Off-Road and Rider modes. The Tiger 900 Rally and Tiger 900 GT feature four modes - Rain, Road, Sport and Off-Road, while the base Tiger 900 features just Rain and Road modes.

The Tiger 900 Rally Pro gets six riding modes, and the only variant with manually adjustable Showa suspension

The GT, GT Pro, Rally and Rally Pro also come equipped with backlit switches, cruise control and heated grips. The top-of-the-range Rally Pro and GT Pro models also get heated seats for both rider and pillion, as well as a standard tyre pressure monitoring system. The full-colour TFT screen is standard across all variants, but the base Tiger 900 gets a 5-inch screen, while all other models feature a bigger 7-inch screen. On the top-spec Rally Pro and GT Pro models, the new system is compatible with the MyTriumph Bluetooth connectivity system, which allows handsfree phone control, MP3 music selection and turn-by-turn navigation. The GT Pro and Rally Pro versions also get Triumph Shift Assist, which enables clutchless up and downshifts.

The Triumph Tiger 900 GT Pro is the only variant to feature electronically adjustable Marzocchi suspension

The GT Pro version also features electronically adjustable rear suspension from Marzocchi, with rear preload and damping settings which can be adjusted through the dash and left-hand switch cube. There are nine levels of damping control on offer ranging from Comfort to Sport, and four preload set-ups. The rest of the range all feature manually adjusted Marzocchi units, while the top-spec Rally Pro variant features Showa manually adjustable suspension.

All variants of the new Tiger 900 range come with top-spec Brembo stylema brakes

All variants come with top-spec Brembo stylema four-piston Monobloc calipers. A new steel trellis frame with bolt-on aluminium subframe also makes the new Tiger 900 lighter than the Tiger 800, with dry weight of 192 kg for the base Tiger 900, 194 kg for the Tiger 900 GT, and 196 kg for the Tiger 900 Rally. Prices for the base Tiger 900 begin at GBP 9,500 (around Rs. 8.85 lakh). The new Tiger 900 range will be launched sometime in the second quarter of 2020 in India, and we expect prices to remain in the ballpark of the existing Tiger 800 models, with possibly the Pro variants at a premium.