Update on my TTSE after 1 year

[Mike2411]

Hey guys and girls, it's been a while so I hope everyone is doing well!

I figured I'd give a 1-year update since buying by 2016 black TTSE (a year in May).

Where do I begin ! I bought the bike last May and currently have 13,200 miles on her. I came from a 2012 Kawasaki Concours and will admit I had "power envy" for a while...really missed the power the C14 has. That envy has since gone away and I love my TTSE! Compared to the Concours the TTSE is much more 'comfy' and I enjoy all of the other creature-comforts the bike offers. So, this post is my opinion and I'm not trying to do anything other than offer my "2 cents worth" on how I feel about the bike.

Motor - Like I said, had "power envy" for quite a while but that has since gone away. It took me a while to get used to the feel of the triple compared to the C14's motor. Now, the motor feels great and I've settled in and am really enjoying it!

Handling - The Trophy is an amazing bike! The handling characteristics of the TTSE are AMAZING! The Concours always felt somewhat "top heavy" but the TTSE is so good that I find every twistie road I can find and I ride it and ride it like I stole it! The TTSE feels like it's half the weight of what it actually is

Tires - At the 6,000 mile mark I changed tires and had the PR4 GT's put on. Well, the PR4's lasted 6,000 miles...so much for a 12,000 to 15,000 mile tire ! I wore the rubber off of those things FAST! That's the problem with how well this bike handles, it's really hard to take it easy!

Windscreen - I bought the bike with the stock screen and ordered the optional "touring screen" that Triumph offers. I have also purchased and tried all 3 sizes of the VStream windscreen. I feel that the Triumph screens are great and the optional "touring screen" is the best of all I've tried, by far (again, only my opinion)!

Seat - I upgraded to the "comfort seat" when I bought the bike and it has been nothing short of AMAZING! My butt is happy on the seat! On Saturday I did a 12 hour, 730 mile round trip to Death Vally and back and it was great! My butt was good the entire time. It was my knees and legs that were uncomfortable after approximatel 400 miles. So, when I returned home I apporached my wife and asked if we could start saving money for some "crash bars" and highway pegs ...she didn't hit me but it was a tough conversation ...but she might be in , I hope!

Maintenance - I have had my first service done (600 miles), 2 sets of tires mounted (just had Pirelli Angel GT's mounted last Thursday), and my 10,000 mile service done which cost about $340.00. Now, here's the really bad part of the whole maintenance/service thing. I have my work done by the dealer that I bought the bike from, Thousand Oaks Powersports. They have always worked on my bikes and have always been great. They changed service managers not too long ago and now, service is WEAK! First, they did my 10,000 mile service and never put my plastic on correctly...it was all messed up !

Maintenance (cont) - Here's where it gets really bad! I took my bike to T.O. Powersports on Thursday to have the new tires mounted so that I had good rubber for my Death Valley run. I got the bike back, rode a short ride on Friday, parked it, and got ready for my eary departure Saturday morning. I took off at 5:30 AM Saturday and rode to Death Valley and back, hitting speeds of 90-100 mph at times, and pushing the bike hard through the twisty mountain passes ! I got home at 5:30 PM and parked the bike, went inside and passed out for the night (I was beat)! I woke up Sunday and went out to clean the bike. When I wiped down the front fender it was FLOPPING ALL OVER THE PLACE ! One screw was gone, one was loose, and 2 were tight but not threaded the correct way. When I say "flopped, or FLOPPED", I mean I could move the fender up/down by several inches...it was TERRIBLE !!!! I decided I better check things near the rear wheel, figuring they messed up the mounting of my front fender, so I needed to see if eveything was mounted correctly (I need to mention that during my ride I felt a small "shake" in the bike when I applied brakes). I went to the rear and started moving things with my hand to see if anything was loose...low and behold, my rear brake assembly had a very slight amount of play in it. It was enough play to where I could make it "click" as I moved it back and forth and there was visibly movement in the assembly ! I shot video of the issus and have sent those off to the service department with some "not so happy" emails. I will be hearing from them tomorrow, I'm sure.

So, all-in-all I am very happy with the Trophy and look forward to putting a ton of miles on that bike! I do need to find another certified Triumph mechanic because I can't trust these guys at T.O. Powersports to work on my bike and put things back correctly. I'm very disappointed with their performance so will be looking for a replacement! Either that or I satrt working on the bike myself. The only issue I have with that is the warranty...don't want to run into warranty issues if something were to go wrong and they discover I've been doing my own work!

Mike

P.S. Sorry for the long post and for any typos or anything I missed.

[Ebenezer]

P.S. Sorry for the long post and for any typos or anything I missed.

Mike, I appreciate long posts like this one!

Henk

[Mike2411]

Thanks Henk! I just noticed, after going through that post numerous times, that I have a typo in the second sentence...LOL! Oh well, I'm sure everyone will figure out what I'm trying to say!

[AVI.INC]

Hi Mike
This is the guy at lest three members on here use.
http://www.cohenmotorsports.com/news-and-press.html

Very good

[Mike2411]

Thank you and I appreciate the info but that's a bit too far for a service run. That's a 2-ish hour trip one way for me...not that I mind the ride but if they should have to keep it overnight then it becomes difficult! I really do appreciate it though and wish I could swing it! I don't see much of anything in terms of Triumph service providers here in Ventura County .

This is the reason I almost stayed with the Concours, the reason I was hesitant in the first place to make the switch. Don't get me wrong, I love the TTSE but these service nightmares aren't fun and I had zero issues when the Concours was worked on. T.O. Powersports needs to send their guys out for some serious training. If they don't handle this incident to my liking I am going to contact Triumph and let them know what I'm dealing with...the hammer will fall! I don't want to be like this but they have done something wrong the last 3 times my bike has been in and this one is inexcusable!

Mike

[AZBob]

This is precisely why I do my own work on the bike. Nobody cares about me and my bike as much as I do. Granted, there are the occasional very good mechanics, but you'll die from the mistakes of the 15 you try before you find the good one.

This isn't to say everyone should do their own work... some people don't have the time, others the skill, still others the tools, or space, etc. 

[Mike2411]

That's my fear and this last issue by the dealer confirmed those fears!

If you guys could see how loose my front fender is you'd crap your pants...LOL...sorry, I didn't know how else to put it!

And the fact that there's even the slightest play in my rear brake assy is ridiculous! Fortunately, I made the 730 mile Death Valley trip without issue.

[droptine1968]

Originally Posted by Mike2411

 The only issue I have with that is the warranty...don't want to run into warranty issues if something were to go wrong and they discover I've been doing my own work!

Would they void the warranty for basic maintenance such as oil change, air cleaner, brake pads, etc......