2013 Triumph Tiger Explorer...3000 miles later

[Gramps]

As a few of you may know I’ve just recently (March) purchased a 2013 Triumph Tiger Explorer 1200. It’s the 2nd model year and I intentionally waited so that any major bugs would be worked out before I bought. In order to make the purchase I had to first, and most importantly, make sure the wife was comfortable with the erogos and the ride. She hated the stiff suspension of the FJR but, needless to say, very satisfied with the ’97 Gold Wing. Well much to my surprise she was very comfortable on the Explorer when we test rode it and gave me the go ahead.

First decision sell both bikes. The Gold Wing was sold last fall and the FJR was traded in for the Explorer after stripping all the accessories and selling them for buying Explorer accessories.

Okay now the bike. Below are the specs:

Engine and Transmission

Type

Liquid-cooled, 12 valve, DOHC, in-line three-cylinder

Capacity

1215cc

Bore/Stroke

85 x 71.4mm

Fuel System

Ride by wire, fuel injection

Exhaust

Stainless steel 3 into 1 , side mounted stainless steel silencer

Final Drive

Shaft

Clutch

Wet, multi-plate

Gearbox

6-speed

Oil Capacity

4.0 liters (1.1 US gals)

Chassis, Running Gear and Displays

Frame

Tubular steel trellis frame

Swingarm

Single-sided, cast aluminum alloy with shaft drive

Wheel

Front

Cast aluminum alloy 10-spoke 19 x 2.5in

Rear

Cast aluminum alloy 10-spoke 17 x 4.0in

Tire

Front

110/80 R 19

Rear

150/70 R 17

Suspension

Front

KYB 46mm upside down forks, adjustable preload, 190mm travel

Rear

KYB monoshock with remote oil reservoir, hydraulically adjustable preload, rebound damping adjustment, 194mm rear wheel travel

Brakes

Front

"Twin 305mm floating discs, Nissin 4-piston calipers, Switchable ABS

Rear

Single 282mm disc, Nissin 2-piston sliding caliper, Switchable ABS

Instrument Display/Functions

LCD instrument pack with digital speedometer, analogue tachometer, gear position indicator, fuel gauge, range to empty, service indicator, clock, air temperature, frost warning, hazard warning lights, trip computer, Tire pressure monitoring system

Dimensions and Capacities

Length

2248mm/88.4in

Width (handlebars)

962mm (37.9in)

Height without mirrors

1410mm/55.5in

Seat Height

837mm (32.9in) - 857mm (33.7in)

Wheelbase

1530mm/60.2in

Rake/Trail

23.9 degree/105.5mm

Fuel Tank Capacity / Efficiency

20 liters/5.3 US gals

Wet Weight (ready to ride)

259kg/570lbs

Performance (measured at crankshaft to 95/1/EC)

Maximum Power

137PS/135bhp/101kW @ 9300rpm

Maximum Torque

121Nm/89 ft.lbs @ 6400rpm

Fuel Efficiency

38 City / 57 Highway *Estimated from fuel economy tests on a sample motorcycle conducted under ideal laboratory conditions. Actual mileage may vary based upon personal riding habits, weather, vehicle condition, and other factors.

Price

MSRP

$15,699* Price is MSRP, and excludes tax, title, license, options, handling, pre-delivery, and destination charges. Specifications and MSRP are subject to change without notice. Actual price determined by dealer.

Fit & finish first impressions: The overall look of workmanship quality is excellent. Very good paint, good quality parts and plastic alignment looked to be very good. Triumph had done their homework.

I now have 3000 mile under my belt and I’m still in love with the bike, but as with all bikes, there were a few items that didn’t meet my expectations. First and foremost is the stock seat (not surprising). It is way too soft with no support. It’s torture after a couple hundred miles. In order to somewhat compensate for this deficiency I’m using a gel pad until I can send the pans off this winter to get reworked. Also, after installing a few electronics (fuse block, heated gear & gps) which required plastic removal, I found that things didn’t align back together quite so smoothly. Eventually it did. Oil changes are a snap, battery under the seat (as it should be) and plenty of room under the seat too. Stock tools are crap, stock replacement turn signal bulbs are not standard and are hard to find (even at the dealer). Also, which is always in the back of my mind, is the limited dealership network. Hope I never have to try to find one while on the road in nowhere land.

The on board computer is awesome. Maybe because I’ve never had such an amenity. The only downside is that the traction control & ABS cannot be controlled on the fly. You have to stop, engine running, put the bike in neutral (kickstand down) and cycle through the menus to change those options and then if the bike is turned off and restarted everything reverts back to the default setting. Or with the engine off, key to on position (bike electronics powered), select desired settings, then start. Not a big problem just inconvenient.

The suspension is very good but not great. The front has only spring compression adjustments, but the back monoshock has both compression & dampening adjust ability. Also, as you would expect from any dual sport, the amount of travel in the suspension is quite lengthy which provides a very smooth ride on just about all types of road surfaces.

The stock brakes are okay but not as good as the FJR. From what I’ve read changing out the pads for metallic/sintered pads makes a big difference but may shorten the life of the rotor. I can live with that so I’ll be changing them out after they’re toast.

The ride position is upright & for me very comfortable. At speed the triple is smooth & quiet seeming quite tame, but apply some throttle and the power becomes very evident & responsive. Hardly any drive train lash, feels more like chain drive. My ’05 FJR had a noticeable delay between throttle input and power to the tire.

I recently got back from SFO in Arkansas and clocked about 1850 miles for the trip and the bike performed flawlessly. I always felt in control, in fact I could ride the bike as hard as my FJR. I’m not sure if it was the taller narrower tires & slightly lighter weight, but the bike felt more nimble in and out of turns even with the Metzeler Tourance 85/15 dual sport tires. I did push the speed over the century mark and had plenty of throttle left, and the bike was rock solid. Needless to say I was impressed.

I haven’t been off-road much, just gravel roads and it felt very comfortable & controllable. I may try some forest service roads but that’s about as far as I’ll push it. It’s too heavy for trail riding & I’m not 20 anymore.

That’s about all I got for now, I’ll try to update as the mileage increases.

 

[gixxerjasen]

Nice review. And here some think that the FJR resetting the windscreen when turned off is annoying. I'd like to think that my electronics settings wouldn't have to be adjusted every time I turn on the bike though, that's kind of annoying.

Beautiful bikes for sure. I wonder when we'll see the first in the IBR.

 

[Gramps]

Yeah the default settings, which I didn't make all that clear, are ABS on, traction control on level 2 (most aggressive). If I was on a lot of dirt & gravel I'd want them both off, but the default settings are not intrusive.

 

[wabill]

Nice report and glad that you are happy with the Triumph. Love those triple motors!

 

[Tanker]

Thanks for the report. It will be interesting to hear your thoughts as the miles add up on the bike.

I've been looking at the Tiger Explorer as a next/another bike also.

 

[SwollenRaccoon]

Good for you, Marc. Nice report, and glad to see you're enjoying your new ride.

 

[TripperMike]

HEHEHE

Can hardly wait to ask you to recite those spec.s at the next first Thursday get together. AND no cheat sheets!

Awfully sharp looking ride though Marc.

 

[0Face]

One problem I noticed is the tires seem to wear out on the edges faster than the middle. What's up with that Marc?

 

[dcarver]

Gramps, love it that you post your new ride on the fjrforum and full appreciate the diversity of the ride.

Triumph is making some wonderful bikes these days.. and I'm a full blown what-ever-floats-your-motobike kinda guy.

Keep us posted as the miles roll on, with service costs, tire wear, or whatever you find..

Ride on Gramps, Ride ON!

 

[101stpathfinder]

Here is a pic of one I was drooling over in Cedar Key

PC010207-1_zpscf863a70.jpg.html

 

[Gramps]

Thanks for all the kind replies..

HEHEHE
Can hardly wait to ask you to recite those spec.s at the next first Thursday get together. AND no cheat sheets!

Awfully sharp looking ride though Marc.

You're asking a lot Mike, I can barely remember when 1st Thursday is.

One problem I noticed is the tires seem to wear out on the edges faster than the middle. What's up with that Marc?

Grind my boot and I still have a chicken strip.

Gramps, love it that you post your new ride on the fjrforum and full appreciate the diversity of the ride.Triumph is making some wonderful bikes these days.. and I'm a full blown what-ever-floats-your-motobike kinda guy.

Keep us posted as the miles roll on, with service costs, tire wear, or whatever you find..

Ride on Gramps, Ride ON!

Thanks Don. Tires, tires, tires....the one thing that's always going to be a significant investment riding a bike. The Metzleler's are a single compound rubber, as are all the dual sport tires out there that I've seen, and with 3000 miles they're about half gone. Not sure what Ill put on next.

Here is a pic of one I was drooling over in Cedar Key
PC010207-1_zpscf863a70.jpg.html

Nice looking bike Tony, you should take a test ride. I think you might like it.

 

[101stpathfinder]

I am hoping to see yours at CFO this year (?)

 

[Gramps]

I'm going to try and make it.

 

[ShowMeMo]

If you keep that front tire elevated during rides you'll get more miles... Out of the front one anyway.

Glad you're enjoying it...

 

[Bugnatr]

Nice report Marc, did you miss the tupperware or does the wind screen work well on the long runs?

 

[Gramps]

Nice report Marc, did you miss the tupperware or does the wind screen work well on the long runs?

I added some after market wind deflectors that mount directly under the hand grips that make the wind protection perfect for me, even with the small wind screen.

 

[mhc]

i too got a new tiger. I took in up a r/r side road yesterday and was able to run up the dirt road at more than 2mph. It felt firm and steady. It is still heave but the upright sitting helps in the dirt,

Not the speed of my FJR but at lot of power. Fires thing I got was a calsi screen, works well. TO pick the bike up It was 280miles so by the time I got home time for first check up. NOw 10,000mls tell next. I think most work on this bike will right up frount not much in the way. Only 750miles but happy so far

 

[Graham Downunder]

Good to see you report . Stick with Tourance tires they work the best on Vstrom and other dual sport bikes if you do light dirt .Whatever works for you is what really matters as long as you ride .

 

[BkerChuck]

The dealership where I work part time used to handle the Triumph line. We were a dealer from they're reentry in the States up until around 2001 or 2. I always loved the bikes but hated the dealer support from the factory. I know a few folks who work for the nearest Triumph shop and they are in the same boat. I know they try to stock a good selection of the consumables like filters and bulbs but it still sometimes takes longer than it should to get parts from the factory. I'd consider ordering small items like bulbs and keeping my own inventory. I do really like the new Tiger and must say I'd consider one if I only had a bigger garage, and more money. Congrats on the new ride!