Performance At a colossal 1699cc, the world s largest parallel twin engine powering the Triumph Thunderbird Commander and Thunderbird LT packs a mighty big punch, pounding out a remarkable 94PS and truly staggering 151Nm at 3550rpm. Twin balance shafts soothe low frequency vibes, allowing the Thunderbird s pulsating torque to be felt across the rev range. Configuration With forged pistons the size of saucers, the Thunderbird Storm, Commander and Thunderbird LT s 1699cc, eight-valve, water-cooled parallel twin is engineered with a 270° firing interval for a chunky, charismatic power delivery. Because inside is a modern, high-performance, water-cooled power plant with sophisticated electronic fuel injection and engine management, built with Triumph s cutting-edge quality and durability. But don t be fooled by the air-cooling fins. Engine The Triumph Thunderbird engines look every cubic inch a classic cruiser motor, designed with Triumph s unique, big-bore parallel twin twist. The Triumph Thunderbird Storm is blacked-out, mean-streets cruiser that uses its enlarged motor to hammer out even more gut-wrenching bottom-end performance. Thunderbird Storm The Triumph Thunderbird Storm has an underlying chassis, the ultimate breed of muscle cruiser. Meanwhile the Triumph Thunderbird LT is loaded with the easy-going, laid-back vibe of a premium classic touring cruiser, as well as a host of long-distance accessories. The Thunderbird Commander has the essential power-cruiser style and broad, dynamic riding stance to utterly dominate any road and ride. Otherwise, the two model years are virtually identical.2017 Triumph Thunderbird LT ABS Lava Red / Phantom Black, 2017 Triumph Thunderbird LT ABS Lava Red / Phantom Black Thunderbird Commander and Thunderbird LT The Triumph Thunderbird Commander and Thunderbird LT share an underlying chassis and are powered by the same massively torquey 1699cc parallel twin engine, but they re two very different breeds of muscle cruiser. As mentioned, it should be Thunder-Blue (a blu-grey), but instead it is the correct color for 1951, Polychromatic Blue. So the color is not correct for our study of the 1950 Triumph 6T Thunderbird. The bike pictured here is actually a 1951 model 6T Thunderbird, as a suitable 1950 photo was not available. For the Thunderbird, Turner selected a blue-grey called “Thunder-Blue”. He sparked up sales & did it almost entirely by juicing up the colors on the bikes. Just look what he did for the Triumph line when he arrived from Ariel Motorcycles in 1935. They sure were obsessed with riding in the rain, weren’t they? (Well, I guess we can’t all live in California.)ġ950 TRIUMPH THUNDERBIRD – EDWARD TURNER HAD A GIFTĮdward Turner was not just a gifted mechanical engineer, he had a real talent for style & color. All of this weather protection was also supposed to make the bike easier to clean after riding in the rain. It had generous fenders, made to cope with wet British riding conditions, & a headlight nacelle housing not only the headlight, but the gauges, top yoke, fork tube tops & the center section of the handlebars. The look of the Triumph Thunderbird was established early on & followed normal convention for a machine of its type. However, export versions (read that US) had 8.5:1 which was enough to boost power to 34hp 6500 rpm, enough to push the 370lb Thunderbird past 100mph! Home market 650s had a 7:1 compression ratio to cope with the low octane British Pool fuels available at the time. The cast iron cylinder block & head were similar, but the 650 head was more generously finned & utilized a copper gasket instead of a ‘spigot’ arrangement, common for the day. It is said to have made everything last longer: engines, primary chains, clutches, gearboxes & even final drive chains! When the alternator replaced it, Meriden attempted to do the same job with rubber shock absorbers inside the clutch hub, but it never worked nearly as well.įor the most part, the new Thunderbird 650 engine was the same as the 500cc Triumph Speed Twin it evolved from. This brilliant device decoupled the engine from the primary, linking them through a spring-loaded, cammed interface that allowed a controlled amount of ‘give’, smoothing out harmful vibrations. Introduced with the 1950 T-Bird, it remained in service until the conversion to alternator electrics in 1953, which was now mounted in its place on the left end of the crank, inside the primary cover. Another interesting feature was the crankshaft shock absorber.
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